A First Nations actor, a legendary civil rights family, and the biggest bank heist in British history.

Madeleine Madden is one of the brightest stars in Australian screen acting right now and she carries one of the most significant names in this country’s history.

She’s the granddaughter of Charlie Perkins, one of Australia’s most important civil rights leaders, who led the famous 1965 Freedom Rides and became the first Aboriginal man to graduate from an Australian university. Her aunt is director Rachel Perkins. Activism and courage are in her blood. And Madeleine has carried that legacy forward in her own way, on screen, and as a proud advocate for her people.

Now she’s leading a brand new feature film.

It’s called 'Chasing Millions,' a darkly funny, fast-moving comedy heist caper inspired by the real-life 2004 Northern Bank robbery in Belfast, the biggest bank job in British history. Madeleine plays Diana, an Australian police detective of Aboriginal and Irish heritage who travels to Belfast on family business, chasing down her own Irish roots and finds herself tangled up in the crime of the century.

She’s teamed with a gruff, cynical veteran Northern Irish detective (played by Christopher Eccleston, of Doctor Who fame), and the two of them strike sparks off each other as the case takes one bizarre turn after another.

Here’s what makes it so fitting. The film sits right at the meeting point of two cultures, Aboriginal and Irish woven together through its lead character, its themes, and its star. As the festival director put it, "there’s a real connection there between Irish and Australian Indigenous culture. Two peoples who both know a thing or two about colonisation, resilience and holding onto identity against the odds." And just to top it off, the soundtrack was written by Jim Moginie, the legendary guitarist from Midnight Oil.

Chasing Millions is the big film of the Irish Film Festival Australia, which is touring the country right now. For anyone in Queensland, the Brisbane season runs this week, Friday 16 to Monday 19 October at Palace Barracks with Chasing Millions kicking things off as the festival’s headline event.

From her grandfather marching for Aboriginal rights, to Madeleine Madden headlining an international feature film and representing First Nations talent on the world stage, that’s a family legacy still going strong.