Film & Television with Indigenous content
192 titles - sorted alphabetically or by year prev 1 2 3 4 next
Film and television titles written and/or directed by a non-Indigenous person.
1980s (continued)
Snakes and Ladders documentary – 1987
An account of the achievements and setbacks of a ‘shifting landscape’ as Australian women attempt to gain equality in education in the 20th century.
The Time Guardian feature film – 1987
The Time Guardian is one of the great missed opportunities of Australian cinema and symbolic of its wavering fortunes in the 1980s.
Australia Daze documentary – 1988
An observational documentary shot by 29 different camera crews on the bicentennial anniversary of Australia’s European settlement on 26 January 1988.
Australia Post – Joint Stamp Issue sponsored film – 1988
This program consists mainly of footage shot at the celebratory launch of the Australian–USA bicentennial stamp in Sydney’s Martin Place.
Crocodile Dundee II feature film – 1988
This sequel, in which Mick Dundee battles drug dealers, follows the pattern of the first movie but in reverse.
Living Room documentary – 1988
This beautiful, unsettling experimental documentary is a meditation on Australian suburbia and notions of home.
Thanks Girls and Goodbye documentary – 1988
Thanks Girls and Goodbye is not just a 'feel good’ nostalgia film. It explores how the Women’s Land Army was exploited during the Second World War.
Touch the Sun – Top Enders television program – 1988
This lovely production captures the exotic frontier feel of Darwin, as it explores human survival and the challenges and rewards of family relationships and friendship.
Tuckson documentary – 1988
Examines the life and work of little-known but important artist Tony Tuckson, a 'decisive, ethical, hard-painting, hard-drinking, Craven A smoking artist’.
Central Australia: The Eighth Wonder television program – 1989
Bushie explorer Ted Egan tours places of wonder in Central Australia.
Land Bilong Islanders documentary – 1989
A significant historic record of proceedings in the Queensland Supreme Court regarding the Murray Islanders’ native title claim over their traditional lands.
Shadow Panic short film – 1989
An experiment in structure, Shadow Panic reflects the influence at the time of French screen theorists on Australian feminist filmmaking.
Strangers in Paradise documentary – 1989
On the eve of bicentennial celebrations, Strangers in Paradise looks at Australian culture through the eyes of tourists on a ‘Dreamtime’ tour.
1990s
Lord of the Bush documentary – 1990
Through the complex character of McAlpine, Zubrycki reveals the issues confronting the rapidly expanding town of Broome.
Bran Nue Dae documentary – 1991
There’s nothing I would rather be than to be an Aborigine’ is probably the most famous line from the successful stage musical.
Dingo feature film – 1991
Dingo is a French-Australian co-production starring an American jazz legend. According to director Rolf de Heer, Miles Davis turned out to be a wonderfully instinctive actor.
Land of the Apocalypse documentary – 1991
The traditional custodians of Kakadu National Park battle to protect an important sacred site from mining exploitation.
Satellite Dreaming documentary – 1991
The creation of CAAMA was designed to produce media that would sustain a strong Indigenous identity with regional variations.
State of Shock documentary – 1991
Alcoholic Alwyn Peter traces the events in his life – dysfunction experienced by an Indigenous family within a frame of dispossession and loss of cultural practice.
Bigger than Texas documentary – 1992
WA’s need for a hero and corporate excess created Alan Bond, who features heavily in this quite personal documentary.
Keating Speech: The Redfern Address spoken word – 1992
In his famous ‘Redfern Address’, Prime Minister Paul Keating articulates injustices suffered by Australia’s Indigenous peoples and how society can redress them.
Bad Boy Bubby feature film – 1993
Bad Boy Bubby was conceived as an experiment on virtually every level. It had 32 different cinematographers, for example.
Beating About the Bush documentary – 1993
The filmmakers set out to record a music documentary with a happy ending but end up with coverage of a goodwill disaster.
Blood Brothers – Broken English documentary – 1993
Arrernte man Max Stuart was sentenced to death in 1959 for murder but, nearly 35 years later, he talks about the case on camera.
