Titles curated by Kate Matthews
90 titles - sorted alphabetically or by year prev 1 2 next
A
All the Green Year – Episode 2 television program – 1980
This mini-series about growing up in the years between the world wars recalls a type of small-town society which is now fading into the past.
The Archive Project documentary – 2006
This story of a small group of film enthusiasts gives fascinating insights into the censorship and surveillance culture of the Cold War years.
Ask the Leyland Brothers – Episode 23 television program – 1976
The Leyland Brothers answer viewer requests and visit Broken Hill and Uluru.
B
Babakiueria short film – 1986
A mockumentary surveying the culture and customs of the white native people of the land of ‘Babakiueria’, from the perspective of the country’s black colonisers.
The Big Gig – Series 1 Episode 1 television program – 1989
There’s a rowdy beer-hall type atmosphere to this comedy-variety show, which tapped into a vibrant ‘80s live comedy scene in Melbourne.
The Big House short film – 2000
In this short film, director Rachel Ward takes a relationship between two men in prison into surprising territory.
Blue Heelers – A Woman’s Place television program – 1993
This first episode of Blue Heelers combines police drama with soap elements and introduces us to the show’s key country locations and the central 'family’ of contrasting characters.
C
Central Australia: The Eighth Wonder television program – 1989
Bushie explorer Ted Egan tours places of wonder in Central Australia.
Chandon Pictures – Champion Charles television program – 2007
Chandon Pictures is a comedy that takes an uneasy look at the notion of 'chasing your dream’.
The Chaser’s War on Everything – APEC Episodes television program – 2007
The Chaser’s APEC episodes underscore the power of the unexpected in this type of comedy and the legal juggling act involved in bringing it to air on a weekly basis.
The Chaser’s War on Everything – Series 1 Episode 1 television program – 2006
This is the first episode of the satirical variety program, containing comic pranks, commentary and send-ups responding to topical issues and more general subjects.
Cheap Blonde short film – 1998
A humorous experimental word game which examines gender representation and authorship in the cinema.
Choir of Hard Knocks – Episode 3 television program – 2007
A group of homeless and otherwise struggling people join the Choir of Hard Knocks and allow their experience to be recorded.
Clara short film – 2004
A stop-motion animation that explores the grief experienced by a young girl.
CNNNN: Chaser Non-stop News Network – Lunchgate television program – 2002
Finely tuned satire that gives sensationalist reportage a caning.
The Comedy Company – Series 1 Episode 11 television program – 1988
The Comedy Company, with its array of familiar, daggy suburban characters, was a popular sensation.
Cop Shop – Episode 109 television program – 1978
This episode of Cop Shop is notable for bringing together Mel Gibson, Steve Bisley and Joanne Samuel a short time before they all starred in George Miller’s landmark Mad Max (1979).
Cop Shop – Episode 485 television program – 1983
This episode is a good example of the relatively adventurous single-episode stories featured in Cop Shop at this point in its run. These appeared alongside the more usual crime and soap-oriented plotlines.
Cyclone Tracy television program – 1986
A fictional account of one of Australia’s worst natural disasters – a major turning point in the history of Darwin.
D
DAAS Kapital – Faith television program – 1992
The Doug Anthony All Stars serve up heavy doses of the nonsensical and the bizarre, plus dashes of sexual innuendo, cartoon-style violence and deliberate tastelessness.
The Damnation of Harvey McHugh – From Here to Maternity television program – 1994
Amid TV’s throng of lawyers, doctors and cops, public servant Harvey McHugh stands out as an unlikely small screen hero.
Delivery Day short film – 2000
A girl is caught between competing demands of family and school. Uncle Le needs help in his garment shop but it’s parent-teacher night.
D-Generation – Series 1 Episode 1 television program – 1985
While the D-Generation credits read like a who’s who of two decades’ worth of Australian comedy, at the time these comedians were unknowns.
