Whale Shark Jack is Stan’s heartfelt, kid-focused addition to the Australian wildlife movie canon.

Its brief run time and ambitious mix of genres means some elements are under-cooked. Nonetheless, the film shines as a love letter to Western Australia’s coastline and its community.

Girl meets whale shark

Whale Shark Jack begins on WA’s world-heritage listed Ningaloo Reef. The young Sarah (played by Alyla Browne as a 12-year-old, and by Emmi Williams as a younger child) lives on a boat with her parents, Nita (Abbie Cornish) and Marcus (Michael Dorman) – both of whom research whale sharks.

Sarah and her parents befriend and begin tracking a whale shark they call Jack. When Marcus is killed in a storm, Nita and Sarah return to the coastal town of Exmouth, where Sarah must attend school for the first time.

Sarah struggles to fit in at school, and tracks Jack against her mum’s wishes in the hope they can return to their life on the water. Along the way, she teams up with schoolmates E.J. and Ashleigh (newcomers Luca Miller and Giselle Philogene), and the three........

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