Netflix's six-part Australian period drama My Brilliant Career tackles Miles Franklin's classic 1901 novel with audacious contemporary energy. Developed and written by showrunner Liz Doran and directed by Alyssa McClelland and Anne Renton, the series stars Philippa Northeast as Sybylla Melvyn—a fiercely intelligent, unconventional young woman growing up in the drought-stricken Australian outback at the turn of the 20th century.
Dreaming of a career as a writer and artist, Sybylla refuses to conform to rigid societal expectations, rejecting domestic servitude and traditional marriage proposals from wealthy suitor Harry Beecham (Christopher Chung). While the production's period costumes and sun-bleached Outback cinematography honor classic Australian heritage drama, its soundtrack boldly disrupts period conventions by pairing Victorian visuals with a electric soundtrack of modern indie, post-punk, and pop anthems.
Jemma Burns' Anachronistic Music Supervision
At the heart of the show's artistic success is award-winning Australian music supervisor Jemma Burns. Rather than restricting the series to 19th-century folk songs or traditional classical orchestrations, Burns treats the soundtrack as an extension of Sybylla's 21st-century mindset.
To capture Sybylla's fierce independence, Burns curates energetic modern tracks by female-fronted rock and indie acts. Standout needle drops include Australian punk band Amyl and The Sniffers' blistering single "Born To Be Alive", Wet Leg's irreverent indie hit "Angelica", and Yeah Yeah Yeahs' explosive tracks "Sacrilege" and "Date with the Night". The inclusion of Kylie Minogue's pop masterpiece "All the Lovers" and British band The Last Dinner Party's theatrical hit "Sinner" gives ballroom dances and horseback rides an intoxicating modern pulse.
François Tétaz's Score and Stage Musical Adaptations
Providing emotional balance to the energetic needle drops is the original background score composed by Grammy winner François Tétaz (celebrated for his production work on Gotye's global smash "Somebody That I Used to Know") in collaboration with Molly Lewis. Tétaz utilizes atmospheric acoustic guitars, subtle string textures, and ambient synth pads to reflect the vast isolation of the Australian landscape and Sybylla's internal creative struggles.
Furthermore, the soundtrack incorporates theatrical recordings from the 2024-2026 stage musical adaptation written by Dean Bryant and Mathew Frank. Featuring vocal performances by Australian indie stars Julia Jacklin ("Scarborough Fair"), Kate Miller-Heidke ("Siren (Never Let You Go)", "Horses"), and Isabella Manfredi ("The Gypsy and the Bird"), these recordings bridge theatrical storytelling with contemporary pop production.
Final Verdict
My Brilliant Career is a masterclass in anachronistic music supervision. By juxtaposing 1900s Australian bush aesthetics with 2020s indie punk, Jemma Burns and François Tétaz have created one of the most exciting, memorable television soundtracks of 2026.
Editorial Rating: 9.2 / 10