Titles curated by Poppy De Souza
402 titles - sorted alphabetically or by year prev 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 next
1930s
A 5000 Mile Tour Through Central Australia documentary – 1930
Clearly, exploring Australia’s interior back in the 1930s was very challenging.
Archibald Family: Noorong Gazette: Parts XXI - XXIV home movie – c1930
The Archibalds were a successful business family who had interests in the milling industry in Queensland and New South Wales.
The Arrival of Miss Amy Johnson in Brisbane newsreel – 1930
In this silent newsreel footage, British aviator Amy Johnson arrives in Brisbane on the final leg of her solo flight between England and Australia in 1930.
Australian Navy: Destroyers documentary – c1930
The capacity of Royal Australian Navy destroyers to carry and launch torpedoes in the 1930s is demonstrated here.
Berlei Cinema Advertisement: It Isn’t Done advertisement – 1930
The art deco interiors with shaped mirrors, door frames and seating all align with Berlei’s reputation for quality and beauty.
Browne, George: Blue Mountains home movie – c1930
This family holiday footage shows landmarks such as Katoomba Falls, the Sublime Point Lookout, Orphan Rock and the Three Sisters rock formation.
The Cremation of a Balinese Chief at the Hotel Bali home movie – c1930
This Balinese cremation was apparently the first such ceremony to be witnessed and filmed by a white man.
Farrow, H: Victorian and South Australian Holiday Scenes home movie – c1930
This 16mm home movie captures a number of holiday scenes and places including ice and snow in Mount Buffalo, Victoria.
Henshall, Mr: Australian Cricketers Visit Ceylon, Naples, Switzerland and Practise at Lords home movie – 1930
This rare home movie captures informal scenes of Don Bradman and Australia’s 1930 touring cricket team, as filmed by the manager.
Sellex Crockery: Red Riding Hood advertisement – c1930
This appeals to the ‘pester power’ of children by using an animated cartoon to promote Sellex products.
White, AR: Tin Mining in Malaya home movie – c1930
Australians have engaged with the Asia-Pacific region through travel and enterprise for many decades, but moving image records like this one from the first half of the 20th century are not common.
The Alfred, Melbourne: One of Australia’s Greatest Hospitals advertisement – 1931
This four-minute cinema advertisement made by Australian Sound Films promotes the activities of the Alfred Hospital in Melbourne in order to raise funds.
Athol Tier as Napoleon historical – c1931
Athol Tier’s performance as Napoleon was one of the many routines filmed for the Efftee Entertainers series of variety shorts.
Construction of Sydney Harbour Bridge documentary – 1931
Looking back now, the lack of safety equipment used during the construction of the Sydney Harbour Bridge is shocking.
Efftee Film Productions Congratulates Miss Dorothy Fricke newsreel – 1931
This silent newsreel item shows the debutante celebration of Miss Dorothy Fricke, held at Chelsea Memorial Hall in Melbourne on 24 August 1931.
Efftee Studio Opening in Melbourne: Speech by Frank Forde historical – 1931
This short film from 1931 records the opening of Frank Thring Senior’s Efftee Film Studios and the screening of the first ‘all-Australian talkie program’. Forde expresses optimism about the future of Australian film making, with a positive impact on local jobs and the presentation of ‘typical Australian characters’ onscreen.
FW Thring Introduces the Stars advertisement – 1931
In this short introductory speech, Thring proudly announces to the audience that the film program they are about to see is completely Australian made.
George Wallace: Australia’s Premier Comedian historical – 1931
This screen test by seasoned vaudeville comic George Wallace led to roles in several feature films.
Jack O’Hagan: Vocalist Composer historical – 1931
Multi-talented artist Jack O’Hagan performs five songs for Frank Thring’s series of variety shorts, Efftee Entertainers, including 'The Road to Gundagai’.
Melbourne Chinese Orchestra Selections historical – 1931
Melbourne’s Chinese Orchestra perform at His Majesty’s Theatre as part of Frank Thring’s Efftee Entertainers.
Melbourne Today documentary – 1931
Probably the first ‘talkie’ documentary made about Melbourne – in 1931, films with sound were still relatively new in Australia.
The Mighty Conqueror documentary – 1931
Made only a year before Phar Lap’s death, The Mighty Conqueror boasts some of the last moving images of Phar Lap in Australia both on and off the track.
Miss Minnie Love in Impressions: Maurice Chevalier historical – c1931
Australian performer Minnie Love mimics the popular French comedian and singer Maurice Chevalier for Frank Thring’s Efftee Entertainers series.
Siege of the South documentary – 1931
Frank Hurley documents Australia’s rich history of scientific exploration of the Australian Antarctic Territory.
