Agricultural shows
It’s carnival time! Joanne Scott explores the world of agricultural shows on film. [read more]
Horror in Australian Cinema
While vampires and zombies thrilled audiences in the Northern hemisphere, Australia’s idea of a horror scenario lay somewhere in the vast centre of the continent. [read more]
Marvellous Corricks
The Corrick family were vaudeville-style entertainers who toured Australia, New Zealand, and the world in the early 1900s. [read more]
Menzies Home Movies
The Menzies Home Movie Collection includes approximately 35 films of varying duration. It provides a unique opportunity to see the world through the eyes of an Australian Prime Minister. [read more]
Surfing
From lifesaving to 'soul surfing’: Paul Byrnes tracks the history of surfing and surf movies in Australia. [read more]
AWM Western Front
Paul Byrnes argues that the surviving First World War footage held by the Australian War Memorial of Australians at the Western Front is worthy of more serious regard. [read more]
A Short History of Indigenous Filmmaking
After almost a century of silence as a creative voice in screen culture, Indigenous filmmakers have, within a generation, become a vibrant presence in the centre of filmmaking in Australia. Liz McNiven explores the short but significant move from being in front of to behind the camera. [read more]
Outback on Screen
NFSA Historian Graham Shirley traces the rich diversity of Australian cinematic representations and interpretations of the outback. [read more]
Australian Ethnographic Film
Michael Leigh surveys the long history of ethnographic filmmaking in this country and the representation of Indigenous Australians on film. Note: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander viewers are advised that this page may contain images of deceased persons. [read more]
Prisons on Film
Paul Byrnes examines the history of Australian penal cinema, from prison ships to detention centres. [read more]
Reality and TV Crime
Australian audiences have demonstrated an enduring fascination with stories of ‘true crime’. TV curator Kate Matthews explores the relationship that Australian crime and police shows have had with reality over the years. [read more]
General Motors Holden
This is a collection of black-and-white and colour cinema and television advertisements produced for General Motors Holden from 1948 through to the mid 1970s. [read more]
Australian War Memorial Film
The Australian War Memorial holds a vast and historic collection of film and video, covering most of the conflicts in which Australia has been involved. [read more]
Straford Family Films
The Straford Family Collection of films includes a diverse range of amateur films made between 1927 and 2007 by brothers Frank and John Straford and their father Vivien. [read more]
Cinesound Movietone Australian Newsreels
The Cinesound Movietone Australian Newsreel Collection held at the National Film and Sound Archive comprises 4,000 newsreels from 1929 to 1975. [read more]
Reality Comedy
TV curator Kate Matthews looks at the postmodern blending that has created a genre mashup loosely referred to as ‘reality comedy’ in Australian television. [read more]
Chesterman Films
The Chesterman Collection consists of 25 reels of colour and black-and-white 16mm film taken by Dr Ewan Murray-Will between approximately 1935 and 1940. [read more]
Cadbury Chocolate Advertisements
This selection of television advertisements features the Cadbury Milk Tray, Roses and Crunchie range of chocolates. [read more]
Lumière
The Lumière Collection includes over 30 actuality films made in 1899 by Frederick Charles Wills and Henry William Mobsby which record Queensland agricultural processes and daily life at the end of the 19th century. [read more]
