Erana James is a star on the rise. The actor leads We Were Dangerous, a clever dark comedy by Māori filmmaker Josephine Stewart-Te Whiu that’s produced by Taika Waititi – but she’s also starred in US series The Wilds, the film The Changeover alongside Melanie Lynskey and Timothy Spall, and in miniseries Bad Behaviour. We Were Dangerous – which is led by Māori actors – sees a group of teens sent to a school for “incorrigible and delinquent girls” on a remote island, where the aim is to transform them into “moral participants in society”. It won a Special Jury Prize at SXSW Film Festival, where it had its world premiere, and will be screening at Melbourne International Film Festival this month.

Here, James shares with Broadsheet what she loves about her adopted home, from its winters to the best cinema seats and where she takes visitors.

Hi Erana! Tell us a bit about yourself.
I’m a Māori actor [who has been] living in Melbourne for the past five years. I live in North Melbourne – the best – with a few mates. I’ve been here for a couple of years. I’m 25 and I grew up in Whangarei at the top of the north island of Aotearoa. I miss it all the time.

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What’s your favourite thing about Melbourne?
The winters.

What’s your most frequented restaurant?
I eat at Pho Victoria maybe three times a week.

Where do you head for a drink?
Prudence. Royal Oak. Town Hall Hotel North Melbourne.

Where will we find you at breakfast?
I don’t go to cafes, but Take Two Bagels is breakfast for me, usually.

Fave cinema?
Cinema Nova, of course. (But actually Highpoint Hoyts, secretly. Their seats are unmatched, sorry!)

Where do you go when you want to impress someone?
When I have people from home come and visit, I usually take them to Queen Victoria Market or down to South Melbourne Market for seafood and oysters.

Most underrated spot in Melbourne?
Honestly not much – everyone in Melbourne is so in the know. But Bread Club in North Melbourne is really good. It is definitely not underrated, because the line on the weekend is unwell, but it deserves to be longer. It’s so good.

Is there a book or film that captures the essence of Melbourne?
This, I feel, is impossible to answer, so instead I’ll tautoko [support] a short film by a brilliant Melbourne director. An Act of Love by Lucy Knox is beautiful. I had the pleasure of working with Lucy on a short we did together [Hot Mother], but An Act of Love is gorgeous.

What makes Melbourne a better place?
The arts and the people, though that is true of anywhere.

Where do you go to escape the city?
I go out to Dandenong often, and the markets [there] are brilliant. Or I’ll head down to Red Hill to stay with friends.

MIFF 2024 runs from August 8–25.

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@melbfilmfest

“My Melbourne” is a regular column about the places and spaces that entice Melbourne’s well-known residents.