The Hon. Simone McGurk, Minister for Creative Industries (WA); The Hon. Stephen Dawson, Minister for Regional Development (WA), Joint Media Release, 3 September 2025

Locally produced survival thriller, We Bury the Dead, is set for its Western Australian premiere screening at the CinefestOZ Film Prize Premiere event tonight and Birthright on Friday night.

We Bury the Dead and Birthright are two of four finalists in contention for the 2025 Film Prize of $100,000. It was selected by a jury of industry leaders, and the prize money is the largest film prize dedicated to Australian feature films.

Filmed in Albany and Western Australia’s Great Southern region last year, We Bury the Dead returned an estimated $9.3 million to the WA economy. This is an example of the Cook Government’s commitment to diversifying the economy by growing the screen industry and creating jobs.

The other two short-listed films are Songs Inside and One More Shot.

The Film Prize Jury will attend each of the red carpet premieres throughout the week and will announce the winner on Saturday, 6 September.

We Bury the Dead was supported by the Cook Government through its WA Regional Screen Fund and the Post, Digital, and Visual Effects incentives program,which supports work to be undertaken in Western Australia.

Birthright is Western Australian writer/director Zoe Pepper’s debut feature film, produced by Cody Greenwood. Set in a single location, filming took place in the Perth Hills across five weeks last year.

Both feature films received major production investment from Screen Australia, Screenwest and Lotterywest.

Comments attributed to Creative Industries Minister Simone McGurk:

“The Cook Government is investing in our local screen industry, which aims to build Western Australian regional capacity and contribute to the liveability and vibrancy of Western Australian regional communities.

“We Bury the Dead returned an estimated $9.3 million to the Western Australian economy, so it makes sense to grow, develop and build WA’s screen industry which will diversify the economy and create local jobs for the future.”

Comments attributed to Regional Development Minister Stephen Dawson:

“We Bury the Dead returned approximately $3.1 million to regional towns which is a strong example of how the Cook Government continues to invest in creating jobs and opportunities that strengthen our regional communities.

“This is another great example of how productions like this not only create opportunities for local artists, but can showcase our regions to the world, which can in return bring further tourism benefits to our regional communities.”