The Debt: Australian horror film greenlit under Film Lab: New Voices for 2026 debut

First Nations-led horror film The Debt is set to premiere at the 2026 Adelaide Film Festival.
The Debt: L-R: Lilla Berry, Piri Eddy, Pearl Berry, Johanis Lyons-Reid. Image: Naomi Jellicoe.

South Australia’s flagship film development initiative, Film Lab: New Voices, has announced its third feature film: The Debt, a First Nations-led horror from South Australian creatives.

The Debt, directed by award-winning Malaysian-Australian filmmaker Johanis Lyons-Reid (The Loop, Emotion is Dead), is set to premiere at the 2026 Adelaide Film Festival.

Co-written by Yankunytjatjara writer Pearl Berry and Piri Eddy, directed by Johanis Lyons-Reid, and produced by Yankunytjatjara filmmaker Lilla Berry, The Debt follows two isolated characters, Anna and her 10-year-old ward, who are trapped in a deadly moral dilemma.

Alone on a secluded estate, Anna and her ward need to settle Anna’s debt to society. But for Anna this means an impossible choice: end her own life, or the life of the child.

Screen Australia’s Director of Narrative Content, Louise Gough, described the film as ‘a horror with visceral power that will have audiences here and around the world on the edge of their seats’.

Film Lab: New Voices is co-funded by the South Australian Film Corporation (SAFC), Screen Australia and Adelaide Film Festival (AFF). It mentors three South Australian filmmaking teams each year through a 12-month skills program to develop their first low-budget feature. One project is ultimately awarded $600,000 in screen production funding.

The Debt: L-R: Piri Eddy, Lilla Berry,  Johanis Lyons-Reid, Pearl Berry. Image: Naomi Jellicoe.
The Debt: L-R: Piri Eddy, Lilla Berry, Johanis Lyons-Reid, Pearl Berry. Image: Naomi Jellicoe.

The Debt, Monolith, and Lesbian Space Princess

Since launching in 2021, the initiative has delivered two acclaimed features. The first, sci-fi horror flick Monolith (written by Lucy Campbell, directed by Matt Vesely and produced by Bettina Hamilton), premiered at Adelaide Film Festival 2022, before an international debut at SXSW 2023 and cinema releases in Australia and the US.

ScreenHub: Monolith review: a chilling Australian indie horror

The second, animated comedy Lesbian Space Princess (from writer/directors Emma Hough-Hobbs and Leela Varghese and producer Tom Phillips), debuted at Adelaide Film Festival 2024, winning the Audience Award for Feature Fiction.

In 2025, Lesbian Space Princess screened at Berlinale (where it won the Teddy Award for Best Feature) before taking the People’s Choice Award at Sydney Film Festival. UK-based Blue Finch Film now holds worldwide sales rights, while Umbrella Entertainment will release it locally on 11 September 2025. It’s also currently screening at MIFF.

ScreenHub: Lesbian Space Princess review: Australia’s Berlinale champion shines

Industry praise for The Debt

Arts Minister Andrea Michaels MP said: ‘It is incredibly exciting to see The Debt chosen as the third film from the Film Lab: New Voices program… both Monolith and Lesbian Space Princess received international acclaim, and I look forward to seeing The Debt once it’s released.’

SAFC CEO Kate Croser highlighted the project’s significance for emerging voices: ‘We are delighted that The Debt will capture the perspectives of young First Nations filmmakers – and sisters – Lilla and Pearl Berry. This program is all about discovering and launching the next wave of talented South Australian filmmakers.’

Adelaide Film Festival CEO Mat Kesting confirmed the world premiere for October 2026, adding: ‘The success of previous Film Lab projects… gives further evidence that investing in creative talent and locally developed IP through dedicated lab programs is an effective means of delivering impactful outcomes.’

In a joint statement, Berry, Eddy and Lyons-Reid said: ‘To be given the green light for our first feature is both incredibly exciting and humbling. We created Dinosaur Disco Films to craft stories that stand out and speak to our current moment … We can’t wait to share The Debt with audiences at next year’s Adelaide Film Festival and beyond.’

The Debt does not currently have a release date.


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Silvi Vann-Wall is a journalist, podcaster, critic and filmmaker. They joined ScreenHub as Film Content Lead in 2022. Twitter: @SilviReports / Bluesky: @silvi.bsky.social‬ / Website: silvireports.com