Supportive Body For The Australian Film Industry example essay topic

Australia produced the first feature film, one year before America. Today the film has been ravished by the savagery of age. As a flickering and decrepit piece of celluloid rolls in front of our eyes, the significantly diminished footage concerns the story of the Kelly gang. The Kelly Gang was shot in a time of wonder hope and optimism. Through the decay of the aging film, it depicts the final nail in Ned Kelly's coffin. As the armoured anti-hero fires off those last remaining shots, he is soon overpowered outnumbered and out-gunned.

Crippled by the opposition's blasts, through his sheer desperation, Australia's most significant icon clings for support to his harsh landscape. He soon succumbs to those last fatal bullets delivered by the overwhelming number of governing authoritative bodies and falls to the ground defeated. Perhaps ironically it was this almost prolific piece of early media that bares a strange relationship to the Australian film industry as a whole; tarnished, crippled and brought down by the government in a brutal struggle. From this premature beginning the apparent ideology would be that Australia had predetermined it's fate as a major competitor in international film production, however this would not be the case.

After 1894 Australians became infatuated with moving pictures as the kenetoscope commenced its journey around Australia. The Kenetoscope captured the imaginations of the Australian Public. In support of the new technology during the early 1900's the Salvation Army began filming and documenting Australian life for the public. It was at this point that early Australian filmmakers experienced the first example of faithless Australian government. They believed that the salvation army were not skilled enough to continue work as Australia's chief film produces but rather donated 2000 pounds to a foreign interest named Pathe' a French film-maker to produce Australian documentation and newsreels for public spectacle. Unfortunately this was the beginning of an ill faith in the abilities and skills of Australian filmmakers and the birth of our cultural cringe.

The Australian public however was not yet swayed by the views of the government and during the period of 1910 and 1911 Australian audiences poured into cinemas to view the reckless tales of Australian bush rangers, most noticeably The Fatal Wedding which received twenty-five times the original production costs alongside similar successes such as Robbery Under Arms. Respectively in 1912 the government stepped in and deemed the tales of Australian outlaws tainted the desired image of Australia. Yet the Australian government failed to place the same restrictions on the culturally mirrored cowboy tales produced by America. Prior to this instance it was the bushranger films that caused a major boom in the industry as a large film studio was erected in Sydney. However the ban delivered a destructive blow to the industry.

Our metaphorical anti-hero Ned Kelly had subsequently been cornered by the governing bodies but was yet to be introduced to his arch-nemesis, the Executioner know as distribution. Distribution didn't seem like much of a threat in 1913 when a few well-known film entrepreneurs joined for cers and formulated Union Theatres and Australian films known as the combine. Originally the organisation began as a supportive body for the Australian film industry who worried about the lack of government commitment, fear of foreign denomination and rationalisation of business interests. Along with the studio erected by West and Spencer earlier, they soon acquired a monopoly over the industry. But learnt that an easier and more effective means of gaining capital was to import foreign product. It was this attitude that gave birth to a string of low funded productions.

By 1916 that Hollywood now produced 80% of the entire worlds films. Australian filmmakers were now lobbing for a tariff protection on imported films which was protested by the combine who primarily sustained earnings via the foreign market. It was inevitably the combine who won the battle, as the First World War was more important then the production of Australian film. However out of the midst's of an oppressive war that would surely hamper the industry a sudden boom in Australian films formed a new ideology of patriotism, it emerged salvaged by Beaumont Smith who is responsible for the early comedy of Dad and Dave and movies such as Our Friends The Hayseeds. Australian audiences enjoyed escapism from the hard facts of a world war and embraced Australian identity.

Respectively the patriotism would only carry the industry so far as the Combine forced local production down again in 1922, as 9 out of 10 films screened in cinemas were American product, distributors had to buy American films in bulk". Displaying little interest in Australian production, the combine concentrated on filling its theatres with imported films, and Australian production companies began to fade within months". (Murrey pp. 11) Two of the Key factors associated with Australia's inability to compete with the foreign market by this early stage had been established. However our hero Ned was not defeated yet, it was in his nature not to give up. He continued fight against overwhelming odds with a traditional Australian spirit. Regardless of the disinterest expressed by the then government and selfish greed of the distributors.

