Petra Pesa talked to Peter Pecotic, an Australian filmmaker, strategist and entrepreneur, and a first-generation migrant of Dalmatian/Croatian heritage. Over three decades he has worked across commercial and political campaigns, international conferences and creative productions in Australia, the UK and the Asia–Pacific, producing strategic events and communication programs for governments, corporations and community organisations.
Peter’s debut feature documentary, Countryman (2024), began as a personal journey retracing his father’s 1950s road trip from Sydney to Cairns and evolved—during COVID—into a cultural exchange with Warumungu artist Joseph Williams in the Northern Territory. Filmed with a campervan, smartphone and drone, the film explores identity, belonging and reconciliation, asking what it means to be Australian through both First Nations and migrant lenses.
Supported by Screen Australia, Documentary Australia and the Government of Croatia, Countryman has screened internationally, aired on NITV (Australia’s National Indigenous Television) and HRT (Croatia’s national broadcaster), and played at more than 30 community events across Australia, Croatia, Serbia (Vojvodina), Hungary and Bosnia & Herzegovina. Most recently it was screened by the Australian Government in Chile as part of a public-diplomacy program.
Through his work, Peter aims to bridge cultures, spark dialogue and tell stories that connect memory, identity and place.
Podcast hosted and edited by Petra Pesa.
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