Titles curated by Elizabeth Taggart-Speers
103 titles - sorted alphabetically or by year prev 1 2 next
1890s
Melbourne Cup 1896 historical – 1896
This film documenting the 1896 Melbourne Cup is one of Australia’s oldest surviving films. A horse gallops into the foreground and blocks our view until the film’s producer gives the horse a pat on its rump.
Boer War Transvaal Contingent historical – 1899
Using a hand-cranked Lumiere Cinematographe, photographer Frederick Charles Wills captured the Queensland contingents departing for the Boer War.
Building Construction historical – 1899
The official photographer of the Queensland Department of Agriculture, Frederick Charles Wills, films a building construction site in 1899.
Dipping Sheep historical – 1899
This short clip shows sheep being dipped in arsenic on a Queensland farm in 1899.
Government Party Boards SS Lucinda historical – 1899
In this actuality footage from 1899, Queensland politicians board the paddle steamer Lucinda, moored at a wharf on the Brisbane River.
Loading Horses on the SS Cornwall historical – 1899
Horses board the SS Cornwall on 31 October 1899, prior to the ship’s departure for the Boer War.
Newtown Railway Station historical – 1899
This actuality footage from 1899 shows a train arriving at Petersham or Newtown Railway Station in Sydney’s inner west.
North Shore Steam Ferry historical – 1899
This short clip from 1899 shows a steam ferry docking at the Milsons Point Ferry Wharf in Sydney.
Opening of Queensland Parliament historical – 1899
This short clip shows the Queensland Governor arriving by horse-drawn carriage to open Queensland Parliament on 18 May 1899.
Queen Street and Victoria Bridge historical – 1899
Using an original Lumière Cinematographe, Frederick Charles Wills and his assistant, Henry William Mobsby, capture a busy Brisbane intersection in 1899.
Roma Street Station historical – 1899
This short clip shows a train pulling up to Roma Street Station, Brisbane in 1899.
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.
Threshing at Allora historical – 1899
This 1899 actuality footage shows workers tossing wheat sheaves into a threshing machine on a Queensland farm.
Wheat Harvesting with Reaper and Binder historical – 1899
The official photographer of the Queensland Department of Agriculture, Frederick Charles Wills, films a farmer and his wheat harvest on a property in Jimbour.
1900s
Inauguration of the Commonwealth documentary – 1901
This is possibly the first feature-length documentary made in Australia and the first Australian film to use multi-camera coverage.
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.
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.
Kiwi Shoe Polish: Shine Sir advertisement – 1914
This cinema advertisement illustrates what employers on the home front faced when their staff enlisted themselves into the war effort.
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.
Australasian Gazette – HMAS Brisbane Launched at Cockatoo Island newsreel – 1915
In this 1915 newsreel, the wife of then prime minister Andrew Fisher launches the HMAS Brisbane naval ship from the dockyard of Cockatoo Island.
Australasian Gazette – Patriotic Procession in Aid of the French Red Cross newsreel – 1915
In this 1915 newsreel, people in costume walk, ride horses or ride in horse-drawn carriages on a Melbourne street as part of a parade for the French Red Cross.
Australasian Gazette – Sheep Dog Trial newsreel – 1915
This newsreel segment from 1915 shows a typical Australian showground. A sheepdog trainer and his dog herd three sheep into a pen.
Australasian Gazette – The Last Innings of Victor Trumper newsreel – 1915
In this newsreel, a large group marches in front of the horse-drawn vehicle carrying the casket of Australian cricketer Victor Trumper to a Sydney cemetery.
Anzac Day Promotional advertisement – c1916
This advertisement encourages Australians to commemorate Anzac Day. The Gallipoli campaign was fought from 25 April 1915 and first commemorated in 1916.
The Official Film of the Mawson Antarctic Expedition documentary – c1916
This film documents part of the treacherous 600-mile 1911–1914 expedition to the Magnetic South Pole led by Sir Douglas Mawson.
Australasian Gazette – First Shipment of Red Cross Supplies to Egypt newsreel – c1917
In this newsreel, workers at Federal Government House, Melbourne, load boxes of Red Cross supplies onto horse-drawn vehicles. The supplies are to aid soldiers in Egypt.
Australasian Gazette – Goodbye Sunny New South Wales newsreel – c1917
This newsreel footage from 1917 encourages young men to enlist for the First World War. It shows a public parade for soldiers travelling overseas to fight.
Australasian Gazette – Mimic Warfare newsreel – 1917
In this 1917 newsreel, troops from the Engineers’ Depot rehearse a raid on enemy trenches and are instructed by their commanding officers over the telephone.
Australasian Gazette – Returned Anzacs newsreel – c1917
This newsreel likely dates from the latter half of the First World War and shows returned Anzac soldiers marching through Melbourne as part of the ‘Fill-the-Gap’ recruitment drive.
Australasian Gazette – The Strike Spreads newsreel – c1917
In this Australasian Gazette newsreel, waterside workers unload perishables from a ship. This footage may be from the the New South Wales General Strike of 1917.
The Digger Carries On: Repatriation Illustrated documentary – 1919
This 1919 film reassured Australians that returned servicemen were being looked after, in part through retraining.
1920s
Australasian Gazette – All for a Good Cause newsreel – c1920
A surf carnival at Bondi Beach in aid of the St John’s Ambulance Brigade features in this Australasian Gazette newsreel from approximately 1920.
Australasian Gazette – A Unique Audience newsreel – c1920
This 1920 Australasian Gazette newsreel shows injured soldiers from Caulfield Military Hospital attending a special matinee at Elsternwick Theatre.
Australasian Gazette – Conversion newsreel – c1920
In this 1920 newsreel, work commences at Victoria Parade for the electrification of the cable tram system of Collins Street, Melbourne.
Australasian Gazette – Dame Nellie Melba newsreel – c1920
This newsreel footage shows soprano Dame Nellie Melba, having arrived in Sydney from Vancouver on the passenger liner RMS Niagara after a world tour.
Australasian Gazette – In and around Hamilton District newsreel – c1920
This newsreel from approximately 1920 shows the orchard districts of Hamilton, Queensland. Workers pick, sort and pack peaches for transportation.
Australasian Gazette – Some Sunday Morning newsreel – c1920
This newsreel vividly captures 'some Sunday morning’ at St Kilda Beach, Melbourne, showcasing 1920s swimming costumes, parasols and beach culture.
From the Bush to the Bungalow documentary – 1920
Produced at a time when the timber industry was considered romantic, Bush Bungalow shows the power of nature and man’s ability to conquer it.
Australasian Gazette – Maoris Give Their War Cry newsreel – c1922
In this 1922 newsreel footage, a Maori rugby league team perform a haka war dance before playing a game against New South Wales.
Australasian Gazette – 1st Chatswood Erects a Tower and a Rope Suspension Bridge newsreel – c1923
In this newsreel from approximately 1923, the 1st Chatswood Boy Scouts erect a tower and suspension bridge and compete in a boxing match.
Australasian Gazette – 1924 Melbourne Cup newsreel – 1924
This newsreel features highlights of the 1924 Melbourne Cup, including the horses entering the racetrack, crowds in the grandstand and the race, won by Backwood.
Australasian Gazette – A Seaplane Circles a Continent newsreel – 1924
In this extract from a 1924 documentary, A Seaplane Circles a Continent, a RAAF airplane arrives in St Kilda after circumnavigating Australia.
Australasian Gazette – Bon Voyage to Ex-Chief Justice, Sir William Cullen newsreel – c1924
This newsreel shows the 1924 farewell and departure from Sydney of the retired Chief Justice Sir William Cullen and Lady Cullen for an overseas trip.
Australasian Gazette – Pauline Frederick, World Famous Star of Stage and Screen newsreel – c1924
In this newsreel, stage and screen actress Pauline Frederick poses for the camera. It is an early example of the fascination Australians have with American actors.
Australasian Gazette – Sun Worshippers newsreel – c1924
This newsreel from approximately 1924 shows surfers and swimmers at Bondi Beach enjoying the first day of real summer weather of the season.
Australasian Gazette – Annual Christmas Treat newsreel – c1925
This segment from an old cinema newsreel shows Christmas celebrations for children at the Victoria Barracks in Sydney, including a live puppet show and Father Christmas handing out presents.
Australasian Gazette – Armistice Day, Melbourne newsreel – c1925
This newsreel clip from about 1925 shows the crowd gathered on the steps of Parliament House, Melbourne, for Armistice Day. 'The Last Post’ plays after two minutes of silence.
Australasian Gazette – Parliament Opens the New Session newsreel – 1925
In this newsreel from 1925, the Governor of New South Wales, Sir Dudley de Chair, arrives by car to open Parliament House in Melbourne.
