Jimmy John Thiaday of the Kuz and Peiudu clans, lives and works on the island of Erub, Torres Strait, Northern Australia.

Erub, also known as Darnley Island is an island belonging to the Eastern group of the Torres Strait, close to the coast of Papua New Guinea, and is accessible only by small prop plane.

Jimmy has been known internationally for his work with ‘Ghost Net’, discarded commercial fishing nets left to drift in the world’s oceans. He sculpts art forms, depicting sea creatures in the hope of bringing awareness to this issue and its impacts.

Just Beneath the Surface is a film collaboration between Jimmy John Thaiday and Keiran James. Their past collaborations have won the Telstra National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Award, in multimedia in 2022 and 2023.

Working as a 2 man production, they travel the stunning waters of Erub, Torres Strait in Jimmy’s dinghy, creating stories to bring to the world about this unique and special part of Australia.