Toomelah poster

Toomelah is the story of Daniel, a young Indiginous boy growing up in a world of tough choices. He is caught between his peoples traditional way of life and a negative way of life which has come to undermine the community and its culture.

Working closely with the director Ivan Sen, who we developed key art with for his debut feature Beneath Clouds, new high quality photography was shot on location at Toomelah mission.
From the outset, our aim was to reflect Daniel's innocence and vulnerability within his natural homelands but also the underlying conflict and issues he faces.

The photography by Ivan perfectly captures a boy carrying the weight of the world. There was thoughts to introduce other visual elements that suggested conflict in the background including the drug dealer Linden, but Daniels expression speaks volumes without the need for other visual markers.

Typographically, the title suggests a boystrous cooee and the tranditional animal totems were introduced to reflect his natural influences and what ultimately grounds him.

Toomelah will screen at the 2011 Cannes Film Festival in the Un Certain Regard section.

We wish Ivan, David and all the cast who travelled to the south of France the very best of luck!!