OBSERVER: Birrarangga
The 2025 Birrarangga Film Festival has cemented its place as Australia’s premier First Nations-led film festival, delivering its most successful edition to date.
With ticket sales tripling since its last event, BFF has set a new benchmark for film festivals nationwide, showcasing a powerful and diverse lineup of Indigenous storytelling from around the world.
Over six days, BFF presented 150 films across 11 venues in Melbourne – a significant expansion from 90 films and six venues in 2023.
The festival also welcomed 20 international guests, more than doubling its previous record.
For those unable to attend in person, heartfelt video introductions, from Ava DuVernay for the Gala event, opening night Director Katja Gauriloff and Leonard Peltier underscored their gratitude for BFF’s commitment to Indigenous cinema.
One of the festival’s most powerful moments came at the sold-out screening of Free Leonard Peltier, co-presented by BFF and the Melbourne International Film Festival with Producer Jhane Myers (Prey – Alien Predator) and Holly Cook Macarro (Instrumental in Leonard’s freedom and appearing in film) in attendance for Q & A.
Following the film, the audience was treated to a surprise video message from Peltier himself, recorded especially for BFF after his historic pardon—a momentous occasion that necessitated a re-edit of the film prior to its Sundance and BFF Southern Hemisphere premiere.Z
BFF’s Centrepiece Gala Event featured a screening of Ava DuVernay’s Origin, the powerful adaptation of Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Isabel Wilkerson’s book Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents. The night was elevated by special video message from Ava and then a breathtaking live performance from Stan Walker, who sang I Am, the film’s closing song.