Australian
Screen

Teacher’s notes

provided by

This black-and-white clip shows a television advertisement that details the export of General Motors-Holden’s (GMH) cars across the Asia–Pacific region and beyond. A male narrator explains in voice-over the history of Holden exports between 1954 and 1962. The advertisement features what is mostly actuality footage of the Holden in Malaysia (formerly Malaya), Singapore, Hong Kong and Fiji, shots of Holden sedans being loaded onto a ship for export, and the driving of test vehicles at the Lang Lang proving grounds in Victoria.

Educational value points

• This advertisement positions GMH as a leader in Australia’s export industry and highlights the importance of overseas exports to the Australian economy. Federal policy under the Chifley government in 1948 had included an export plan for the Holden brand, part of a broader post-Second World War strategy for economic development that aimed to strengthen local industry and increase export capacity, making Australia a world economic player.

• The advertisement appeals to national pride by claiming Holden exports carry ‘the flag for Australian industry’ and by associating the quality, safety and craftsmanship of Holden exports with the label ‘made in Australia’. The Holden was first associated with national pride when it affectionately became known as ‘Australia’s own car’, a tag that remained with the brand well into the 1960s and is used in this advertisement.

• By showing footage of Holden’s testing and development facility at Lang Lang in south-east Vic, the advertisement cements the association of Holden, and by implication Australian manufacturing, with excellence, reliability and the ability to meet international standards. The Lang Lang complex, where vehicles are checked prior to sale for road safety, handling, durability and performance, was opened in 1957.

• The 1950s and early 60s actuality footage of the Holden in the Asian, Pacific and Middle Eastern countries shown in the clip is unusual for advertisements of the time, which rarely ventured out of the studio. Documentaries, particularly those that were government produced, depicted these regions to local audiences, but outside that format ‘real life’ images from the developing world were rarely shown on film.

• By highlighting the breadth of Holden’s overseas markets the advertisement seeks to establish in the viewer’s mind that Holden is a desirable product, made in Australia and available to Australians. By 1962, when this advertisement was made, GMH was shipping to 45 overseas territories including parts of Africa, the Middle East, South-East Asia, the Pacific and the West Indies.

• The GMH company, now known as GM Holden Ltd, was originally established as a saddlery and leathergoods business in Adelaide in 1856 by James Alexander Holden (1835–87), evolving into a mass manufacturer of car bodies. In 1931 General Motors-Holden’s was formed when the biggest US car manufacturer, General Motors, bought the company that was by then called Holden’s Motor Body Builders.