First Light Miami: Australia’s Oscar Entry Screens at GEMS

Australia’s official entry for Best International Feature at the 2027 Oscars isn’t in English, and it isn’t set in Australia. First Light is a Tagalog-language drama set in the mountains of the Philippines, made by Melbourne-born, Filipino-Australian filmmaker James J. Robinson.

It’s screening in Miami on Thursday, November 5, at Coral Gables Art Cinema, on the closing night of Miami Film Festival GEMS. James is presenting the film in person with a Q&A afterward, and the festival says the team is flying in from Melbourne and the Philippines for it.

What First Light is about

Sister Yolanda is a middle-aged nun at a decaying convent in the mountains of Luzon. When a young construction worker dies in unusual circumstances, she’s pulled into a web of crime and corruption, and both the Church and the state pressure her to keep the truth quiet. The more she’s pushed, the more she questions the institution she’s given her life to.

Ruby Ruiz plays Sister Yolanda, alongside Filipino screen legend Maricel Soriano, Kare Adea, Emmanuel Santos, Rez Cortez, Soliman Cruz, Lui Manansala, and the filmmaker Kidlat Tahimik. The film runs 118 minutes.

A first for Australia at the Oscars

First Light is the first Tagalog-language film Australia has submitted to the Oscars, and the first film co-produced by Australia and the Philippines. The Australian selection committee called it “an impressive debut that is a shining example of Australian filmmaking.” If it’s nominated, it would also be the first Filipino film nominated in the category.

It’s had a big run since its world premiere at the Melbourne International Film Festival in August 2025, where James won the Blackmagic Design Best Australian Director Award. It went on to compete at the Marrakech International Film Festival, was nominated for the Audience Award at the Glasgow Film Festival, and opened in cinemas across the Philippines in June 2026.

Meet James J. Robinson after the First Light Miami screening

James grew up in Melbourne’s south-eastern suburbs. His mother emigrated from the Philippines in the 1970s, and his father is from Albury. Before First Light, his debut feature, he worked as a photographer and filmmaker, including a stint in New York. His short documentary Inang Maynila screened at the Brooklyn Film Festival, and he’s made music videos for Mallrat, Camp Cope and Wafia.

The Q&A is a rare chance to hear from an Australian director in the middle of an Oscar campaign, and to see a film that’s getting serious attention on the festival circuit.

Tickets for First Light in Miami

Book your tickets through the Miami Film Festival. The screening is selling fast, so don’t leave it to the last minute. The festival doesn’t offer exchanges or refunds, so check your plans before you buy.

Coral Gables Art Cinema is at 260 Aragon Avenue, in downtown Coral Gables.

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