Why Netflix’ Kangaroo Island movie hits differently for South Australians
On a stinking hot summer afternoon, when the breeze felt like it was coming straight off the devil’s barbecue, I found myself sinking into the couch for a quiet movie…and Netflix served up Kangaroo Island.
Normally I spend more time looking for something to watch than engaging in anything remotely entertaining, but within minutes, I was hooked. There’s something beautifully satisfying about watching familiar landscape and the rawness of dinky-di little towns unfold on screen .
The film’s director and co-writer, Timothy David Piper, is a South Aussie based in New York. He and his wife, writer Sally Gifford, bought a holiday house on KI back in 2016 — a place he spent time as a kid. That genuine connection really seeps into every frame. They chose an architecturally significant beachfront house on the secluded north coast as the film’s central location. It doesn’t just serve as a setting — the island itself becomes the leading character.
Shot over 24 days at spots like Snelling Beach and Emu Bay, the visuals are stunning. Kingscote also gets a look in, as well as the store at Vivonne Bay.
This part of the world might not be one of the planet’s best kept secrets, but like most of SA’s pristine coastline, it’s relatively untouched, and beautifully preserved.
A Family Drama With Some Seriously Good Backdrops
At its heart, Kangaroo Island is a family drama. Rebecca Breeds (Ruby from Home and Away — guilty fan here) plays Lou Wells, an Aussie actress who’s traded the simplicity of home for the bright lights of LA. Lou’s on a downward spiral, when she’s reluctantly pulled home by her father, who lives on the island. It blends sisterhood, heartbreak, betrayal, loss, and the gain that comes with peeling back emotional layers.
Rebecca Breeds is brilliant. Erik Thomson feels like your own dad — because we’ve seen him play the dad role time and time again. And the landscape plays the staring role just as it should.
It’s moving, balanced and deeply Australian — a love letter from someone who truly knows this part of the world. And I loved it.
Next time GSA issues its forecast of “melted bitumen and clothes optional”, grab yourself a Zooper Dooper and enjoy some of SA’s best coast from the comfort of your living room.
Check out the trailer.
