Rebel Films
Rebel Films is an Australian documentary and television production company founded in 1998 that produces Indigenous-focused, multicultural, and outback documentaries distributed via ABC/SBS broadcast, DVD, and VHX streaming to Australian and Asia-Pacific audiences.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1998
- HeadquartersBermagui, Australia
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingServices
What Rebel Films does
Rebel Films is an Australian documentary and television production company founded in 1998 by writer/director David Batty and producer/managing director Jeni McMahon. The company produces documentary content across multiple formats including TV series, feature-length documentaries, web series, and educational DVDs, with a thematic focus on Indigenous Australian stories, multicultural Australia, rural and outback life, and social documentary subjects. Its core product portfolio includes award-winning documentaries such as Then the Wind Changed (2012 Walkley Documentary Award winner) and Coniston (2012 ATOM Award winner), popular TV series including Bush Mechanics and That's Australia, and the Indigenous-focused Black As web series which has accumulated over 200 million views online. The company's underlying production technology is conventional documentary filmmaking rather than proprietary software, with digital distribution enabled through the VHX streaming platform, YouTube, Vimeo for trailers, and PayPal/credit card e-commerce for transactions.
Rebel Films operates a multi-channel revenue model spanning broadcast licensing to Australian public broadcasters (ABC, SBS, and Network Australia), physical DVD sales through its own online shop at price points between $19.95 and $129.95, digital streaming via VHX and ABC iView, branded merchandise (T-shirts), and crowdfunding campaigns through Pozible to fund new productions. Its customer base comprises government-funded broadcasters, general Australian audiences, Indigenous communities (Warlpiri, Yolngu, and Kimberley communities as collaborators and subjects), educational institutions, and international audiences in the Asia-Pacific region. The company is headquartered in Melbourne (with a postal address in Bermagui, NSW) and operates with 11-50 employees as a privately held entity with no external institutional investors identified.
Rebel Films firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Rebel Films
- Legal name
- Rebel Films
- Website
- https://rebelfilms.com.au
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1998
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Rebel Films is an Australian documentary and television production company founded in 1998 that produces Indigenous-focused, multicultural, and outback documentaries distributed via ABC/SBS broadcast, DVD, and VHX streaming to Australian and Asia-Pacific audiences.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Rebel Films industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Documentary Production
- NAICS
- Independent Artists, Writers, and Performers (71151)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Short-Form Documentaries (MPADADAC)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Travel & Adventure Documentaries (MPADADAM)
Keywords
Where Rebel Films is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Bermagui
- HQ country
- Australia
- HQ region
- Oceania
Offices2 records
Markets served
Rebel Films business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain
Revenue model
- DVD Sales: Physical DVD sales through the Rebel Films online shop, with products sold at various price points from $19.95 to $129.95 depending on format and product type.
- Streaming/Online Sales: Digital streaming sales through VHX platform where customers can purchase and stream content online.
- Broadcast Licensing: Licensing of documentary content to broadcasters including ABC, SBS, and Network Australia for television broadcast.
- Merchandise Sales: Sale of branded merchandise including T-shirts related to productions like Truck Hunters.
- Crowdfunding: Crowdfunding campaigns through platforms like Pozible to fund new productions.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Black As Season Two - Retail pricing |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Then the Wind Changed - DVD pricing |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Documentary DVDs - Various titles |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Sale items - Discounted DVDs |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels6 records
Marketing channels6 records
Rebel Films product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Rebel Films is an Australian documentary and television production company that produces, distributes and licences original documentary content. Its offerings span TV series, web series, feature-length documentaries and educational DVDs focused on Australian life, Indigenous culture, outback communities and multicultural stories, sold through its online shop (DVDs), the VHX streaming platform, and licensed to broadcasters such as ABC, SBS and Network Australia.
Product overview
Rebel Films is an Australian documentary and television production company founded in 1998 by David Batty and Jeni McMahon. The company produces documentary content across multiple formats including TV series, feature-length documentaries, web series, and educational DVDs. Their core product portfolio includes award-winning documentaries (Then the Wind Changed, Coniston), popular TV series (Bush Mechanics, That's Australia, Inventions from the Shed), cultural documentaries (Kabelbel, Desert Heart), and Indigenous-focused content (Black As web series). Distribution is handled through physical DVD sales via their online shop and digital streaming via VHX platform. The company also produces merchandise such as branded T-shirts. Content spans Australian Indigenous culture, multicultural Australia, rural/outback life, and social documentary themes.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Black As (Season One) Indigenous web series following four young Yolngu men living in remote Arnhem Land, tracking their hunting adventures, bush survival skills and daily lives. Available as DVD and digital streaming.
- Black As Season Two Second season continuation of the Black As web series, featuring the same young men from Arnhem Land in further adventures. Streamed via ABC iView and available on DVD.
- Then the Wind Changed Award-winning documentary (2012 Walkley Documentary Award) documenting the recovery of the Strathewen community following the devastating 2009 Victorian Black Saturday bushfires.
- Coniston Documentary about the 1928 Coniston Massacre in Central Australia, telling the story of Australia's last known massacre of Indigenous people. Co-produced with PAW Media.
- Kabelbel Feature-length documentary filmed on Masahet Island documenting the revival of traditional outrigger canoe making in Papua New Guinea's Lihir Islands.
- Bush Mechanics Off-beat TV series following Aboriginal characters from the Warlpiri community of Yuendumu as they travel through central Australia using inventive bush repair techniques to solve vehicle problems.
- That's Australia Multi-platform series of 26 short documentaries focusing on Australian life, place and culture. Created by the team behind Bush Mechanics, broadcast throughout Asia and the Pacific.
