Titles curated by Damien Parer
234 titles - sorted alphabetically or by year prev 1 2 3 4 5 next
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Mademoiselle and the Doctor documentary – 2004
Seventy-nine-year-old Lisette Nigot has decided to end her life. A powerful portrait illustrating the phrase ‘rational suicide’.
Making Venus documentary – 2002
Making Venus records in exquisitely painful detail the worst that can happen when making an under-budgeted, ill-prepared film.
The Man Who Stole My Mother’s Face documentary – 2003
In 1989 Laura Henkel was raped. Thirteen years later her daughter, director Cathy Henkel, tries to get the case re-opened.
Mao’s New Suit documentary – 1997
A frank, behind-the-scenes look at modern China as two young fashion designers stage a show in Shanghai.
Midwives … Lullabies … and Mother Earth documentary – 1993
In Europe from the late 14th to the 17th centuries, many midwives were accused of being witches and burnt at the stake.
Monster or Miracle? Sydney Opera House documentary – 1973
Made just prior to the official opening in 1973, this is a celebratory film about the construction and opening of the Sydney Opera House.
My Country documentary – 1994
My Country is about the impact of the Native Title Act on relationships between Indigenous peoples and pastoralists.
My Mother India documentary – 2001
My Mother India provides an insight into the experience of the filmmaker’s mother as an Australian migrant married to a Sikh in India.
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Neptune’s Nippers documentary – 1984
At the age of 12, Jason Duplator won a scholarship from the Wildlife Research Institute to participate in a marine training program.
Nicaragua: No Pasaran documentary – 1984
David Bradbury spent six months in Nicaragua telling the story of the revolutionary Sandinistas coming to power after 43 years of organised resistance.
No Fences, No Boundaries – Walter Burley Griffin documentary – c1976
Walter Burley Griffin believed that 'buildings convey the most truth of the mental and spiritual states of various people and times’.
No More Needles Please documentary – 1997
Since the age of two, James has required two daily injections of insulin to keep him alive. Now 12, he explores options for people with diabetes.
Northern Safari documentary – 1956
This six-month journey in a 1948 Buick later inspired the Leyland Brothers and Albert Mangles.
No Survivors: The Mysterious Loss of the HMAS Sydney documentary – 1993
The loss of HMAS Sydney, the worst naval disaster in Australian history, sparked allegations of a cover-up.
Numbats documentary – 1996
In 1973 the numbat was adopted as an emblem of WA, joining the black swan, the red and green kangaroo paw, and the gogo fish.
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Opal Fever documentary – 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.
Or Forever Hold Your Peace documentary – 1970
This compilation was made by 132 filmmakers, including some of the best known directors and producers of the time.
Our Park documentary – 1998
Gillian Leahy visits a micro-world – the park outside her house. Her films are both documentaries and works of fiction.
Outback Opera, La Boheme Tour documentary – 2002
Opera Australia’s OzOpera Tour took La Boheme to country Victoria and South Australia. The camera follows the 22-stop tour.
Out of Darkness documentary – 1984
One of the most valuable messages of Out of Darkness is that the Australian landscape is in fact an Indigenous artefact.
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Painting Country documentary – 2000
Indigenous paintings are maps of the artists’ country. They trace the land’s topography, but also contain personal history, mythology and Dreaming tracks.
Paying For the Past documentary – 2000
The world’s largest class action seeks compensation from German industries that benefited from the forced labour of concentration camp inmates.
People Who Still Use Milk Bottles documentary – 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 documentary – 1981
His father told young Sydney-born theatre director Michael Blakemore that the world was divided into three groups, 'fools, crooks and gentlemen’.
Polska documentary – 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.
Prahran 3181: Swimming in the Backyard documentary – 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 documentary – 2004
This documentary traces the journey of David Hicks from Australia to Afghanistan and then detention by the US in Guantanamo Bay.
Public Enemy Number One documentary – 1981
Public Enemy Number One gives insight into journalist Wilfred Burchett’s motives in covering wars from the enemy’s point of view.
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The Queen Goes West documentary – 1988
Queen Elizabeth II opens the Stockman’s Hall of Fame in Longreach, Queensland. Filmaker Christine Olsen went on to write Rabbit-Proof Fence.
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Raccolta D’Inverno, Winter’s Harvest documentary – 1979
The government has now outlawed this traditional Italian community event of slaughtering and butchering a pig and feasting on it.
Rachel’s Story documentary – 1997
At 16, Rachel was a prostitute and heroin addict in Kings Cross. Years later, she helps a prostitute reform.
Rebels With a Cause documentary – 1994
Cecil Waters rules the family with a ‘rod of iron’, and is training his sons to be champion boxers.
Reunion documentary – 1998
A bio-documentary of filmmaker Lisa Wang revealing her growing awareness of her 'Chinese-ness’ in 1950s Australia.
Riot or Revolution documentary – 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.
Rites of Passage documentary – 1994
Exploring the rites of passage that accompany entry into adulthood, three rebellious teenagers and their parents struggle to resolve their differences.
The Rocks: Sydney, Australia documentary – 1983
The Rocks was considered a slum until it was restored in the 1970s. This sponsored documentary traces its redevelopment as a tourist precinct.
Rough Riders documentary – 1995
This film examines the gladiatorial machismo of the laconic roughriders of the rodeo.
Rush documentary – 1999
This is an observational documentary about three young Melbourne men and their obsession with fast cars and lifestyles.
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Secret Fleets documentary – 1995
Early in the Second World War plans were made to fight the Japanese enemy on Australian soil. Americans submariners were given a warm welcome.
Seeking Asylum documentary – 2002
Three Afghans escaped from the Taliban and arrived in Australia as asylum seekers. Ninety-two per cent of Afghans seeking asylum in Australia are genuine refugees.
Selling Sickness documentary – 2004
Direct-to-consumer advertising and newly created diseases such as ‘premenstrual dysphoric disorder’ have led to overuse of antidepressant drugs.
Shadow Play documentary – 2001
In Indonesia, 1965, a group of President Sukarno’s guards murdered six generals. A history of our closest Asian neighbour, and its postwar political history.
The Ship That Shouldn’t Have documentary – 1984
A scientific expedition aboard the steam-powered Cheynes 2 was beset by disasters. The members of the expedition were lucky to survive.
Shoalwater: Up For Grabs documentary – 1992
Shoalwater: Up for Grabs was instrumental in stopping sandmining in the Shoalwater area.
Shooey’s Little World documentary – 1984
Keith and Gladys Shoesmith live in the country with their six children. An interesting insight into the family life of a genuine battler.
Singles Club documentary – 2007
Phoenix Lifestyle, founded in 1982, has 1,000 members. Singles Club follows the lives of five members as they seek partners.
Skyway Express documentary – c1948
One of a series of travelogues produced in the late 1940s when very few Australians had travelled overseas, each is about flying into an 'exotic’ location.
Smart’s Labyrinth documentary – 1994
Artist Jeffrey Smart observes that he doesn’t like viewing his finished work as 'every picture is a defeat’.
Snow… Down Under documentary – 1982
Snow… Down Under shows three friends skiing on Mount Kosciuszko, intercut with the history of skiing in Australia.
Snowy Hydro - The Best of the Years sponsored film – 1974
This 1974 documentary examines the multicultural workforce and its achievement in building one of the world’s largest hydroelectric schemes to that date.