Division 4 – The Return of John Kelso television program – 1971
This superb hour of drama was Division 4’s most awarded individual episode. It sustains a mood of simmering tension and the supporting cast deliver deliciously malicious performances.
Dynasty – Have You Got the Numbers? television program – 1970
A drama series that revolves around the Mason family, owners of a media empire in the tradition of the real-life Packer and Murdoch clans.
E
East West 101 – The Enemy Within television program – 2007
A simmering vision of western Sydney and consistently powerful performances define this cop-show take on the fault lines of a post 9/11 world.
Effie: Just Quietly – Make-Ups and Makeovers television program – 2001
Effie was a sitcom character before wandering out of fiction into documentary. Her comic persona allows a bluntness that 'serious’ interviewers might not get away with.
An Exercise in Discipline: Peel short film – 1982
In Jane Campion’s Palme d’Or winning student short, a bickering red-headed family on a weekend road trip reach a standoff by the side of a country road.
F
Fast Forward – Series 4 Episode 3 television program – 1992
A sketch comedy show from the late 1980s and early ‘90s featuring some big names in Australian comedy.
Fetch short film – 1998
This short film is a comic escalation of mishaps with a double-barrelled payoff. It was selected to compete at the 1998 Cannes Film Festival.
The First Thing I Remember short film – 2005
A short documentary in which 12 people recall their first memory.
Flowergirl short film – 1999
Cate Shortland brings her distinctive visual sensibility and mood-oriented storytelling to a tale of cross-cultural experience, departure and unrequited love.
Full Frontal – Series 3 Episode 4 television program – 1995
This sketch comedy series features early work from performers like Eric Bana and Shaun Micallef.
G
A Girl’s Own Story short film – 1983
In this short film by Jane Campion about changes afoot in 1960s society, teenage girls get in trouble for acting out Beatles concerts in the playground.
G.P. – Toss a Coin television program – 1989
G.P. is a medical drama that looks at topical social issues.
H
Halifax f.p. – Afraid of the Dark television program – 1997
A forensic psychiatrist finds she has to solve a petrol station shooting without getting too personally involved.
Hayride to Hell short film – 1995
This short film featuring Kylie Minogue is part rock’n'roll moment, part homage to the mysteries and mood of film noir.
Hello short film – 2003
In this beautifully realised short film, animated characters communicate using music and recorded sound.
Homicide – The Decimal Point television program – 1965
When Homicide first aired, Australian television drama, complete with Australian cops and accents, was a novelty on screen.
Homicide – The Friendly Fellow television program – 1973
This was star Charles 'Bud’ Tingwell’s favourite Homicide episode.
Homicide – The Superintendent television program – 1970
This extraordinary episode breaks away from many of the usual Homicide conventions and dispenses with the customary police investigation in record time.
I
The Incredible Journey of Mary Bryant television program – 2004
An epic period adventure, full of swash and buckle, sweeping landscapes, high seas and romance.
J
John Safran’s Music Jamboree – Episode 2 television program – 2002
An irreverent and enthusiastic take on popular music, sandwiching real facts between Safran’s signature pranks and comic diatribes.
John Safran vs God – Episode 2 television program – 2004
Nothing is sacred in John Safran’s comedy-documentary series about religion.
K
Kath and Kim – Money television program – 2002
Kath’s 'look at moi’ is the show’s most famous catchphrase and the vernacular of the 'foxy ladies’ has become a recognisable fixture in popular culture.
Kingswood Country – There’s No Place Like Rome television program – 1980
A sitcom that lampoons suburban Australian culture, while being equally fascinated with it.
L
Let the Blood Run Free – Episode 2 television program – 1990
When it first screened in 1990, this was one of the earliest examples of interactive television, allowing viewers to phone in and vote on what would happen next.
Living Room documentary – 1988
This beautiful, unsettling experimental documentary is a meditation on Australian suburbia and notions of home.
