A panoramic yet intimate portrait of Aboriginal Elder Maitland Parker and his fight to heal his mining-impacted homeland and preserve his culture for future generations.

The breathtaking red landscape of Wittenoom in WA’s Pilbara region is scarred by millions of tons of toxic waste from asbestos mines that once operated there. With an exclusion zone of nearly 47,000 hectares, it’s the largest contaminated site in the Southern Hemisphere. It is also the ancestral country, or Yurlu, of Banjima Elder Parker. Director Yaara Bou Melhem (Unseen Skies, SFF 2021) documents Parker’s environmental and cultural activism, right up until his death in 2024 from mesothelioma, an aggressive form of cancer linked to asbestos exposure. From the campfire to his hospital bedside, Yurlu | Country follows Maitland’s battle for justice and the environment, and his unbreakable bond with Country.