by GREG KING
What did Australians go to see at their local cinema during the First World War? Cinema was very popular, and approximately 65,000 people would visit the cinemas on a Saturday night back then. ACMI,in collaboration with the National Film and Sound Archives, has opened its vaults to answer this question. The exhibition features shorts, newsreels, propaganda and feature films, as well as footage of the training, departure and return of Australian troops. Of particular interest is Alfred Rolfe’s The Hero of the Dardanelles, his 1915 drama about Gallipoli, which was filmed at Anzac Cove a few months after the landing with the aim of encouraging recruitment.
This free exhibition runs at ACMI until July 26, 2015.
To find out more about this free exhibition, