Titles from the 1970s
176 titles - sorted alphabetically or by year prev 1 2 3 4 next
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27A feature film – 1974
Robert McDarra won the 1974 AFI Award for his portrait of an alcoholic imprisoned in a Queensland psychiatric hospital. He died in 1975.
The 8th Wonder of the World sponsored film – 1973
This documentary coincided with the official opening of the Sydney Opera House in 1973 and looks at the architecture, art and functions of the building.
A
Across Bass Strait documentary – 1974
The action on board the boats dominates this record of the 1974 Bass Strait Yacht Race.
Action Loop sponsored film – 1978
The Melbourne Underground Rail Loop Authority projects a positive vision of the new underground railway loop as an investment in the city’s future.
Addison Road Drop-In documentary – 1977
The Sydney suburb of Marrickville has Australia’s ‘first, largest and longest-surviving community centre’; it is shown here in the 1970s.
Adventure Island – Episode 1174 television program – 1972
A successful children’s show set on the magical Adventure Island, a ‘land that’s far across the sea’.
The Adventures of Barry McKenzie feature film – 1972
The Adventures of Barry McKenzie was a hugely popular satire with Australian and British audiences, partly because it conformed so well with each country’s view of the other.
Al Daff documentary – 1975
This straightforward interview with a powerful Hollywood executive contains wisdom about filmmaking that is timeless.
ALP: It’s Time advertisement – 1972
This TV commercial for the 1972 Whitlam election campaign targeted elusive Labor voters – women and young people – with a catchy song and starry singers.
Alvin Purple feature film – 1973
Alvin Purple was hugely popular, partly because it makes fun of powerful institutions like the courts, the press, marriage and psychiatry.
Antonio Gaudi: to a Dancing God documentary – 1974
Gaudi’s belief that his artistic work was a form of spirituality has led some Spaniards to ask that he be canonized.
Art documentary – 1974
This short, amusing and thoughtful animated documentary is full of debate about art and is a good starter for students.
Arthur and the Square Knights of the Round Table - Episode 35 television program – 1972
With an abundance of playful silliness, Arthur and the Square Knights of the Round Table is a delightful product of its era and remains very watchable today.
Ask the Leyland Brothers – Episode 23 television program – 1976
The Leyland Brothers answer viewer requests and visit Broken Hill and Uluru.
The Aunty Jack Show – Series One television program – 1972
Grahame Bond’s Aunty Jack was a cross-dressing bikie hostess who threatened to jump out of viewers’ television sets and 'rip their bloody arms off’.
The Aunty Jack Show – Series Two television program – 1974
The Aunty Jack theme song was one of the earliest video clips, showcasing a great character and a memorable tune that stays with you.
Australian Movie Magazine No 7201 newsreel – 1971
This 'year in review’ edition is not a typical example of the newsreel’s format. It presents some of the significant events of 1971 and includes a range of story types.
Australia Post – Changing Times advertisement – 1975
This black-and-white commercial informs the public of the split of the Postmaster-General’s Department into two independent Commissions. It offers a neat little history, using stills from Australia Post’s archive.
Australia Post – Onward Speed sponsored film – 1970
Fred Schepisi wrote and directed Onward Speed as a sponsored film for Australia Post. It humorously instructs its target audience of executives, secretaries and mailroom staff in the efficient management of business mail.
Australia Post – Post Office Speeds the Mail sponsored film – 1970
With the 1971 changeover from pushbike to motorcycle for mail delivery, Australia Post purchased a fleet of customised motorbikes from Honda.
Australia Post – Standard Letters advertisement – 1974
This ad was made at a time when postage of a standard letter within Australia was only ten cents.
B
Backroads short feature – 1977
Backroads (1977) is the first feature (albeit, a short one) by Phillip Noyce, who would go on to make Newsfront (1978) and Rabbit-Proof Fence.
Bali Hi home movie – c1971
Bali has always been a popular destination with Australians and this film was made at a time when cheaper air travel meant that more Australians travelled overseas.
Bellbird television program – 1970
Australia’s first successful national weekly serial, dealing with the lives and loves of ordinary people in a small country town.
Beyond Reasonable Doubt – Alexander McLeod Lindsey television program – 1977
Criminologist Hawkins presents the case of Alexander McLeod Lindsey, jailed for the brutal bashing of his wife. A series on possible miscarriages of justice.
Beyond Reasonable Doubt – The Case of Ronald Ryan television program – 1977
In 1967 Ronald Ryan was the last man to be hanged in Australia. With the public outrage about his execution, Australia ended capital punishment.
A Big Country – On the Hook television program – 1976
An unusual departure for the A Big Country team as they examine the traumatic history and growth of the union that protects wharfie’s rights.
A Big Country – Perkins Navy television program – 1979
Bruce Perkins, a highly trained engineer with a pioneering spirit, says you need someone for the top end who is prepared to get things done.
A Big Country – The Challenge of Lake Eyre television program – 1978
Roma and John Dulhunty, explorers of the great outback, come to Lake Eyre to conduct their geological survey.
A Big Country – The Prices television program – 1979
Life on an outback station at the end of an era, before satellite technology and helicopters and high-tech vehicles were used to help round up cattle.
A Big Country – The White Rose television program – 1979
Widely known as 'the King of the Dance Hall’, Frank Bourke founded The White Rose Orchestra in 1936 and toured rural areas for more than 40 years.
Billy and Percy television program – 1974
Based on the diaries of Percy Deane, private secretary of Prime Minister WM Hughes during the conscription debates of the First World War.
Black Beauty television program – 1978
Poignantly told from the horse’s point of view, this 1978 animated film from the classic novel tells of the heartbreaking consequences of unrestricted exploitation of animals.
Bonjour Balwyn feature film – 1971
Kevin leaves a job in insurance to start his own magazine. As his debts mount, Kevin’s prospects begin to look brighter in the criminal world.
Breaker Morant feature film – 1979
Much of the film is about youth versus experience, honesty versus cynicism and political expediency – an interesting ethical domain given that it’s a film about war crimes.
The Breaker documentary – 1973
The Breaker reveals the details of Henry 'Breaker’ Morant’s life before he went to the Boer War and was executed for murder.
Bushnell, K: Cyclone Tracy Aftermath home movie – 1974
This unedited footage was shot by freelance cameraman Keith Bushnell in the immediate aftermath of Cyclone Tracy which hit Darwin on Christmas Day 1974.
C
Cadbury Dairy Milk Chocolate – ‘For All the Different Women You Are’ advertisement – c1970
The light-hearted, romantic style of earlier Cadbury’s chocolates advertisements stands in marked contrast to the sexy and seductive tone adopted here.
Cadbury Dairy Milk Chocolate – ‘You’ve Got Yourself a Man’ advertisement – c1970
These ads from a Cadbury’s Roses campaign present three slightly different scenarios surrounding romantic relationships. In each, a box of Roses signifies the relationship is serious.
Caddie feature film – 1976
Caddie is a powerfully emotional statement of the ways in which women outside marriage were socially and economically disadvantaged in the period between the wars.
The Cars That Ate Paris feature film – 1974
Mild-mannered Arthur is trapped in a quiet country town where feral youth drive souped-up cars and the hospital is full of brain-damaged accident victims.
Certain Women – Episode 166 television program – 1976
The final episode of this long-running serial about a family of strong-minded women who take on a changing world in the 1970s.
Championship Chase documentary – 1970
Norm Beechey retired soon after winning the1970 Australian Touring Car Championship.
The Changing Face of Australia documentary – 1970
The sheer beauty and grandeur of Uluru before and after a rainstorm is a highlight of this geological study.
The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith feature film – 1978
This is one of the key Australian films of the 1970s, because it speaks about the unspeakable with a depth of rage that was absolutely unprecedented and has never been repeated.
Chequerboard – It’s A Big Day In Any Girl’s Life television program – 1973
A 1970s country society wedding is contrasted with the union of two people living in the city who met on their way to work in a local shoe factory.
Chequerboard – My Brown Skin Baby, They Take ‘im Away television program – 1970
This powerful film documents the impact of the government’s policy of removing light-skinned children from their Aboriginal mothers to be raised in Christian missions.
Cine Safari home movie – c1977
Cine Safari was made during a month-long trip by approximately 30 members of the Cine Society in the spring of 1977.
Collingwood Community School documentary – 1975
These students would probably no longer be at school if an alternative education environment like the one they’re in didn’t exist.
Conrad Martens documentary – 1978
Conrad Martens, whose watercolours are a valuable record of colonial Sydney, is reputed to be its first successful artist.
