All titles in the ‘Travel and adventure’ genre
51 titles - sorted alphabetically or by year
1910s
My South Polar Expedition spoken word – 1910
Sir Ernest Shackleton tells how the loss of a pony affected his attempt to reach the South Pole in 1908.
The Official Film of the Mawson Antarctic Expedition documentary – c1916
This film documents part of the treacherous 600-mile 1911–1914 expedition to the Magnetic South Pole led by Sir Douglas Mawson.
Chez les Sauvages Australiens historical – 1917
An engaging and respectful insight into Aboriginal people’s culture and their interaction with the filmmaking process, made in 1917.
1920s
Pearls and Savages documentary – 1921
This 1979 reconstruction of Frank Hurley’s 1921 adventure film Pearls and Savages showcases the peoples and cultures of the Torres Strait Islands and Papua New Guinea.
Hinkler’s Message to Australia; Incidents of My Flight spoken word – 1928
‘Now I want to tell you a few things about flying …’
Travelogue of Eastern States newsreel – c1929
This travelogue, made around 1929, shows the major cities of eastern Australia including Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and the new national capital.
1930s
Melbourne Today documentary – 1931
Probably the first ‘talkie’ documentary made about Melbourne – in 1931, films with sound were still relatively new in Australia.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Endurance documentary – 1933
After watching Home of the Blizzard Ernest Shackleton asked Frank Hurley to film his expedition across Antarctica with the aim of funding part of the expedition through film sales.
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.
Treasures of Katoomba sponsored film – 1936
Frank Hurley’s sense of adventure and eye for landscape composition is evident in this charming travelogue promoting tourism in the Blue Mountains.
Follow the Sun documentary – 1938
Pioneer filmmaker Frank Hurley is best known for documenting wartime and adventure but he also made travelogues like this one.
Isle of Many Waters sponsored film – 1939
The opening credits read 'a portrayal by Frank Hurley described by himself’ and contain the relaxed and descriptive narration style evident in many of his travelogues.
1940s
Choo Choo documentary – c1940
An amateur film of the Spirit of Progress passenger train, made by the Owen Brothers.
The Dance of the Eyes documentary – c1940
Skylogues’ like this one from Bali, were shown in cinemas prior to a feature film; few Australians travelled abroad then.
Sydney on Show documentary – c1940
This documentary from about 1940 shows Sydney’s progress as a modern city. It is from the large private film collection of Roger McKenzie and Bernard Kent.
Through the Centre sponsored film – 1940
The Indian camel trader and the Japanese pearl diver become part of the film’s projection of the exotic within the expansive space of the Australian outback.
Cradle of Creation documentary – 1944
A compendium of the Middle East filmed by Frank Hurley during his years working as an official war photographer in the Second World War.
Mid-East documentary – 1945
The African continent would have still represented the ‘heart of darkness’ for many Australians viewing this film.
1950s
Roamin’ Holiday home movie – 1954
This amateur travelogue made by John and Frank Straford records their trip to north-east Victoria in the 1950s.
Western Wonderland home movie – 1954
This 1954 travelogue of the Grampians National Park in Victoria features a poetically nostalgic voice-over recorded 50 years later.
Northern Safari documentary – 1956
This six-month journey in a 1948 Buick later inspired the Leyland Brothers and Albert Mangles.
Australian Walkabout television program – 1958
The Chauvels, on a filmmaking safari of Australia, travel through the Northern Territory to Rum Jungle for a privileged look inside a uranium mine.
1960s
An Airman Remembers television program – 1964
This early ABC documentary is about Sir Gordon Taylor, a fighter ace in the First World War and one of the pioneers of aviation in Australia.
1970s
Ask the Leyland Brothers – Episode 23 television program – 1976
The Leyland Brothers answer viewer requests and visit Broken Hill and Uluru.
Peach’s Australia – Darling River television program – 1976
Bill Peach was a household name in Australia at the time he gave up being the presenter of This Day Tonight to return to his first love, travel journalism.
Peach’s Australia – Flinders Ranges television program – 1976
Peach’s meanders around the country he’s describing, offering tantalising snippets of history, spiced with art history and Aboriginal Dreaming stories.
North to Niugini documentary – 1979
Malcolm Douglas travels in a five-metre boat north along the coast of Australia, through the Torres Strait to New Guinea.
1980s
Snow… Down Under documentary – 1982
Snow… Down Under shows three friends skiing on Mount Kosciuszko, intercut with the history of skiing in Australia.
A Big Country – City Girls television program – 1983
A group of students from an exclusive girls’ school and a group of unemployed girls hike through the bush.
Dick Smith Explorer documentary – 1983
Dick Smith records his own solo around-the-world flight in a helicopter in 1982; his unfailing enthusiasm helps sustain interest.
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.
Peach’s Explorers – East to West television program – 1984
Bill Peach loves Australian history and tells us explorers’ stories by using their words, cleverly recreated from diaries and notebooks, and journeying through the same arid interior.
Peach’s Explorers – South to North television program – 1984
There’s a strong sense that each of these men is very much of his time, imbued with a duty to expand knowledge and a ruthless craving for fame and fortune.
Peach’s Explorers – The Secret of the Rivers: Captain Charles Sturt television program – 1984
This Bill Peach series uses recreations, diary entries and letters, among other devices, to tell the story of Australia’s colonial exploration in visually interesting ways.
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.
Cannibal Tours documentary – 1987
Dennis O’Rourke highlights the absurdity of the interactions between 'civilised’ tourists and 'primitives’ in a PNG village.
Jack Thompson Down Under – Episode 25 television program – 1987
Jack Thompson is a great narrator. He’s the iconic Aussie male and his voice has that dinky-di Australian drawl that Americans love to hear.
Jack Thompson Down Under – Episode 3 television program – 1987
Aspects of Australian life connected by the on-camera presence of actor Jack Thompson, the iconic Australian with the dinky-di Aussie drawl that Americans love.
Central Australia: The Eighth Wonder television program – 1989
Bushie explorer Ted Egan tours places of wonder in Central Australia.
1990s
Track Record: The Story of Australia’s Railways - Tethered to the World documentary – 1991
This episode from a four-part series outlines the surviving tourist railways of Australia and looks at the problems presented by the legacies of the past.
The Ice Capped Jungle documentary – 1993
The five climbers of Puncak Jaya were led by author Lincoln Hall. Hall was left to die on Mt Everest in 2006 but was later found – hallucinating and frost-bitten, but alive.
Big Hair Woman documentary – 1996
An aid organisation chose to 'gently educate’ a television audience about PNG using comedy, hiring Mary Coustas for the job.
2000s
Shark Vs Croc television program – 2004
Former shark hunter and Australian spearfishing champion Ben Cropp compares predators.
Black and Dusty documentary – 2005
This is a film for those addicted to speed and dust. Filmmaker Warwick Thornton is one of the Indigenous participants in the 2005 Finke Desert Race from Alice Springs.
The Colony television program – 2005
In this 'living history’ series, participants chosen to match the social fabric of the time as convicts, free settlers and Indigenous Australians relive the birth of the Australian colony.
Mawson: Life and Death in Antarctica documentary – 2007
Polar adventurer Tim Jarvis attempts to re-create Douglas Mawson’s epic and controversial trek to safety in Antarctica in 1913.
Surfing 50 States documentary – 2008
Australian mates Jonno Durrant and Stefan Hunt go surfing in all 50 states of the USA.
