The Language Party

Miriwoong is critically endangered, with fluent speakers now mostly elderly and often semi-fluent. The urgent challenge is not only preservation, but transmission: young people are the future of the language, yet they are often out of reach, more connected to YouTube channels than to their own skin names and their country. The invisibility of Miriwoong language owners often underlines the government and academia’s efforts to handle language revitalisation programs. It is the lack of recognition that the language community is interested not only in preserving oral culture but also in the wider outcomes of language revival: having a good time, building pride, staying strong, and reconnecting across generations. Every year, hundreds of projects are implemented by the Australian government in Indigenous communities that fail due to little or no concern for Indigenous ways of thinking and doing.

We envision a future where Indigenous communities are recognised as leaders of their own language futures, and where language revitalisation is driven by feeling good and strong in the space of cultural authority, and connection to Country. Through a documentary film and a suite of digital language reels, The Language Party will amplify Miriwoong voices, strengthen intergenerational sharing, and demonstrate a community-led model of language revitalisation that can inspire audiences across Australia and beyond.

The film explores possible change in thinking about power, decision-making, and the measurement of success or failure in the space of Indigenous language revitalisation. The breathing parts of an unscripted, vastly observational documentary give an insightful case study. Additionally, we aim to leave behind motivational reels as a language resource for the community to enjoy.

The film’s access is built through an ongoing relationship with the Miriwoong community in Kununurra, beginning in March 2025. Steven Bird and Yolŋu Elder Ian Gumbula start by seeking storytellers at MDWg, the Language Centre, but the process quickly moved beyond institutional settings into homes and the country. The Miriwoong community’s participation involved culturally informed consultations about what is appropriate, what is not, and, if necessary, why, and what cannot be shared with the film audience. People signed release forms.

For the documentary audience, the call to action is: Let’s listen differently. The film asks non-Indigenous audiences, policymakers, educators, linguists and funders to recognise Miriwoong people as the language owners and experts.
For Indigenous Language Centres, academics and language workers: Let’s follow, not lead. The film offers a case study that encourages collaboration through listening, following, and supporting.
For the Miriwoong community, the reels have a more direct call to action: Let’s watch and share Miriwoong reels BAMOO BIYA! (Say it again!)