Rachel Perkins' Australian Aboriginal heritage, specifically her Arrernte/Kalkadoon background, has significantly influenced her filmmaking career. She founded Blackfella Films, Australia's premier Indigenous production company, in 1992. Perkins has made significant contributions to the development of Indigenous filmmakers in Australia and the broader Australian film and television industry.
Perkins has directed four feature films, including Jasper Jones, Radiance, One Night the Moon, and Bran Nue Dae, which received a box office of $7.5 million in Australia. Her films have screened at over 75 film festivals worldwide.
Perkins also directed the telemovie Mabo, which was nominated for Most Outstanding Mini Series or Telemovie at the 2013 TV Week Logie Awards. She directed three episodes of the landmark ABC television drama series Redfern Now, which won several awards, including the 2013 and 2014 TV Week Logies for Most Outstanding Drama Series and the 2014 AACTA Award for Best Television Drama Series.
Perkins directed all six episodes of the first season of the critical and ratings hit Mystery Road for the ABC in 2018. She also directed the six-part ABC drama series Total Control in 2019, which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival and won several awards, including the 2019 AACTA Award for Best TV Drama Series.
Perkins has also written, directed, and co-produced the seven-hour documentary series First Australians, which received numerous awards, including the UN Media Peace Prize, TV Week Logie, and the Writers and Directors Guild of Australia Awards. The series has sold worldwide and is the highest-selling educational title in Australia.
Perkins has also directed and written the documentary Black Panther Woman for SBS and is currently working on the documentary First Wars for SBS. She has also worked on several other documentaries, including Blood Brothers and Spirit to Spirit.
Perkins has been involved in various other projects, including the Arrernte Women's Project, an archival recording of the traditional dances of the Arrernte women of Central Australia. She is also a Member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences and has received several awards and honors for her work, including the inaugural Contribution to Television IF Award at the 2011 Jameson IF Awards.
