All documentaries
513 titles - sorted alphabetically or by year prev 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 next
O (continued)
The Old Man and the Inland Sea 2005
Warwick Thornton’s documentary about a 'noodler’ on the mining fields of Coober Pedy and the sense of community he shared with Indigenous people whilst doing this work.
One Way Street: Fragments for Walter Benjamin 1992
One Way Street is a timely exploration of a figure who was on the way to being recognised among the great 20th century philosophers.
Opal Fever 2004
Opal Fever examines the people who make a fortune, those who make a living and those who go broke mining opals in Coober Pedy.
Opal Mining Lightning Ridge c1925
Davidson collected over a million feet of footage over 40 years including the miracle of a man pulled from a mine shaft, never once hindered by the pipe in his mouth.
Opening of the Prahran-Malvern Tramway 1910
This silent footage by Millard Johnson and William Gibson was made at a time when few people had seen moving pictures let alone a film camera.
Or Forever Hold Your Peace 1970
This compilation was made by 132 filmmakers, including some of the best known directors and producers of the time.
Our Park 1998
Gillian Leahy visits a micro-world – the park outside her house. Her films are both documentaries and works of fiction.
Out of Darkness 1984
One of the most valuable messages of Out of Darkness is that the Australian landscape is in fact an Indigenous artefact.
Outback Opera, La Boheme Tour 2002
Opera Australia’s OzOpera Tour took La Boheme to country Victoria and South Australia. The camera follows the 22-stop tour.
Overland Adventure: The Story of the 1954 Redex Reliability Trial 1954
Jack Murray earned the nickname ‘Gelignite Jack’ through his habit of blowing up outback toilets, livening up his entrance to towns along the route.
P
Pacifica: Tales from the South Seas – Episode 1 1993
Traditional stories, myths and legends from the Cook, Kiribati and Vanuatu Islands in the Pacific Ocean.
Pacifica: Tales from the South Seas – Episode 6 1993
Traditional stories, myths and legends from two Pacific Islands – Tahiti and Western Samoa.
The Painters and Dockers Strike 1976
In the 1950s the Waterside Workers’ Federation of Australia had its own film unit to counter government policies of the day.
Painting Country 2000
Indigenous paintings are maps of the artists’ country. They trace the land’s topography, but also contain personal history, mythology and Dreaming tracks.
Painting the Town: A Film About Yosl Bergner 1987
Bergner was one of the first contemporary artists to depict the plight of urban Aboriginal people and parallel their dispossession with that of European Jews.
Paper Trail, the Life and Times of a Woodchip 1991
A ‘paper trail’ from Japanese paper products back to Australia, examining whether the world’s demand for paper can coexist with protection of its forests.
Paying For the Past 2000
The world’s largest class action seeks compensation from German industries that benefited from the forced labour of concentration camp inmates.
Pearls and Savages 1921
This 1979 reconstruction of Frank Hurley’s 1921 adventure film Pearls and Savages showcases the peoples and cultures of the Torres Strait Islands and Papua New Guinea.
Pensions for Veterans 1953
A first glimpse of the Waterside Workers’ Federation Film Unit’s agenda – to depict labour history from the point of view of the workers.
People Who Still Use Milk Bottles 1990
This documentary traces the history of the dairy industry in Victoria in the 20th century, featuring Barry Dickins, John Flaus and Barry Jones.
A Personal History of the Australian Surf: Being the Confessions of a Straight Poofter 1981
His father told young Sydney-born theatre director Michael Blakemore that the world was divided into three groups, 'fools, crooks and gentlemen’.
Piano Making c1924
This early film offers insights into the workmanship involved in piano manufacture and boasts the slogan, ‘Wherever you trade, buy Australian Made’.
Pioneers of Love 2005
The relationship between a Russian immigrant and a Ngadjonji woman in the late 1800s was considered an act of immorality.
Polska 1991
Polska looks at Poland in 1991 through the eyes of a journalist who visits different areas of her country talking to ordinary people about their lives.
