Maps of Movies

Australia (2008)

Where Australia says it takes place, and where it was really shot.

Darwin on screen was a Queensland town, and the governor's mansion stands in Sydney

Scenes and places

Lady Sarah steps onto the Darwin wharf (1939)

Lady Sarah Ashley, an English noblewoman, arrives in Darwin in 1939. She has come to make her husband sell his struggling cattle station, and nothing about the place is what she expected.

Set in Darwin wharf — Lady Sarah Ashley arrives in Darwin to force her husband to sell his cattle station. Google Maps · Apple Maps

A pier on Darwin harbour used as a filming location in the film.

Filmed at Stokes Hill Wharf, Darwin — The wharf where Lady Sarah first sets foot in Australia on screen. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there:

Faraway Downs, the station at the end of the road (1939)

Lady Sarah finds her husband dead and the station run by a manager with his own plans. She is drawn to Nullah, a half-Aboriginal boy living there, and decides to stay and run the place herself.

Set in Faraway Downs — The fictional cattle station Lady Sarah comes to sell and ends up running, where she meets the boy Nullah.

A homestead built from scratch in Western Australia for the shoot.

Filmed at Carlton Hill Station, near Kununurra — The ranch hill used as the backdrop for the fictional Faraway Downs; the exact set position is not given and the land is private. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there:

The long cattle drive across the Never Never (1939)

Drover, Lady Sarah and a small crew start moving 1,500 cattle toward Darwin. Obstacles pile up, and Lady Sarah grows to love the country and the man leading it.

Set in The Never Never desert drive — Drover leads a team driving 1,500 cattle toward Darwin through dry country.

Screen route only; the real landscapes come from several Kimberley sites.

Filmed at Pentecost River crossing, Gibb River Road — A river crossing a travel blog says is featured in the film; the blog does not say which scene. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there:

Filmed at Purnululu National Park (Bungle Bungle) — The striped domes appear in aerial shots, per one magazine; its link to the desert stretch is not stated. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there:

The cattle come down into Darwin (1939)

The herd finally reaches Darwin. The crew pushes the cattle straight down the wharf, with a rival's deal hanging over the whole delivery.

Set in Darwin town and wharf — The herd is driven through town and down the wharf to the waiting ships. Google Maps · Apple Maps

A stand-alone set was built in the Queensland town of Bowen.

Filmed at Bowen, Queensland — The Queensland town built up to stand in for Darwin; a magazine places the cattle entering the city here. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there:

The ball at Government House (1939)

Darwin's society turns out for a ball, and Lady Sarah, new to the town and its rules, is expected to take part.

Set in Government House, Darwin — Darwin's colonial Government House, where the town gathers for a ball.

A house in Vaucluse, Sydney, used for the exterior of the governor's residence.

Filmed at Strickland House, Vaucluse, Sydney — Exterior of the house used as Darwin's Government House. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there:

Darwin under attack, 1942 (1942)

After Pearl Harbor, Darwin is evacuated and Lady Sarah works as a radio operator. When the Japanese attack in 1942, she fears Nullah, held on Mission Island, has been killed.

Set in Darwin harbour, 1942 — Japanese forces attack Darwin and Mission Island; Lady Sarah fears Nullah has been killed. Google Maps · Apple Maps

The film stages the 1942 attack on Darwin as a large re-created war set.

Filmed at Bowen, Queensland — War scenes were re-created near Darwin Harbour as a set; one magazine places the Japanese bombing in Bowen. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there:

Filmed at Stokes Hill Wharf, Darwin — The harbour-side wharf also served the Darwin harbour scenes. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there:

Filmed at Fox Studios Australia, Sydney — Life at Faraway Downs Google Maps · Apple Maps

Characters

• Lady Sarah Ashley — An English noblewoman who comes to the Australian outback to sell her husband's cattle station.
• The Drover — An independent cattle drover hired to bring her to Faraway Downs.
• Nullah — A half-Aboriginal boy living at the station, who narrates the film.

Questions answered on the map

• Where was Darwin in Baz Luhrmann's Australia really filmed?
• Where is the Darwin Government House from Australia?