Dawn and Peter live a happy life in Australia with their four children, under the shade of a huge fig tree – until Peter’s sudden death destroys their idyll. Each member of the family tries to come to terms with the situation in their own way. Dawn is now solely responsible for the whole family and is forced to find work. Her only daughter, 8-year-old Simone, seems to take the loss the hardest of all. She loses herself in her imagination that her father continues to live within the fig tree, watching over and the protecting the family. One day she confides her little secret to her mother… Dawn too is fascinated by the commanding presence of the tree. With time, the family finds its way back to normalcy. When Dawn becomes more intimate with George, her new employer, the bond between mother and daughter is threatened. The tree becomes overpowering: the branches and roots start taking over the house, destroying the foundations. But Dawn refuses to let the tree take control over her family …