A new documentary is showcasing one of Australia's most innovative Aboriginal-led initiatives, spotlighting how access to clean clothes and bedding can transform health, employment, dignity and opportunity in remote communities.

Produced by the Jasper Picture Company in partnership with Aboriginal Investment Group (AIG), More Than a Laundry follows AIG's Remote Laundries Project in the remote West Arnhem Land town of Gunbalanya.

Through the voices of community members, local employees and project partners, the documentary tells the story of an initiative which extends far beyond washing machines.

Filmed over a number of days in Gunbalanya, More Than a Laundry embraces the pace of community life, allowing relationships and lived experience to shape the story.

Rather than focusing solely on infrastructure, it celebrates resilience, local leadership and the power of community-led innovation.

The documentary shares the challenges of washing in remote communities, where limited access to reliable laundry facilities can contribute to preventable illnesses, place pressure on families and create barriers to health and wellbeing.

It's a challenge AIG's Remote Laundries Project was established to change.

As a 100 per cent Aboriginal-owned and Aboriginal-led organisation, AIG has worked alongside communities to create a model that is practical, culturally informed and community driven.

The project provides free access to commercial washing and drying facilities while creating sustainable local employment and supporting healthier living environments.

Every laundry is designed in partnership with community, AIG said, ensuring each site reflects local priorities and delivers lasting social, health and economic outcomes.

AIG Chief Executive Officer Elizabeth Morgan-Brett said eight in 10 Aboriginal children will get scabies before their first birthday.

"We traced it back to overcrowded housing and limited access to proper washing facilities. Those repeated infections can lead to acute rheumatic fever and, ultimately, rheumatic heart disease."

Since opening its first Remote Laundry in Barunga in 2019, the initiative has expanded to seven laundries operating across the Northern Territory, with more currently in development.

"It sounds simple, but hot washes with the right products can kill the bacteria that cause these diseases," Morgan- Brett explains in the documentary.

"The one thing that's difficult to quantify, is that our laundries deliver dignity. This is about dignity, human dignity. Every person in the world deserves the right to clean clothes and clean bedding.

"We're reducing disease, creating jobs and strengthening communities. One wash at a time."

The organisations aid through improved environmental health, local employment, community participation and stronger wellbeing outcomes, its Remote Laundries Project contributes to seven targets under the National Agreement on Closing the Gap, demonstrating what is possible when communities are empowered to lead solutions designed around their own priorities

They hopes the documentary will encourage governments, industry, philanthropic organisations and Australians alike to recognise the value of investing in Aboriginal-led initiatives that deliver tangible outcomes.

"Because More Than a Laundry isn't simply a story about washing clothes," AIG said. "It is a story about dignity, health, employment, opportunity and what can be achieved when communities are empowered to lead their own future."