A woman wearing a traditional barrister's wig and a black gown, with an elegant white collar and large earrings.

Silenced + Q&A

  • Cinema
  • Playhouse
  • Run time: 100 minutes, plus 20 minute Q&A Subject to change
  • Seating map

Australia | 2026 | English | Documentary | M

Followed by post-screening Q&A with director Selina Miles and human rights lawyer Jennifer Robinson.

What are the systemic reforms we need to stop the silencing of women’s voices?

Billed by Screen International as “an essential, galvanising watch,” Silenced follows international human rights lawyer and free speech defender Jennifer Robinson's fight for survivors of gender-based violence to tell their story.

In the wake of #MeToo, survivors who spoke out found themselves facing a new kind of silencing and fear as defamation laws became weaponised by alleged perpetrators. Going inside the courtroom and behind the headlines, the film reveals how the legal system is used to intimidate, discredit, and financially ruin not just survivors but also the journalists who report on their stories.

Silenced brings unrivalled access to the people at the centre of these battles: Amber Heard, whose defamation trial became one of the most-watched legal battles in recent history; Brittany Higgins, Australian political staffer turned advocate; and Catalina Ruiz-Navarro, journalist and co-founder of feminist magazine Volcánicas.

World premiering at Sundance and opening the 2026 Sydney Film Festival to a standing ovation, Emmy Award-winning director Selina Miles delivers a gripping, emotional and urgent film that challenges the flaws within the justice system.

Following the screening, hear from Jennifer Robinson and Selina Miles in conversation with Documentary Australia’s Dr Mitzi Goldman in a Q&A discussion on the narrative and systemic changes needed to prevent the silencing of women’s voices.

Presented by Sydney Opera House and Documentary Australia

Event details

The documentary is sobering, harrowing, intense – and powerful. An important watch, an uncomfortable watch.

The Australian

Cast and credits

Director Selina Miles

As self Amber Heard
As self Brittany Higgins
As self Catalina Ruiz-Navarro
As self Sibongile Ndashe

Mitzi Goldman posing for photo tilting her head

Selina miles posing in front of green leaves

Jennifer Robinson with arms crossed in a white blazer

Attending this event

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Plan your visit

Address

Sydney Opera House
Bennelong Point
Sydney NSW 2000
Australia

Getting to the venue

The Opera House is a 7-10 minute walk from Circular Quay, and is easily accessible by car, train, ferry, lightrail, bus, bike and on foot.

Location and access

Playhouse

The Playhouse is located in the north-western corner of Sydney Opera House, best accessed through the Western Foyers.

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