A Man Named Fire (previously titled Story Doctors) is an intimate documentary about acclaimed Aboriginal storyteller, author and educator Boori Monty Pryor, exploring a life shaped by Culture, Country, family, and nearly four decades on the road, sharing stories with children across Australia. At its centre is Boori’s relationship with the film’s young director, Callum — an encounter between generations that opens up the stories and places that have shaped Boori’s life.
Boori’s Aboriginal name means fire. Given to him by his Uncle, the name connects him to a family history in which stories, Country and knowledge have always been intertwined. Growing up in Far North Queensland, Boori learned from his elders to listen, to watch and to read Country. His childhood was shaped by family, humour, adventure and the stories told around the fire. As a young man, Boori left home, joined the Air Force and eventually found himself in Melbourne, working in nightclubs as a DJ. His brother Paul followed a different path, becoming a performer, and educator who brought culture into schools. Paul’s death would profoundly change the course of Boori’s life. In the years that followed, Boori took up the work of sharing stories with children, travelling across Australia year after year. What began as a new direction became a life’s work — nearly four decades of entering classrooms, connecting with children and carrying stories from one generation to the next.
The film unfolds through Boori’s relationship with Callum as they revisit the places and experiences that have shaped his life. Moving between Country, memory, family, archival material and the classrooms where Boori has spent so much of his life, A Man Named Fire explores belonging, cultural strength and disconnection, grief, resilience and the enduring power of story.
At its heart, the film asks what we inherit from those who came before us — and what we choose to carry forward, both individually and collectively.