Metaphorical Ned was determined to have his voice herd. It was these initial setbacks that clipped the wings of the Australian film industry and continued to plague the creative energy of Australian filmmakers. The Australian government has a rich and lucrative history of making Australian film a true hardship leading up to 1969. Some aspects in relation to creating a film industry looked promising such as in 1927 when the then prime minister Stanley Bruce announced the implementation of the film finance corporation, however this would change the overall way in which the government would assist the Australian film industry. "The royal commission must stand as one of the greatest examples of a very expensive waste of time, it heard conflicting reports, its findings were ignored (with one possible acceptation) and overall it stands as a colossal monolith bearing the inscription 'dedicated to one of the dead wonders of the Australian film industry". (Reade pp 58) Australia then continued to produce films, great directors such as Raymond Longford began to realign Australians with their cultural identity, he produced such classics as Dad and Dave and in 1918 won critical acclaim for The Sentimental Bloke.

However these directors were still under the oppressive combine and other distributors. With the advent of sound during the depression years, Longford had disappeared and Frank Thring became the Australian film industries new best friend, Thring was very idealistic and knew that the key to the Australian film industries success was strong distribution. However the advent of sound did not pave the way for an established iconology or star system like hollywood, rather many of Australia's key actors were tied to specific directors and production teams and on many occasions Australia imported talent, whilst our best talent sort fame and fortune on the overseas market. Thing had established EEFTEE a new production house but like so many, he was bought out by the American Fox company and once again the Australian film industry suffered despite the abilities and innovative qualities of the Australian film makers who pioneered new enterprises such as Cine sound. Directors such as Charles Covell and Ken Hall began to suffer the wrath of the distributary hand of the Combine, despite their talents it was the Combine that challenged their competent abilities and plunged the potentially successful directors into a financial nosedive. In the attempt to sustain the industry in 1952 Lee Robinson Chips Rafferty and George Heath formed Platypus productions, again the government during the Menzies era displayed no interest as the Minister Arthur Fad den so elegantly put it " Who the fuck want's to see Australian films".

This new instance of an unpatriotic government deterred Platypus productions and they sort refuge in the financial backing of a French interest. Social factors also attributed to the prevention of the Australian film industry competing against the foreign market Cecile Holds a promising director from New Zealand had successfully produced quality Australian product however his communist background contrasted with the interests of the Menzies government during the Cold War era, once again the success of the industry was damaged significantly. "Government may have shown some willingness to legislate to help Australian film to reach the screen, but they were less eager to spend the money". (Murrey pp 15) With no established iconology or star system, an unpatriotic and non-supportive government along with the sheer greed of the Combine and other American ised distributors, there came another destructive bullet, the introduction of television.

Metaphorical Ned was weak; he had suffered so many bullets from his pursuers. He had now fallen to his knees. He was in their custody. The introduction of television gave the Australian public another unhealthy dose of American culture but Australians no longer needed to see Australian culture portrayed on the silver screen but rather feel at home with the antics of American television icons and commercials on an average week there were 1500 Americans on the Australian radiation box as opposed to the 5 Australians who grace the screen with their presence.

The Australian film industry was crushed, by this stage it was to difficult to salvage an industry built on an unstable and unpatriotic foundation. The government and greedy distributors had delivered the destructive orders during the period of 1959-1966 no Australian films were made. "This period is usually regarded as the lowest point in Australian cinema reached in some ominous years in the 1960's not one feature was made". (Cunningham pp. 67) The judge found him guilty. Metaphorical Ned was to be hung for his crimes. During the period prior to 1969, the Australian film-industry did not have a massive resource base as most productions seemed to come from the financial backing's of independent producers, there were no large scale production studios like Hollywood but rather the initiative and independence of early entrepreneurs.

