Who is Rachel Perkins?
Rachel Perkins is an Aboriginal Australian film and television director, an Arrernte and Kalkadoon woman, known for Bran Nue Dae, Radiance, Mystery Road and the documentary series First Australians.
Born in Canberra in 1970, Perkins is the daughter of Charles Perkins, the Aboriginal activist who led the 1965 Freedom Ride through New South Wales. She grew up with a strong sense of social justice and Aboriginal history.
She began her career at the Central Australian Aboriginal Media Association in Alice Springs and later founded Blackfella Films, a production company dedicated to Indigenous stories.
Major works
Her first feature, Radiance, released in 1998, starred Deborah Mailman and Rachael Maza. Bran Nue Dae, a 2009 musical comedy set in Broome and starring Rocky McKenzie, Jessica Mauboy and Geoffrey Rush, was a popular hit.
She directed and produced the landmark documentary series First Australians in 2008, telling Australian history from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander perspectives. She also directed the first series of Mystery Road and the film Jasper Jones.
Perkins has been a strong advocate for Indigenous voices in Australian media and supported the Uluru Statement from the Heart. Her documentary series The Australian Wars, released in 2022, explores frontier conflicts.
Did You Know?
Bran Nue Dae was based on the 1990 stage musical by Jimmy Chi and his band Kuckles.