The Dreaming Reels: Aboriginal Images on Australian Silent Films, 1898-1937. Volume 1

Abstract

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people should be aware that this video recording contains images, voices and names of people who are deceased. Please be aware that words and descriptions reflect the period in which they were created and may be culturally insensitive or considered inappropriate today. -- Volume 1. Scenes from ethnographic, documentary, and narrative feature films. -- Most of the first selection of films in this volume show images of adventurers, explorers, scientist and ethnographers who used motion picture cameras to record their travels and encounters in far flung reaches of Australia and with Aboriginal peoples often living traditional tribal lifestyles. The surviving footage in the selections often tells as much about the filmmakers as the subjects and often expresses the prevailing attitudes of the day. The second part of Volume 1 includes a selection of scenes from Australian silent feature films. Aboriginal characters in these films were portrayed in a range of images from loyal and devoted offsiders and friends to extras in a rambling historical epic, and from respected professionals to caricatured wild savages. But there were a few notable exceptions of Aboriginal actors in significant parts. Some films are represented in their entirety, others are represented by scenes chosen in liaison with an Aboriginal consultant, actress Justine Saunders. Show more