Ellis Park – Justin Kurzel’s documentary about musician Warren Ellis, gets a release date

In his first documentary feature, director Justin Kurzel (The Order, Macbeth, Snowtown) focuses his lens on musician and fellow Australian Warren Ellis. Known for leading the underground band The Dirty Three and for his work with Nick Cave in Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, Ellis has been an unorthodox yet compelling figure in music for over three decades. Ellis Park, set for cinema release across the UK and Ireland on 26th September, is a revealing and intimate portrait of an artist’s creative spirit and his quiet but radical activism.

Known predominantly for his musicianship, Ellis plays violin, guitar, flute, and mandolin. He is also a celebrated composer, having scored the soundtracks for I’m Still Here and Mustang, as well as The Proposition and Hell or High Water in collaboration with Nick Cave, among many others.

But beyond the global stages and recording studios, and past his electrifying performances, another Warren Ellis is revealed in the Sumatran jungle. There, Ellis co-founded a wildlife sanctuary with indomitable activist Femke den Haas. Alongside a dedicated team of local conservationists, they rescue trafficked and exploited animals and devote years to nursing them back to health. Eventually, and when it’s possible, they release healthy, rehabilitated animals back into the wild, one at a time.

An observational, fly-on-the-wall film, Ellis Park is as much a reflection on creativity and connection as it is a call to action. It is a moving reminder of what is possible when passion and purpose meet.

Written, directed and executive produced by Justin Kurzel, with a score by Ellis himself, Ellis Park is more than a rock biopic, it is an exploration of the intersection of creativity, activism and compassion.

Ellis Park comes to wider UK and Irish audiences on 26th September, released by Conic.