Titles beginning with S
188 titles - sorted alphabetically or by year prev 1 2 3 4 next
1890s
South Sea Islanders Cutting Cane historical – 1899
Photographer Frederick Charles Wills and his assistant, Henry William Mobsby, capture Melanesian labourers cutting cane in Queensland in 1899.
SS Katoomba Unloading historical – 1899
This actuality footage from 1899 shows the unloading of timber spars from the SS Katoomba at a busy wharf in Brisbane.
Sugar Mills, Nambour historical – 1899
In this actuality footage from 1899, a horse drags a load of cane to a sugar mill where it is fed onto a conveyor belt for crushing.
1900s
The Story of the Kelly Gang feature film – 1906
Audiences of the time loved this film’s boldness and, with its live sound effects and narration, to them it didn’t seem silent.
Street Scenes in Perth, Western Australia historical – 1907
Leonard Corrick recorded actuality-style footage in places where the Corricks were currently performing.
1910s
The Sydney Morning Herald documentary – 1911
One of the first Australian docos to be shot at night with artificial light, this Pathé short shows the newspaper printing process of the Sydney Morning Herald.
The St Kilda Esplanade on Boxing Day historical – c1913
A vivid snapshot of public life on a sunny day at the St Kilda esplanade and foreshore on Boxing Day 1913.
Society Wedding home movie – c1914
This silent footage of a society wedding, beautifully framed and shot on 35mm nitrate film, is a rare example of a home movie from the 1910s.
St Kilda Esplanade 1914 historical – 1914
This early footage of St Kilda includes the entrance to Luna Park and a jetty at the beach. The last shot, with its geometric form and structure, is like a Seurat painting.
The Sentimental Bloke feature film – 1919
Director Raymond Longford and leading lady Lottie Lyell wrote this together and it is probably their most successful collaboration.
1920s
A Shining Example sponsored film – c1920
Unlike other films produced by the Made in Australia Council, A Shining Example juxtaposes a tour of an Australian factory with a fictional narrative.
Steamboat Holidays on the Murray River documentary – c1920
This silent documentary shows the landscape and townships along the Murray River and is from a series made in the 1920s called See Australia First.
Sewerage of a Great City: Melbourne sponsored film – c1922
By the time this sponsored documentary was made, over 166,000 homes and 70,000 people were, according to its intertitles, 'enjoying the benefits of sewerage’ in Melbourne.
Sorrento historical – c1922
The many attractions of the Victorian seaside town of Sorrento are promoted in this 1920s footage produced for the Sorrento Progress Association.
Sunshine Sally feature film – 1922
The working-class Sally falls in love with the adopted son of wealthy parents from whom she was kidnapped as a child.
The Sun Worshippers documentary – 1922
A scientific expedition to Wallal for the 1922 solar eclipse confirmed the bending of light by gravity predicted in Einstein’s 1915 General Theory of Relativity.
Sheep to Shop: Hosiery and Knitted Goods sponsored film – 1924
At one point in this promotional documentary, a machine miraculously 'absorbs yarn at one end and discharges socks at the other’!
Sheep to Shop: Woollen Goods sponsored film – 1924
Made inside a wool mill, this film covers making the yarn, weaving the fabrics, pressing the finished goods and packaging them for distribution nationwide.
South Melbourne Methodist Mission News sponsored film – c1924
From the early 20th century, Christian welfare organisations have used films like this to highlight their work within the Australian community.
Snippy is an Artful Dodger short film – c1925
This charming example of an early Australian cartoon superimposes cell animation over freeze-frames of live action to create Snooks’s dream world.
Snapshots around ‘Madras’ home movie – c1926
This is a good example of how, in the early days of moving images, people would often pose for the camera as if they were posing for a still photograph.
The Sailors spoken word – 1927
A theatrical comedy routine by vaudeville performers Stiffy (Nat Phillips) and Mo (Roy Rene) recorded in 1927.
The Stawell Gift: Staging the Golden Jubilee Carnival documentary – 1927
The Stawell Gift, one of the oldest foot races in the world, began as a competition between miners in the Victorian goldfields.
The Spirit of Gallipoli short feature – 1928
A high-spirited young man discovers the benefits of army discipline in this amateur film from 1928.
