''Radiance'' is a 1998 Australian

independent film An independent film, independent movie, indie film, or indie movie is a feature film or short film that is film production, produced outside the Major film studios, major film studio system in addition to being produced and distributed by independ ...

. It is the first feature film directed by

Rachel Perkins Rachel Perkins (born 1970) is an Indigenous Australian film and television director, producer, and screenwriter. She founded and was co-director of the independent film production company Blackfella Films from 1992 until 2022. Perkins and the ...

, and only the third feature directed by an

Indigenous Australian Indigenous Australians are people with familial heritage from, or recognised membership of, the various ethnic groups living within the territory of contemporary Australia prior to History of Australia (1788–1850), British colonisation. The ...

person. It is about three Indigenous sisters who reunite for their mother's funeral, and is based on the 1993 play written by

Louis Nowra Mark Doyle, better known by his stage name Louis Nowra, (born 12 December 1950) is an Australian writer, playwright, screenwriter and librettist. He is best known as one of Australia's leading playwrights. His works have been performed by all o ...

Plot

Three sisters, Cressy, Nona, and Mae, who have not seen each other for a long time, are brought together after their mother dies, to arrange her funeral. Mae wears her mother's

wedding dress A wedding dress or bridal gown is the dress worn by the bride during a wedding ceremony. The color, style and ceremonial importance of the gown can depend on the religion and culture of the wedding participants. Wedding dresses hold a significan ...

, while she and Nona argue about what to do with their mother's ashes. They each try to grab the ashes, which then spill all over Cressy.

Cast

Rachael Maza Rachael Zoa Maza , also credited as Rachael Maza Long, is an Indigenous Australian television and film actress, and stage director. She is known for her role in the 1998 film ''Radiance'', and worked with Company B and Wesley Enoch in Sydney fo ...

as Cressy *

Deborah Mailman Deborah Jane Mailman (born 14 July 1972) is an Australian television and film actress, and singer. Mailman is best known for her characters: Parliament of Australia, MP Alexandra "Alex" Irving on the Australian political drama series ''Total Co ...

as Nona *

Trisha Morton-Thomas Patricia Morton-Thomas, usually credited as Trisha Morton-Thomas, is an Australian writer, producer, director, and actor. Her first role in a feature film was in ''Radiance'' (1998), the first feature film by director Rachel Perkins. Morton-Th ...

as Mae *

Russell Kiefel Russell John Kiefel (1951 – 20 November 2016) was an Australian stage (theatre), stage, film and television actor. After graduating from the National Institute of Dramatic Art, Kiefel started his screen acting career with a role in the 1977 fea ...

as Father Doyle

Production

Rachel Perkins became aware of the play when she saw Trisha Morton-Thomas perform Mae's beach monologue as a part of the Eora College end-of-year student showcase. Perkins called

to adapt it into a half-hour drama, but Nowra suggested they make it as a

feature film A feature film or feature-length film (often abbreviated to feature), also called a theatrical film, is a film (Film, motion picture, "movie" or simply “picture”) with a running time long enough to be considered the principal or sole present ...

. It was her first feature fiction film as a director, and only the third feature film directed by an

person, following '' Jindalee Lady'' (1992) and ''

BeDevil ''Bedevil'', styled ''BeDevil'', is a 1993 Australian horror film directed by Tracey Moffatt, the first feature directed by an Australian Aboriginal woman. Plot The film is a trilogy of surreal ghost stories. Inspired by ghost stories she hea ...

'' (1993). Perkins said later that it took a long time to cast the main characters, who included

Deb Mailman Deborah Jane Mailman (born 14 July 1972) is an Australian television and film actress, and singer. Mailman is best known for her characters: Parliament of Australia, MP Alexandra "Alex" Irving on the Australian political drama series ''Total Co ...

, then a newcomer from

Brisbane Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...

, and that they rehearsed for six weeks before filming began. The actors got to know their characters really well, and added ideas to the script. Louis Nowra wrote the script,

Ned Lander Ned Lander is an Australian film producer, Film director, director, and former head of SBS independent, SBS Independent, from Adelaide, South Australia. He has produced or commissioned many culturally significant programs, including the animate ...

produced the film, and the cinematographer was

Warwick Thornton Warwick Thornton is an Australian film director, screenwriter, and cinematographer. His debut feature film '' Samson and Delilah'' won the Caméra d'Or at the 2009 Cannes Film Festival and the award for Best Film at the Asia Pacific Screen Awar ...

. ''Radiance'' was filmed at Agnes Water, Rosedale, Childers,

Bundaberg Bundaberg () is the major regional city in the Wide Bay-Burnett region of the state of Queensland, Australia. It is the List of cities in Australia by population, ninth largest city in the state. The Bundaberg central business district is situa ...

, and

Hervey Bay Hervey Bay () is a city on the coast of the Fraser Coast Region of Queensland, Australia. The city is situated approximately or 3½ hours' highway drive north of the state capital, Brisbane. It is located on the bay of the same name open to ...

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

, and in

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

Awards

;

Australian Film Institute The Australian Film Institute (AFI) was founded in 1958 as a non-profit organisation devoted to developing an active film culture in Australia and fostering engagement between the general public and the Cinema of Australia, Australian film indu ...

*Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role: Deborah Mailman *Nominations: **Best Achievement in Direction, Best Achievement in Editing, Best Achievement in Production Design, Best Film, Best Screenplay Adapted from Another Source ;

Australian Screen Sound Guild The Australian Screen Sound Guild is a professional association for people working in audio engineering and post-production in film, television, multimedia, and related industries across Australia. It recognises excellence in the industries by a ...

*Best Achievement in Sound Design & FX Editing for a Feature Film ;

Canberra International Film Festival The Canberra International Film Festival (CIFF) is an annual film festival held in Canberra, Australia. It is a cinema celebration across an 11-day program in October/November each year. It is a showcase of films from Australia and around the gl ...

*Audience Award ;

Film Critics Circle of Australia Awards The Film Critics Circle of Australia (FCCA) is an association of film criticism, cinema critics and film review, reviewers. It includes journalists in "media, television, major national and state papers, radio, national and state, online and fr ...

*Best Actor – Female: Deborah Mailman *Nomination: Best Screenplay – Adapted ;

Melbourne International Film Festival The Melbourne International Film Festival (MIFF) is an annual film festival held over three weeks in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It was founded in 1952 and is one of the oldest film festivals in the world following the founding of the Venic ...

*Most Popular Feature Film

References

External links

*
''Radiance''
at Oz Movies {{DEFAULTSORT:Radiance (Film) 1998 films Australian independent films 1998 drama films Australian drama films Films set in Queensland Films shot in Queensland Films about Aboriginal Australians Films directed by Rachel Perkins 1998 independent films 1990s English-language films 1990s Australian films English-language drama films English-language independent films