Top End Wedding

Filming ranged across locations including Adelaide, Darwin, Jabiru, Kakadu National Park, Katherine, Nitmiluk National Park, and the Tiwi Islands. In all places, there was important liaison with the local Aboriginal communities, the producing team ensuring that approvals were granted to film and that due respect was paid to the original owners of the lands and the current residents of the communities.

Of actor Gwilym Lee, who plays Ned, director Wayne Blair said: "There was something about this guy that was earthy, grounded, a little bit comically self-effacing, but also had this warmth and heart. Someone who could still step up to be a man when he had to."

Some of the Tiwi Island locals participating in the shoot thought they were attending Miranda Tapsell's wedding.

Of being and Indigenous writer and telling Indigenous stories, co-screenwriter Miranda Tapsell said: "The important thing, particularly with Indigenous stories, is that it's really important to see that we're not a monolith. We're not just one, this community is very multifaceted, there's lots of intersections. So it's really important for that to be reflected, and it's important that we get more Indigenous writers out there to tell their own individual stories."

Gwilym Lee was intensely affected by the filming locations and its people, especially on the Tiwi Islands. The night before shooting the emotionally charged wedding scene, the cast and crew having finished dinner, and relaxing around their tables, an unexpected gift from the older Tiwi women, singing and playing guitars in an impromptu personal concert, put everyone in the mood for what was ahead. "It was beautiful because it was so spontaneous, so real and authentic," said Lee. "It was just them welcoming us onto their island, into their community. And they finished by singing a healing song, to give us goodwill and good energy for the next day when we were filming the wedding. We were all deeply moved by this, and sure enough, we slept really peacefully. And the next day we woke up and everybody that was witness to this moment had a real warm spirit about themselves. It resulted in a brilliant day. Filming the wedding on Tiwi was a day I'll never forget. And I think a large part of it is because we were given this beautiful moment the night before by the local elder women."