- Love's Harvest SBS documentary series featuring four intimate stories about organic farmers, portraying experiences of couples and families working the land.
- Desert Heart Documentary following Daniel Walbidi, a promising young Aboriginal artist, as Yulparitja elders take him back to the desert heartland his family left 40 years ago.
- Halal Mate Documentary series set in Melbourne's Muslim community, telling intimate stories about Australian Muslims that challenges popular misconceptions.
- Inventions from the Shed ABC five-part series exploring the world of backyard inventors and their private workspaces where they develop innovative ideas and creations.
- Rodeo Road Documentary exploring the unique cowboy culture of Australia's far north-west Kimberley region and the pursuit of the rodeo dream.
- Sisters, Pearls and Mission Girls Documentary about the Sisters of St John of God and their work with Aboriginal people in the remote Kimberley region over nearly 100 years.
- Jila - Painted Waters of the Sandy Desert Documentary about the Ngurrara people's native title claim, featuring the creation of a massive painting to demonstrate their knowledge and ownership of their desert country.
- Jabby & Friends Fun-filled Aboriginal health education DVD for parents and children covering scabies, smoking, trachoma, infant nutrition, hygiene and healthy lifestyle choices.
- The Wedding Makers ABC documentary going behind the scenes of the competitive wedding industry, following three different businesses creating wedding experiences.
- Veiled Ambition Documentary following Frida, a Lebanese Muslim woman from Melbourne, as she chases her dream of creating a fashion empire.
- Truck Hunters T-Shirts Branded merchandise T-shirts featuring Truck Hunters branding. Available in men's, women's, colored and white variants in high-quality cotton from size S to 3XL.
Quantifiable outcome
- Black As web-series has garnered over 200 million views online
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use Rebel Films
Customer profileNamed customers4 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Rebel Films technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration4 records
Rebel Films partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- PAW MediacoreCo-production partnership with PAW Media for Coniston documentary about the Coniston Massacre. PAW Media is an Indigenous media organization based in the Central Desert region of the Northern Territory that works with remote Aboriginal communities to produce media content.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Rebel Films competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Fremantle Australia: Global production and distribution major with a substantial Australian documentary and drama operation. Operates in the same broadcaster and SVOD ecosystem as Rebel Films but at materially larger scale and with broader content portfolio.
Direct peers
- CAAMA (Central Australian Aboriginal Media Association): Indigenous media organization producing TV and radio content from Alice Springs, where Rebel Films founder David Batty previously established CAAMA's TV production unit. Comparable in mission, output (Indigenous documentary), and Australian remote-community focus.
- Matchbox Pictures: Established Australian production company producing premium drama and documentary. Comparable in operating territory (Australian content for ABC/SBS) and small-to-mid independent production model.
- Porchlight Films: Australian indie production company behind titles such as Samson and Delilah (Indigenous-focused). Comparable in Aboriginal storytelling focus and small-team indie production model serving major Australian broadcasters.
- Princess Pictures: Australian production company producing factual and entertainment content. Comparable in indie Australian production scale and ABC/SBS-facing output.
- Blackfella Films: Australian Indigenous-focused production company producing documentary and drama content with First Nations creators. Highly comparable to Rebel Films in subject matter, broadcaster relationships (SBS/NITV), and small-team indie model.
- Southern Pictures: Australian production company known for high-end factual and Indigenous storytelling, including content commissioned by SBS and Netflix. Comparable in documentary output, broadcaster relationships, and Indigenous subject matter.
- Goalpost Pictures: Australian indie production company producing drama and documentary series. Similar in scale and Australian broadcaster (ABC/SBS) commissioning model.
- PAW Media: Indigenous media organization based in the Central Desert (NT) producing media with remote Aboriginal communities. Direct collaborator with Rebel Films on Coniston; comparable in Indigenous storytelling and remote-community production model.
Others
- SBS (Special Broadcasting Service): Australian public broadcaster and commissioning partner of Rebel Films (Love's Harvest, other titles). Functions as a customer/distributor rather than direct competitor, but shapes the indie Australian documentary commissioning market Rebel Films operates in.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Rebel Films social profiles
Digital presenceRebel Films financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Rebel Films leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Rebel Films funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Rebel Films M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Rebel Films
What does Rebel Films do?
Rebel Films is an Australian documentary and television production company that produces, distributes and licences original documentary content. Its offerings span TV series, web series, feature-length documentaries and educational DVDs focused on Australian life, Indigenous culture, outback communities and multicultural stories, sold through its online shop (DVDs), the VHX streaming platform, and licensed to broadcasters such as ABC, SBS and Network Australia.
Is Rebel Films a public or private company?
Rebel Films is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Rebel Films founded?
Rebel Films was founded in 1998. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Rebel Films based?
Rebel Films is headquartered in Bermagui, Australia, in the Oceania region.
How does Rebel Films make money?
Five revenue lines are on record. DVD Sales are the primary driver. The others are streaming/Online Sales, broadcast Licensing, merchandise Sales and crowdfunding.
Who are Rebel Films's main competitors?
Fremantle Australia is listed as a broad incumbent. Direct peers are CAAMA (Central Australian Aboriginal Media Association), Matchbox Pictures, Porchlight Films, Princess Pictures, Blackfella Films, Southern Pictures, Goalpost Pictures and PAW Media. SBS (Special Broadcasting Service) is listed as an others.
Does Rebel Films have an API?
No public API is recorded for Rebel Films.
What industry is Rebel Films in?
Rebel Films's product category is Documentary Production. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPADADAC, Short-Form Documentaries, with a secondary code of MPADADAM, Travel & Adventure Documentaries. Its NAICS code is 71151.