Bluey Episodes Dubbed into Indigenous Yolŋu Matha Language

Bluey will be available for the first time in an Indigenous language in Australia.

Five episodes, The Creek, The Beach, Sleepytime, Grandad and Rug Island have been dubbed by north-east Arnhem Land residents into Yolŋu Matha.

The episodes have been chosen because of their connections to family and Country, aligning with the community's "worldview".

Yolŋu leader Sylvia Nulpinditj, a co-director of the project, expects the Bluey episodes to be a massive hit with the community.

"They'll be freaking out for Bluey and Bingo speaking in language. It'll be awesome," she said.

The project has been years in the making, but the recording of the characters took just three weeks.

Founding member of King Stingray in cast

The blue heeler dad, Bandit, has been voiced by Dimathaya Burrawanga, a founding member of Yolŋu surf rock band King Stingray.

The grandad in the series is played by respected Elder Andrew Gurruwiwi while Bluey and Bingo's mother, Chilli, is voiced by Rosie Mununggurr.

Ms Nulpinditj said the team thought hard about which of the local children they would cast as the main characters Bluey and Bingo, ensuring they had their family's support.

"It's also part of history making with these children on an episode that is very well known around the world," the co-manager of Yolŋu Radio and interim chief executive of ARDS Aboriginal Corporation said.

She said the children played the characters so well she expects they will soon have new nicknames based on their work.

Bluey elevates Yolŋu culture nationally

Yolŋu Matha is the term for closely linked languages spoken by different clans in north-east Arnhem Land.

"We tried to get it as close to what you'd hear in a modern-day Yolŋu household, which is a mix [of languages]," Will Porter, a co-director and producer, said.

There are some English (or Balanda) words in the original show that did not translate, so they opted for Yolŋu concepts, stories and lullabies.

In the English version of The Creek episode, the dad, Bandit, says, "Make sure you watch out for drop bears", which are fictional creatures.

Ms Nulpinditj and Mr Porter said they swapped that joke out for an old wives' tale of Ŋamini Baŋ'baŋ' who threatens to steal children if they do not go to bed.

While in the Sleepytime (Yakurrmina Walu) episode, they renamed Bingo's doll a "skin name".

"Bingo, that is in the episode, sings out, 'Oh, where's Gutjani?' So she's actually calling out the doll's skin name," Ms Nulpinditj said.

The team would tweak the script line by line in the studio with traditional owners and language holders to ensure the words kept their meaning but also fit the animation's mouth movements.

NAIDOC Week release

Bluey is a runaway hit, available in more than 140 countries, dubbed in more than 20 languages.

Back home, Mr Porter said the new offering was language preservation in action and would see the community's voice "elevated on the main stage".

"What a better conduit to show younger Australians, what First Nations, what a Yolŋu household sounds like in Yirrkala or Milingindi, or Galiwin'ku," he said.

They hope this "groundbreaking project" will be the beginning of more collaborations.

ABC director of First Nations strategy Kelly Williams said the project was a powerful way of bringing language and culture from north-east Arnhem Land to homes across Australia.

"At the ABC, we're committed to ensuring Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander languages are part of the national conversation and these episodes, alongside our broader NAIDOC Week content, is a strong example of that commitment in action," Ms Williams said.

A sentiment shared by Bluey producer Ludo Studio.

"Bluey is a show that is intended for everyone to enjoy, so to be able to share it in Indigenous language at NAIDOC Week feels really special," it said.

"Too deadly," Ms Nulpinditj said of the confirmed date. "I have goosebumps."

The episodes will also feature at the Garma festival in August, held each year in Gulkula, located about 40 kilometres from Nhulunbuy on the Gove Peninsula.