Ep 119: Leah Purcell & Kerry Fox on feminist western The Drover’s Wife - The Legend of Molly Johnson

The Drover’s Wife: The Legend of Molly Johnson is the first Australian feature film with an Indigenous woman writing, directing and performing the lead role. In this episode, Anna Smith interviews the amazing Leah Purcell, who shares how she turned her favourite childhood story into a book, a play and now a film. Leah talks about the differences between the experiences, about working with her partner and about what the film has to say about women and the Indigenous people of Australia. Next, Anna chats to actor-director Kerry Fox, who has starred in many films, including Jane Campion’s An Angel At My Table, Little Joe and The Colour Room. Kerry gives her perspective on The Drover’s Wife, considering the influence of Jane Campion’s work. Meanwhile Anna recommends other feminist westerns to watch, as well as a couple of other new releases. The pair also look ahead to this year’s Cannes Film Festival, and Kerry shares her stories of attending Madonna’s party with Danny Boyle when attending the festival with the film Shallow Grave. The Drover’s Wife: The Legend of Molly Johnson is out in UK and Irish cinemas on May 13th 2022 and is out in Australia now. You can find out more at modernfilms.com/droverswife Become a patron of Girls on Film on Patreon here: www.patreon.com/girlsonfilmpodcast Follow us on socials: www.instagram.com/girlsonfilm_podcast/ www.facebook.com/girlsonfilmpodcast www.twitter.com/GirlsOnFilm_Pod www.twitter.com/annasmithjourno Watch Girls On Film on the BFI’s YouTube channel: www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLX…L89QKZsN5Tgr3vn7z Girls On Film is an HLA production. Host: Anna Smith. Executive Producer: Hedda Archbold. Audio Producer: Benjamin Cook. House band: MX Tyrants. Thanks to Shanaiya Pithiya. This episode is in partnership with Modern Films.