Like My Brother

From the Tiwi Islands to Melbourne and back again, four young women who seek to make it in elite sport must face uncertain futures.

Although Rina, Freda, Juliana and Jess hail from the Tiwi Islands – at the opposite end of Australia’s sporting capital, Melbourne – they all dream of playing professional footy in the AFLW. But while dreaming is one thing, achieving it is another. They soon discover that nothing about this pursuit will be easy as they each navigate the barriers of urban modernity faced by many First Nations young people. These include, most significantly, the hardship of leaving loved ones and the strain of distance and homesickness, especially on the isolated and vulnerable.

This coming-of-age documentary shot in the Northern Territory and Victoria is the feature debut of Luritja and Warumungu filmmaker Danielle MacLean, who previously directed an entry in the anthology film We Are Still Here (MIFF 2022) and has written for Mystery Road; she co-directs here with Sal Balharrie. Confronting the universal themes of family, ambition and sacrifice through the specific lens of sport, Like My Brother is an inspiring film that will open viewers’ eyes not just to the realities of life in the Tiwi Islands but also to the resilience required to find success as an outsider.