Stan Ray and George Moon Jnr: Specialty Dancers historical – 1931
Entertainers Stan Ray and George Moon Jnr perform a tap dancing routine on one of the stages inside His Majesty’s Theatre in Melbourne.
Thar She Blows documentary – c1931
A short documentary about a whale hunt, including the dissection of the carcass and the conversion of blubber to oil.
That’s Cricket documentary – c1931
A featurette directed by Ken G Hall promoting cricket as the game that 'helps unite the Empire’ and is important to Australian identity.
The Trail of the ‘Roo documentary – 1931
The Trail of the 'Roo is one of a handful of documentary featurettes made by the McDonagh sisters, pioneers of Australia’s early motion picture industry.
Victorian Police Radio Patrol sponsored film – c1931
This short dramatised scenario from 1931 demonstrates how wireless technology and morse radio clearly improve the ability of Victorian police to do their jobs.
A Day in a Biscuit Factory sponsored film – 1932
While not the film’s primary intention, it offers an interesting examination of the division of labour and factory-line production processes in a 1930s biscuit factory.
Fire Guardians documentary – 1932
For this eccentric dramatised documentary on the history of firefighting, Frank Hurley dressed members of the NSW Fire Brigade in all manner of period costume.
Ghosts of Port Arthur documentary – c1932
A ‘novelty travel talk’ by Ken G Hall in 1930 has other resonances today: violent encounters after European settlement and the horror of the Port Arthur massacre.
Holidays in Shanghai, Hong Kong, Canton, Java home movie – c1932
These scenes of colonial-era South-East Asia are an early example of actuality footage which captures Australian perspectives of the region.
Jewel of the Pacific documentary – 1932
In this 1932 travelogue shot and narrated by Frank Hurley, rat tails bring a reward of sixpence each and Lord Howe Island locals join the hunt for the pests.
The Kinema News Reel newsreel – 1932
This newsreel offers a glimpse of the English cricket team that went on to play the famous 'Bodyline’ series against Australia later in the 1932-33 season.
The Opening of the Sydney Harbour Bridge newsreel – 1932
This newsreel footage with on-the-spot commentary contains unique coverage of the official opening ceremony of the Sydney Harbour Bridge on Saturday 19 March 1932.
Provincial Cities of Australia: Ballarat, Victoria documentary – c1932
Frank Thring was an enthusiastic supporter of talking pictures and a great believer in their potential to bolster the Australian film industry.
Revolution by Referendum: Political advertisement by Mr Costello advertisement – c1932
One of many activists or political aspirants who have proposed socialist visions for the country’s future over its recent history.
Tasmanian countryside, Hobart and Tasmanian Tiger historical – c1932
A Tasmanian Tiger, Hobart City and the Tasmanian countryside are all showcased in this black-and-white actuality footage from the early 1930s.
Tasmanian Tiger Footage historical – 1932
In 1932, zoologist and naturalist David Fleay filmed some of the last known moving images of a living (now extinct) Tasmanian tiger.
Balinese Holiday home movie – c1933
This rare example of amateur footage of Bali and Java in the 1930s represents a particular Westerner’s view of the Asian region at that time.
Catching Crocodiles documentary – 1933
If you’ve ever wanted to catch a crocodile, this nine-minute instructional video tells you how, 1930s style.
Australia documentary – 1934
This record of the man on the land in the 1930s, aimed at UK audiences, would have been narrated by the filmmaker when screened.
Centenary Celebrations of Melbourne, Victoria newsreel – 1934
This unedited newsreel footage includes a speech given by the Duke of Gloucester opening Melbourne’s centenary celebrations.
Cinesound Varieties historical – 1934
This variety show originally ran for about an hour, but only a few segments survive.
Rodeo documentary – c1934
This silent documentary is about a rodeo held in northern Queensland in approximately 1934. It features 500 participants parading through the streets of Townsville.
Tatler News No 2, Dr Maloney MLA newsreel – c1934
Dr Maloney expresses concerns about social injustice and poverty, addresses women’s voting rights and approves removing the word 'illegitimate’ from the birth registry.
Tatler Social Newsreel: Social Party in South Yarra newsreel – c1934
Only a few Efftee newsreels have survived and this one is a vivid record of Melbourne society at play in the 1930s, complete with a society party in South Yarra.
Toora Vale Ice Company, Berri: The Ice Man Was Never Like This advertisement – c1934
Animated slogans in this advertisement effectively promote the use of ice in refrigeration.
Toora Vale Ice Company, Berri: Welcome Mr Ice Man advertisement – c1934
The advertisement comes from a time when electrical goods were being heavily promoted for the home.
