History at the Movies

Australian Identity in Film

Were you at this funny, clever and wonderfully historic portrayal of Austalian identity? After watching these four Australian made films I could sense how I personally had grown as an Australian, despite a few cringe worthy moments. The Bruce Petty film 'Australian History' had the audience laughing with his representation in inimitable Petty cartoon style.

The films were shown on a 16 millimetre projector and came from the Flinders University Collection. Many of the films in this collection are the ones previously borrowed from the State and Video collection prior to the 1990s and used in schools. We were told that for years documentary films were the strength of film making in Australia. The next films, 'Talk it Over ' and 'Australian Weekend' made in 1949 and 1960 respectively, reflected clear fundamental changes in the development of the nation. The fourth film, ' Tempo - Australia in the Seventies', was upbeat and oft repetitive. Discussion between the presenters and the audience brought interesting perspectives and analyses. Let me know what you thought about the films.