• 8696 Thu, 14 Aug 2025 20:00:00 @ ACMI 1

Director: Michelle Walshe,Lindsay Utz
Producer: Gigi Pritzker,Clarke Gayford,Cass Avery,Leon Kirkbeck,Rachel Shane
Cinematographer: Thorsten Thielow,Clarke Gayford,Leon Kirkbeck
Composer: Sofia degli Alessandri
Editor: Grace Zahrah,Enat Sidi
Featured Subjects: Jacinda Ardern

A black-carpet event presented by DECJUBA.

The spotlight shines on both style and storytelling as the Premiere With Purpose returns for its second year. The Victorian premiere of Prime Minister will see the city’s most inspiring leaders and changemakers gather for an unforgettable fusion of film, fashion and purpose.

Join us on the black carpet to celebrate compassionate leadership. Limited tickets available.

Hosted by broadcaster Jo Stanley.

Thursday 14 August, ACMI
7pm: drinks and canapés
8pm: film

Enter Jacinda Ardern’s private world as she leads New Zealand through tumultuous times in this Sundance award-winning documentary.

In 2017, as right-wing nationalism dominated world politics, Jacinda Ardern’s rise to the prime ministership of New Zealand promised a far more progressive and cosmopolitan type of government. The world’s youngest female head of state at just 37, Ardern went from boosting social spending and pursuing stronger international alliances to navigating major crises such as the Christchurch mosque massacre and the COVID-19 pandemic – all as a mum to a young daughter. But the international praise she received for her decisive and compassionate responses didn’t always match perceptions at home; and, in January 2023, amid cratering public approval, she resigned, citing burnout.

Fresh from winning the World Cinema Documentary Competition Audience Award at Sundance, this intimate five-year portrait reveals the private beliefs and emotions underpinning Ardern’s public decisions. Through vulnerable moments and unguarded observations captured in audio diaries she recorded for a National Library of New Zealand oral-history project, along with home videos recorded by her husband, Clarke Gayford, she emerges as a person of principle; while directors Michelle Walshe and Lindsay Utz – an acclaimed editor of documentaries including Bully (MIFF 2012), Oscar winner American Factory and Taylor Swift portrait Miss Americana – draw on this archival bounty with aplomb. In a world still riddled with bigotry and violence, Ardern’s hopeful message of empathy and connection remains as urgent as ever.

“An eye-opening insider perspective that comes as a reminder of what conviction politics looks like when it is maintained even under extreme pressure.” – Screen Daily

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Director Michelle Walshe is a guest of the festival and will be in attendance at the Thursday 14 August and Sunday 17 August sessions.