It would have been logical for Robinson to leverage his Hollywood connections and his talent for incendiary imagery into a provocative, starry filmmaking debut. But First Light, his first feature as writer and director, is a determinedly minimalistic effort.

Melbourne loves cinema, and yet it struggles to make films of the high standard it adores. This film is an exemption; a total leap out of the water that shows filmmakers in this city that they, too, can make a movie of the same calibre.