From growing up on Bowraville Mission to working in Los Angeles, Sandy Greenwood has spent more than two decades building a career across stage and screen. Now, with One of Many heading to its world premiere and her own feature Yarrila bound for the American Film Market, the Gumbaynggirr actor, writer and producer is bringing stories grounded in Country to an international audience.
For award-winning First Nations actor, writer and producer Sandy Greenwood, the journey from Bowraville Mission to Hollywood has never been simply about leaving home behind.
Greenwood grew up on Bowraville Mission on Gumbaynggirr Country in the 1980s. Her family history, cultural responsibilities and connection to Country have shaped both her career and the stories she now wants to tell.
“Bowraville is home. It’s rich in culture, love and family, and that gave me the strength to chase my dreams.”
Those dreams have taken Greenwood across Australia and the United States. She has lived and worked in Los Angeles and Silicon Valley, trained at New York’s Atlantic Acting School and The Groundlings in Los Angeles, and built a career across theatre, film, television and voice work.
After more than two decades performing, Greenwood is increasingly moving behind the camera, developing First Nations stories drawn from her own experiences and cultural heritage. An active member of Women in Film and Television NSW (WIFT NSW), she is also passionate about supporting women in the screen industry and building creative relationships with other women filmmakers.
Her latest producing credit is One of Many, a First Nations feature documentary from Guna Bina Production Company, on which she serves as associate producer and narrator.
The film follows Gumbaynggirr and Gomeroi man Big Kev as he reconnects with his family and confronts the continuing legacy of the Stolen Generations on his search for peace.
For Greenwood, the subject is deeply personal. Her mother and other family members were taken from their families and placed in institutions.
“Kev’s story in One of Many is my family’s story. Like him, my mum and her siblings were taken from our family. Walking beside Kev in this film and confronting that history became a deeply personal journey of truth and healing.”
One of Many will have its world premiere at Palace Central Cinemas in Sydney on October 15.
Greenwood’s career has included work with Sydney Theatre Company, Belvoir, Griffin Theatre Company and State Theatre Company South Australia. Her voice work includes narrating Evonne Goolagong Cawley’s memoir Only Ever Evonne and contributing to the documentary series The Australian Wars. Her screen credits include Killer Elite, alongside Jason Statham and Robert De Niro.
She has received a Deadly Award nomination for Actress of the Year and a Sydney Theatre Award nomination for her performance in Swim. Her one-woman production Matriarch, which she wrote, produced and performed, received a Green Room Award for Best Actor in Independent Theatre.
But increasingly, it is Greenwood’s own stories that she wants to bring to the screen.
Her environmental documentary Nguurra Muruy, inspired by her campaign to protect Gumbaynggirr Country, won Best Rainforest Protection Short at the Tulum World Environment Film Festival.
That same experience has become the foundation for her feature drama Yarrila.
When Hollywood calls you home
Inspired by true events, Yarrila moves between Los Angeles and Gumbaynggirr Country, following an Aboriginal Australian woman whose Hollywood dreams are interrupted when her cultural responsibilities call her home to protect her koala totem, the Dunggirr.
Blending drama with magical realism, the film draws on Greenwood’s experience leading a campaign against logging in Nambucca State Forest on the NSW Mid North Coast.
In 2020, Greenwood helped establish the Gumbaynggirr Tent Embassy, participated in forest blockades and supported legal action challenging logging operations that threatened cultural heritage, old-growth forest and koala habitat.
The campaign halted logging operations and drew national attention to the rights of Traditional Custodians and the protection of Gumbaynggirr Country.
“I created Yarrila because I wanted to tell a true story about a Traditional Custodian with big Hollywood dreams. When she finally gets to the City of Angels, she’s sung home to protect her totem, the Dunggirr (koala), and finds herself making history, ultimately putting Country on the world stage.”
For Greenwood, the film is more than a retelling of her experiences. It explores the tension between personal ambition, cultural identity and the responsibility of caring for Country.
“It hasn’t been easy finding the balance between chasing the Hollywood dream I’ve had since I was a little girl and honouring my responsibilities as a Traditional Custodian and cultural educator. But finding a way to honour both is what makes me feel most whole.”
Currently in development through her independent production company Jinda Productions, Yarrila has attracted interest from Margot Robbie’s production company following a pitch at SXSW Sydney.
Greenwood is attached as creator, writer and producer and will take the project to the American Film Market in Los Angeles this November, seeking international production partners, financing and creative collaborators.
“I want to take Yarrila to AFM because Gumbaynggirr Country and Los Angeles are both major characters in the story, two worlds that shape her Dreaming.”
Creating opportunities for women
As Greenwood develops her own screen projects, she is also looking to build stronger connections with other women working in the industry.
An active member of WIFT NSW, Greenwood is keen to collaborate with women writers, directors and producers, particularly First Nations women, and connect with production companies developing female-led drama in Australia and internationally.
For Greenwood, moving into producing is about more than creating opportunities for herself. She wants to work alongside other women, support their creative ambitions and help bring more First Nations and female-centred stories to the screen.
“After decades as a performer, creating my own work gives me the agency to tell our stories on our own terms. I want to open doors for First Nations voices, particularly women, and bring stories to the screen and stage that might otherwise remain untold.”
From Bowraville Mission to the Hollywood Hills, Greenwood’s journey has taken her across continents and creative disciplines. Yet the stories she is most determined to tell remain connected to the place where it all began.
Her Hollywood dreams haven’t taken her away from Country. They’ve given her another way to bring its stories to the world.
ONE OF MANY | WORLD PREMIERE
Thursday 15 October 2026
Palace Central Cinemas, Chippendale, Sydney
Palace Central Cinemas
