First Nations Actresses Shine in Logie Nominations

Two young First Nations actresses who brought the story of tennis champion Evonne Goolagong Cawley to life are among a strong cohort of Indigenous performers recognised in this year's Logie nominations.

Lila McGuire, 29, and 10-year-old Eloise Hart both portrayed the legendary Australian athlete in the ABC's three-part drama Goolagong, which has been nominated for Best Miniseries/Telemovie.

The pair are among six nominees — including Bundjalung and Lamalama actor Tamala — in the running for the Graham Kennedy Award for Most Popular New Talent.

McGuire has also been nominated for the Silver Logie for Best Lead Actress in a Drama, where four of the six nominees are women of colour.

A Noongar Boodjar woman, McGuire learned of her award nominations on Monday morning and said the thought of winning gave her goosebumps.

"I dreamed about it, but it was one of those things where it's so surreal when it's actually happening," she said.

"Baby me was dreaming about this day and just being nominated is so huge."

Meanwhile, Yamatji/Noongar actor Hart, who portrayed Goolagong Cawley's childhood years in the miniseries, has also also been recognised for her role in the ABC's Mystery Road: Origin.

She said being nominated for a Logie for the characters she's played is "really beyond exciting".

"Some of those stories remind me of the experiences my grandmothers and so many Indigenous families have lived through," Hart said.

"Others celebrate people like Evonne Goolagong, who showed generations of Aboriginal kids what was possible."

Multiple nods for First Nations actors

This year's Logie Award nominations saw strong First Nations representation across award categories and networks.

Mystery Road: Origin — which featured an all-Blak writing team — received five nominations, including Best Drama Program.

The show's lead actor, Mark Coles Smith, is nominated for a Silver Logie alongside Hunter Page-Lochard (Reckless, SBS/NITV) and Rob Collins (RFDS, Seven Network) — meaning three of the six nominees for the Best Lead Actor in a Drama are First Nations actors.

Among the five nominees for Best Supporting Actor are Clarence Ryan for his performance on Mystery Road: Origin, and Thomas Weatherall for his roles on Heartbreak High (Netflix) and The Narrow Road to the Deep North (Prime Video).

McGuire said she was emotional upon hearing of the nominations for Indigenous talent.

"I didn't realise quite how many of us there were. That's so wonderful. I'm trying to hold back tears," she said.

"Look at us go! Look at all this incredible diversity on our screens.

McGuire said it was a "very important time" and not something she could have imagined as a child.

"There weren't many mob on screen when I was a little one," she said.

"So to see it happening, it's so beautiful and important, I think, for all the little ones out there, those young mob, seeing so many of us excelling.

"It's a gift to have some good representation for us in the media. I'm just so proud."

McGuire added that it was validating to see positive change playing out.

"This is something that our old people would have been dreaming of — to see our young ones and their descendants succeeding in this country," she said.

"Change doesn't happen immediately. It happens slowly. And the fact that there are so many of us up there, it feels like things have been changing."