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Bush Christmas (1947)

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clip Tracking the horse thieves

Original classification rating: G. This clip chosen to be G

Clip description

The five children have told their parents they are going camping. Instead they head towards the wild Warrigal Ranges, looking for the men who stole their father’s valuable mare Lucy (and foal). At Bellbird Crossing, they camp overnight. In the morning, Neza (Neza Saunders) finds tracks: the thieves have passed by while they were asleep. The children head into the ranges, hoping to catch the thieves.

Curator’s notes

by Paul Byrnes

The film is gorgeously photographed by the great George Heath, who had shot most of the Cinesound features from 1934 onwards. His use of silhouettes in this clip is particularly striking, lending an heroic air to the children’s exploits. Most of the film was shot in the Blue Mountains and Burragorang Valley, two hours west of Sydney. It was a frequent location in Australian films of the 1930s, but rarely was it used as effectively as in Bush Christmas.

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australianscreen is produced by the National Film and Sound Archive. By using the website you agree to comply with the terms and conditions described elsewhere on this site. The NFSA may amend the 'Conditions of Use’ from time to time without notice.

All materials on the site, including but not limited to text, video clips, audio clips, designs, logos, illustrations and still images, are protected by the Copyright Laws of Australia and international conventions.

When you access australianscreen you agree that:

  • You may retrieve materials for information only.
  • You may download materials for your personal use or for non-commercial educational purposes, but you must not publish them elsewhere or redistribute clips in any way.
  • You may embed the clip for non-commercial educational purposes including for use on a school intranet site or a school resource catalogue.
  • The National Film and Sound Archive’s permission must be sought to amend any information in the materials, unless otherwise stated in notices throughout the Site.

All other rights reserved.

ANY UNAUTHORISED USE OF MATERIAL ON THIS SITE MAY RESULT IN CIVIL AND CRIMINAL LIABILITY.

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