by FilmInk Staff
Nearly two decades after the cult Australian indie hit All My Friends Are Leaving Brisbane, the story returns with a new chapter – and a new question: what happens when everyone comes back?
The new romantic comedy All My Friends Are Back in Brisbane will make its world premiere at the Gold Coast Film Festival on 1 May 2026 followed by a season at Five Star Cinemas New Farm.
Written by Stephen Vagg (Darby and Joan) and directed by Louise Alston (Back of the Net), the film revisits the world of young Brisbane-ites navigating love, ambition and the complicated pull of home.
The story follows Cris, played by Nelle Lee (The Inbetweeners Movie), who returns to Brisbane after a decade in London when her engagement implodes. Back home, she unexpectedly reconnects with her former boyfriend Scooter, played by Andrew Steel (Home and Away), who stayed in Brisbane and has since built a life — complete with wife and child.
The ensemble cast also includes Kym Jackson (NCIS), Dan Ewing (Love and Monsters), Tim Ross (Wonderland), Brooke Lee (Mako Mermaids) and Julian Curtis (Dance Academy).
Shot on location across Brisbane — including New Farm, West End and the CBD — the film captures the city’s evolving identity while telling a universal story about returning home and discovering what has, and hasn’t, changed.
The original All My Friends Are Leaving Brisbane, adapted from Vagg’s stage play and also directed by Alston, became a cult favourite for its witty and affectionate portrait of young adulthood in Queensland’s capital.
Now All My Friends Are Back in Brisbane revisits that world for a new generation — when the adventure is over, the friends have scattered, and the question becomes not whether to leave, but whether to stay.
The film will premiere at the Gold Coast Film Festival on 1 May 2026 (https://gcff.com.au/program/all-my-friends-are-back-in-brisbane/), with further screenings at Five Star Cinemas New Farm in Brisbane starting 29 May 2026 (https://www.fivestarcinemas.com.au/new-farm/movie/all-my-friends-are-back-in-brisbane).