Blood Brothers – From Little Things Big Things Grow documentary – 1993
An exploration into the life of Kev Carmody, portraying the years he spent in an orphanage when forcibly removed from his family by Queensland authorities at ten years old.
Blood Brothers – Jardiwarnpa documentary – 1993
The orchestration of Warlpiri ceremonies in this film challenges the concept that indigenous culture is stagnant.
Mabo: An Address to the Nation television program – 1993
In a televised address to the nation, Australian Prime Minister Paul Keating outlines the government’s response to the High Court Mabo decision on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander land rights.
My Life as I Live It documentary – 1993
In this follow-up to My Survival as an Aboriginal (1978), also set in the Brewarrina Aboriginal community, 'Bush Queen’ Essie Coffey has nominated for the local council elections.
No Worries feature film – 1993
Drought has a terrible social cost, as the 11-year-old girl who has to move from a sheep station to the city in this film, makes clear.
The Piano feature film – 1993
The Piano is a film about an artist and the story of a woman whose passionate nature is akin to a form of madness. Both themes are common to Jane Campion’s work.
The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert feature film – 1994
The most unforgettable scenes in Priscilla feature excessive costumes on incongruous characters in vast, humbling spaces.
Brisbane Dreaming documentary – 1994
Historical footage and re-enactments help tell stories about the Indigenous people who were displaced by Brisbane.
Eternity documentary – 1994
Cinematographer Dion Beebe has beautifully recreated 1930s Sydney here — and about 10 years later won an Oscar.
Harold documentary – 1994
A big man with a big voice. As the first Indigenous man to sing on national radio, Harold Blair carried huge responsibilities on his shoulders.
Vacant Possession feature film – 1994
Margot Nash’s ambitious feature debut has a strong political basis, but it’s ultimately a very personal story.
Dead Heart feature film – 1996
Bryan Brown plays a second generation Northern Territory cop caught up in a power struggle over whether black or white law is supreme.
Frontier: Stories from White Australia’s Forgotten War television program – 1996
This documentary is about the continuing war that erupted between white colonists and Indigenous peoples upon first contact.
After Mabo documentary – 1997
The most respected Indigenous commentators on native title are featured here, thus adding to the documentary’s historical importance.
The Barefoot Bushman: Dancing With Dingoes documentary – 1997
The film includes footage of Bruce Jacobs, who established a dingo sanctuary in Victoria and bred dingoes for domestic sale.
Brothers and Sisters documentary – 1997
Actor Rachael Maza and her sister are among the people featured in this look at sibling behaviour.
Jabiluka documentary – 1997
This film offers Indigenous, scientific and economic perspectives on the issue of mining uranium at Jabiluka.
Kiss or Kill feature film – 1997
This Australian film stood out from others of the time because of its fresh mixture of genre thrills, narrative intrigue and black humour.
The Last of the Nomads documentary – 1997
A feature-length documentary about an expedition to find the last suriving nomadic couple, who broke tribal marriage laws and fled into the Gibson desert.
Li’l Elvis and the Truckstoppers – Caught in a Trap television program – 1997
Li’l Elvis wants to be a normal kid, not an Elivis impersonator, but his mother is aghast, 'What about your fans, what about the bank, what about the king!’
Oscar and Lucinda feature film – 1997
Drawn together by a passion for gambling, Anglican priest Oscar Hopkins and Australian heiress Lucinda Leplastrier agree on a wager with life-changing consequences.
Wildside – Series 1 Episode 1 television program – 1997
The raw style of Wildside is characterised by intense, semi-improvised performances, observational camerawork and sometimes frenetic editing.
Art From the Heart documentary – 1998
White collectors and gallery owners have benefited from indigenous art since the 1970s yet this issue is not vigorously pursued here.
Radiance feature film – 1998
This is a rare exploration of the emotional interior lives of Indigenous women, in this case, three sisters.
Water Rats – Goes With the Territory television program – 1999
This episode marks the introduction of Steve Bisley’s character to the long-running crime drama. Of note is the economy with which this major change in cast is addressed.
Whiteys Like Us documentary – 1999
Reconciliation Learning Circles were introduced across Australia in 1991 with the aim of improving relations between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians.
