Olivia Colman and the late Sam Neill lend their voices to Dario Russo’s award-winning Australian dark comedy, launching BBFF’s milestone 20th festival.

The Byron Bay International Film Festival will celebrate the opening of its 20th edition with Dario Russo’s darkly comic Australian folktale The Fox, featuring the voices of Academy Award winner Olivia Colman and the late Sam Neill.

Screening on Opening Night on Friday 16 October at Palace Cinemas Byron Bay, The Fox arrives at BBFF following a strong run on the Australian festival circuit. It won the GIO Audience Award for Best Australian Feature at the 2026 Sydney Film Festival, while Russo was recently named Best Australian Director at the Melbourne International Film Festival.

Written and directed by Russo, creator of cult comedy Italian Spiderman and co-creator of Danger 5, the film stars Jai Courtney, Emily Browning, Damon Herriman, Claudia Doumit and Miranda Otto, with Colman voicing the Fox and Neill the Magpie.

A wildly original blend of dark comedy, fantasy and satire, The Fox follows Nick (Courtney), whose relationship is falling apart when he captures a mysterious fox. She offers him an extraordinary bargain: spare her life and she will help transform his fiancée into the perfect partner. What follows proves considerably more complicated.

Festival Director J’aimee Skippon-Volke says The Fox is a fitting film with which to begin BBFF’s milestone year.

“The Fox is a wonderfully unexpected film to open our 20th festival. It’s funny, strange, beautifully made and unmistakably Australian – exactly the kind of bold independent filmmaking we love bringing to BBFF audiences.

“Opening Night is always special, but there’s an added sense of celebration this year as we mark 20 editions of bringing filmmakers and audiences together in Byron Bay and across the Northern Rivers.”

Opening Night celebrations will begin with a pre-screening gathering catered by Tokyo Doll, before returning to the popular Byron Bay restaurant following the film for BBFF’s Opening Night after party, where guests can continue the celebrations in a private karaoke room. Bimbadgen Wines and Papa Salt Coastal Gin will also be supporting the evening.

The Fox also introduces a fascinating thread running through this year’s program, with several films exploring what our relationships with animals can reveal about ourselves. BBFF will reveal more about its What Animals Reveal About Us selection in the coming weeks.

The Byron Bay International Film Festival celebrates its 20th edition from 16–25 October 2026, with further program announcements to come.

BBFF 2026: bbff.com.au
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