Australian
Screen

an NFSA website

All titles in the ‘Historical’ genre

180 titles - sorted alphabetically or by year prev 1 2 3 4 next

S (continued)

Snowy Hydro – The Construction of Geehi Dam sponsored film – 1967

This film is a fairly technical description of the construction of Geehi Dam in the Snowy Mountains Scheme, located in a remote area of Kosciuszko National Park.

Snowy Hydro – The Jindabyne Story sponsored film – c1965

Although the film talks about the potential loss of the history of the region, the prevailing sense is that the new town of Jindabyne will do very well.

Snowy Hydro – The Snowy Flows Inland sponsored film – 1954

Most of the Snowy Hydro productions followed the format and style of this film – a conventional instructional documentary complete with authoritative voice-over.

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.

Snowy Hydro – The Snowy–Murray Development sponsored film – 1969

There’s no exciting dramatic structure here, but to watch it is to gain an insight into the size and complexity of such a large-scale civil engineering venture.

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.

Snowy Hydro - Where Men and Mountains Meet sponsored film – 1963

This film is a fascinating depiction of the national ideal of postwar masculinity, looking at the spectrum of workers involved in the Snowy Mountains Scheme.

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 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.

Strikebound feature film – 1983

A docudrama based on the memories of Wattie and Agnes Doig, a miner and his wife involved in the Gippsland coal workers’ strike of 1937.

The Sullivans – On the Brink of War television program – 1976

The first four episodes of the long-running hit series cover the period leading up to the declaration of the Second World War in Australia on 3 September 1939.

Sunday Too Far Away feature film – 1975

The defining elements of a great 1970s Australian film are all here – empty, confronting landscapes, hard-drinking Aussie blokes, and a sense of 'the great Australian loneliness’.

The Sundowners feature film – 1960

The Sundowners is remarkable for the number of Australian actors it showcases. Chips Rafferty plays Quinlan, the contractor at an outback shearing station.

T

The Tale of Ruby Rose feature film – 1987

In 1933 Ruby Rose leaves her isolated home in the Tasmanian highlands to rediscover her past.

A Town Like Alice television program – 1980

This mini-series, based on the novel by Nevil Shute, tells an epic love story that begins in Malaya during the Japanese occupation of 1941–45.

A Town To Be Drowned television program – 1958

This ABC program was one of the first homemade documentaries on a contemporary local subject to be seen on Australian television, and previously thought to have been lost.

Trespass documentary – 2002

Trespass revisits the Mirarr people’s fight against the uranium mines in Jabiluka. Yvonne Margarula is arrested for walking on her own land.

Tribal Music of Australia music – 1953

These are the first commercially available recordings of Australian Aboriginal music.

U

Underbelly – Series 1 television program – 2008

This 13-part crime drama is based on real events in Melbourne from 1994–2004. Dealing with gang warfare-related murders, it was controversial even before it was completed.

V

Vietnam television program – 1988

This classic mini-series tells the epic story of Australia’s involvement in the Vietnam War through the history of a middle class family and features an award-winning performance from a young Nicole Kidman.

W

Waterfront – Episode 1 television program – 1984

Wharfies involved in a worker’s dispute and Italian refugees desperate to work during the Depression clash with tragic consequences.

Waterfront – Episode 2 television program – 1984

The series tells of the determination to stand up for what is right in a world that is rapidly slipping into a showdown between the extremes of fascism and communism.

Welcome to the English Cricket Team newsreel – 1932

At the start of what would become the infamous Bodyline series, there is no hint of hostility as Australian cricket captain Bill Woodfull welcomes the English squad to Australia.

Whispering in Our Hearts documentary – 2001

Remembering those who were murdered in the 1918 massacre of Aboriginal people at Mowla Bluff is very much to do with healing.

Who Killed Dr Bogle and Mrs Chandler? documentary – 2006

A landmark documentary that not only reveals the criminal investigation into the mysterious deaths of Dr Bogle and Mrs Chandler in 1963 but solves it as well.

Willaberta Jack documentary – 2007

Willaberta Jack and Harry Henty on the record, recalling an incident that occurred almost a century ago.

Winners – The Paper Boy television program – 1985

The Paper Boy is a beautifully shot period film that captures the era and gives a realistic insight into the lives of struggling people in the Depression.

Winners – Top Kid television program – 1985

A compelling moral drama, made more powerful by its refusal to deal in absolutes, Top Kid draws on the real-life rigging of top American quiz shows in the 1950s.

Women of the Sun television program – 1982

The colonisation of Aboriginal peoples, and their lands and resources, as seen through the eyes of four generations of Aboriginal women.

The Wreck of the Batavia documentary – 1973

An early film by Bruce Beresford traces the story of the Dutch ship Batavia, wrecked on a coral reef off the coast of Western Australia in 1629.

prev 1 2 3 4 next