Most initial industry production companies such as EEFTEE and the Combine resorted to the distribution of foreign films rather then risk investment in local production. These distributors had joined forces with the exhibitioners, which brought about the most detrimental effects. Perhaps the introduction of a larger resource base could have assisted in establishing a more stable industry. The second and perhaps the largest problem with establishing international competitiveness in the international market was the Australian government, throughout this entire period not only did the government express a disinterest and ill-fated attitude to the industry, they also crippled it with a series of blows. Perhaps the most devastating was Australia's spineless attitude to standing up for our local industry. In the early days the Australian government only gave money to foreign interest to make our films, later in 1912 when bushranger films were very popular they banned them.

Many producers during this period had argued for things such as tariff protection to compensate for the mass of American product". Film makers pleaded for a tariff barrier against imported films to protect them from excessive foreign competition". (Murrey 12) Establishing a 5% quota for the screening of Australian films in the 1930's was of good intentions by Prime Minister Stevens however in the early 1940's when America threatened to withdraw its product from our cinema's unless the quota was withdrawn the government caved instantly. Australian attitudes derive somewhat from the governments; these attitudes were far from supportive. Almost every distributor established turned to American product in order to earn money, many talented Australian actors would leave Australian in search of fame overseas whilst on many occasions Australia would import talent due to an apparent lack of it in our own country". The most common cry of producers from the 1920's to the 1960's was that the grip of powerful foreign production companies over the Australian distribution and exhibition trade was stifling the local industry by making Australian screens inaccessible to Australian film makers".

(Murrey pp. 11) What was truly needed to establish the international competitiveness of Australian film prior to 1969 can be related to one very simple ideology, which is the value of patriotism. What was at the crux of the problem seemed to be an unpatriotic government, an unpatriotic public and the unpatriotic distributors. The Australian government since those early days would have benefited from a wider interest in the industry and local talent, with more investment films of a higher quality could have been produced. Rather then assume that the Australian people were unskilled they should have taken measures to ensure that the people associated with the industry were skilled, the establishment of a larger resource base could have ensured that Australian product was of a world standard.

Guaranteed distribution was another essential factor, ill faith present in the government reflected the cultural cringe expressed by the Australian public. Distributors during this period were businessmen they were greedy and allowing the Australian film industry to be out gunned by the American market, which walked, all over them. Consumed by greed the unpatriotic distributors with a defeatist attitude to the Australian arts hampered the abilities and the motivation of all idealistic and potential Australian film producers. If only laws had been established to both fund and distribute film, alongside an institute to learn essential skills, the industry may have been recognised as a crucial factor in removing stigmatize cultural cringe.

On the 11th of November 1964 the Australian postmaster general made a speech to the House of Representatives and said, "I don't think we have any good script writers in Australia, we have no producers and we haven't any directors of high quality at present". Stripped of all dignity metaphorical Ned was read his last rights the executioner led him up those old wooden steps, the noose was fastened tightly around his neck. There he was hung. References. Cook, D. A 1996, A History of Narrative Film, 3rd edn, WW Norton, New York Cook, P. & Bernini, M (eds) 2000, The Cinema Book, 2nd edn. British Film Institute, London.

Cunningham, S, Three Decades of Survival, Australian Film 1959-1970. Hayward, S. 2000, Key Concepts in Cinema Studies, Routledge, London. Murrey, S 1980, The Past: Boom and Bust, The New Australian Melbourne 11-25. Reade, E, 1979, History and Heartburn, Sydney, Harper, 58-78 161-164.

Tulloch, J, 1982, Cinema as Organisation, Australia Sydney. Bibliography. Adamson, J, 1978, Australian Film Posters 1906-1960, Curry Press, Sydney Australian Film Institute. Jacobs, L, 1969, The rise of American Film, Colombia University, New York. William, K. 1985, The Film Goers Guide to Australian Film, Angus and Robinson publishers, Eden Park, NSW.

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Bibliography

The Celluloid Heroes - a celebration of Australian Cinema 220 minutes 1995, (c) A Film Australia National Interest Program in association with the National Film and Sound Archive and the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
101 Eton Road Lind field NSW 2070 Episode 1: The Pioneers 1895-1928 Episode 2: Ok for sound 1928-1948 Episode 3: After the war: the forgotten cinema 1948-1971.