Sydney Tramways historical – c1928
This footage demonstrates the relationship between the growing city population of Sydney in the 1920s and the developing public transport system.
1930s
Sellex Crockery: Red Riding Hood advertisement – c1930
This appeals to the ‘pester power’ of children by using an animated cartoon to promote Sellex products.
Siege of the South documentary – 1931
Frank Hurley documents Australia’s rich history of scientific exploration of the Australian Antarctic Territory.
Stan Ray and George Moon Jnr: Specialty Dancers historical – 1931
Entertainers Stan Ray and George Moon Jnr perform a tap dancing routine on one of the stages inside His Majesty’s Theatre in Melbourne.
The Squatter’s Daughter feature film – 1933
Flammable nitrate film fed the fires in the spectacular bushfire finale to Ken G Hall’s The Squatter’s Daughter. The fires rapidly got out of control during filming but no one was hurt.
The Silence of Dean Maitland feature film – 1934
Renowned filmmaker Ken G Hall was concerned that this film would incite religious anger, but it was a smash hit instead.
Splendid Fellows feature film – 1934
Famous Australian aviator, Sir Charles Kingsford Smith, and his famous plane, have cameo roles in this comedy adventure.
Strike Me Lucky feature film – 1934
The Holocaust made vaudeville star Roy Rene’s Jewish caricatures unacceptable in later years, but this wasn’t the case in 1934.
Safety First sponsored film – c1936
This early road safety film uses drama, artwork and song to show children the correct way to behave when on the road.
Silver City sponsored film – 1936
This film is narrated with Frank Hurley’s typical flamboyance and presents mining as instrumental to maintaining the livelihood of over 100,000 Australians.
Spirit of Progress: Australia’s Wonder Train documentary – 1937
As the only new passenger train to be constructed in Australia during the 1930s, the Spirit of Progress was a symbol of technological achievement.
1940s
Sydney on Show documentary – c1940
This documentary from about 1940 shows Sydney’s progress as a modern city. It is from the large private film collection of Roger McKenzie and Bernard Kent.
Soldiers Without Uniform documentary – 1942
This propaganda film made by Charles Chauvel aims to boost worker morale by recognising their contributions to the war effort.
South-west Pacific sponsored film – 1943
During the Second World War, Chips Rafferty appeared in two short documentaries made for the federal government to support the domestic war effort.
Senator Dorothy Tangney: Maiden Speech radio – 1944
A recording of the first woman elected to the Australian Senate reading her maiden speech.
Swanston St Shamble; Two Day Jag music – 1944
The first published recordings of Graeme Bell’s Dixieland Band made in Melbourne in 1944.
Smithy feature film – 1946
Smithy was Charles 'Bud’ Tingwell’s first film. With characteristic modesty, he later said he won the part as a control tower officer because he supplied his own uniform.
Sprod, John: Pioneer Tours Bus Trip to Flinder’s Ranges, Building Brick Houses home movie – c1946
John Sprod was influenced by his father, an amateur photographer who taught him how to develop film.
Sydney Harbour and Anzac Day home movie – c1946
This colour home movie shows the official Anzac Day parade through central Sydney in 1946, one year after the end of the Second World War.
Searchlight on Japan documentary – c1948
Made by Ken G Hall, Searchlight on Japan focuses on Japan under Allied occupation at the end of the Second World War.
Skyway Express documentary – c1948
One of a series of travelogues produced in the late 1940s when very few Australians had travelled overseas, each is about flying into an 'exotic’ location.
Snowy Hydro - Where Giants Meet sponsored film – 1948
The film spends a lot of time singing the praises of the TD-24 bulldozer, but it’s also interesting as a recruitment tool for genuine high country bushmen.
Sons of Matthew feature film – 1949
Sons of Matthew is an extremely vivid depiction of the heroic conquest of the land by Australia’s white settlers.
1950s
Schools for Farmers sponsored film – c1950
This short film promotes schools for farmers during vacation time at Hawkesbury Agricultural College.
The Singing Chef advertisement – 1952
The catchy melody and infectious cheer have you humming along by the end of the advertisement.
Snowy Hydro – The Snowy Mountains Scheme sponsored film – 1952
Interesting as an early document on the Snowy Hydro scheme, it’s an unabashed celebration of the entire endeavour, depicting it as a model of postwar reconstruction.
