Brendan is one of Australia’s most dynamic and versatile film-makers with an award winning body of work across documentary, drama and TV commercial formats.

Brendan’s 2011 breakout feature Mad Bastards was nominated for the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance, won the Independent Spirit Award at the IF Awards and garnered 5 AACTA Award nominations. The cinematic father-son story from the remote Kimberley region was steeped in authentic performances and established Brendan on the international stage.

Brendan co-directed a series of documentaries with Russell Crowe including Texas (Sundance), then co-directed the award-winning Black Chicks Talking with Leah Purcell (Tribeca Film Festival). He went on to collaborate with premium Australian creatives such as Kev Carmody, Judith Lucy and Hannah Gadsby on a suite of award winning TV documentaries.

In 2015, Brendan’s Oscar Wilde’s The Nightingale and The Rose - starring Mia Wasikowska, Geoffrey Rush and David Wenham – was nominated for a Crystal Bear at BIFF. The short animation made in collaboration with Archibald-winning artist Del Kathryn Barton awarded Best Australian Short Film at 2015 Melbourne International Film Festival and the AACTA for Best Short Animation.

Brendan’s collaboration with longtime friend Warwick Thornton began when co-directing a Tourism Australia commercial promoting Indigenous Cultural Experiences. The duo co-wrote the feature doc We Don’t Need A Map, which scored the coveted Opening Night Film slot at the 2017 Sydney FilmFestival.

In 2020, Brendan’s feature screenplay Taronga won him and co-writer Devi Telfer a place with Ron Howard’s internationally renowned Imagine Impact Development Program.