Port Botany: A Planning Dilemma 1979
Tom Zubrycki developed a filmmaking style he calls ‘verite narratives’. This work represents a transition in his development as a filmmaker.
Power to Win 1942
Having been determined medically unfit for the army, Charles Chauvel saw his film work as a contribution to the war effort.
Prahran 3181: Swimming in the Backyard 2001
Simple subject matter – life at a swimming pool – captures the social interaction of the regulars and the sense of community.
The President Versus David Hicks 2004
This documentary traces the journey of David Hicks from Australia to Afghanistan and then detention by the US in Guantanamo Bay.
Prices and the People 1948
Prices and the People provides a working-class view of price increases, wages and mounting profits and the effects on everyday people in 1948.
Provincial Cities of Australia: Ballarat, Victoria c1932
Frank Thring was an enthusiastic supporter of talking pictures and a great believer in their potential to bolster the Australian film industry.
Public Enemy Number One 1981
Public Enemy Number One gives insight into journalist Wilfred Burchett’s motives in covering wars from the enemy’s point of view.
Pyongyang Diaries 1997
Solrun Hoaas uses a diary-like voice-over to reflect on the gap between what she was able to film and what she could not show.
Q
The Queen Goes West 1988
Queen Elizabeth II opens the Stockman’s Hall of Fame in Longreach, Queensland. Filmaker Christine Olsen went on to write Rabbit-Proof Fence.
The Queen in Australia 1954
The first colour feature made in Australia, documenting the first visit of a reigning monarch, Queen Elizabeth II, in 1954.
R
Raccolta D’Inverno, Winter’s Harvest 1979
The government has now outlawed this traditional Italian community event of slaughtering and butchering a pig and feasting on it.
Rachel’s Story 1997
At 16, Rachel was a prostitute and heroin addict in Kings Cross. Years later, she helps a prostitute reform.
Rachel: A Perfect Life 2007
An intimate, observational documentary following a young woman as she goes through brain surgery to control her epilepsy.
Raoul Wallenberg: Between the Lines 1984
Profile of Raoul Wallenberg, an extraordinary humanitarian who disappeared after performing heroic deeds during the Second World War.
Rebels With a Cause 1994
Cecil Waters rules the family with a ‘rod of iron’, and is training his sons to be champion boxers.
Red Matildas 1985
Told through the lives of three women, Red Matildas explores the social and political conditions in Australia during the Great Depression.
Research on Survival in Bushfires 1963
This specialist documentary gives a behind-the-scenes look at the Bushfire Research section of the CSIRO.
Reunion 1998
A bio-documentary of filmmaker Lisa Wang revealing her growing awareness of her 'Chinese-ness’ in 1950s Australia.
Riot or Revolution 2005
Three things struck filmmaker Don Parham about the Eureka story – it was a 'ripper yarn’, with a great cast of characters and fascinating politics.
The Rising Generation c1925
This incomplete documentary from 1926 promotes the public education system in South Australia from kindergarten through to university.
Rites of Passage 1994
Exploring the rites of passage that accompany entry into adulthood, three rebellious teenagers and their parents struggle to resolve their differences.
Rocking the Foundations 1985
Rocking The Foundations is more than a film about a union: it’s a film about social change and how ordinary people can make that happen.
The Rocks: Sydney, Australia 1983
The Rocks was considered a slum until it was restored in the 1970s. This sponsored documentary traces its redevelopment as a tourist precinct.
Rodeo c1934
This silent documentary is about a rodeo held in northern Queensland in approximately 1934. It features 500 participants parading through the streets of Townsville.
Rosie 2004
Rosie, a member of the Stolen Generations, started to search for her parents because ‘part of me was still missing’.
Ross Smith’s Flight from London to Australia 1919
In 1919, aviator Ross Smith and crew became the first Australians to fly between England and Australia in under 30 days. Cameraman Frank Hurley joined them.
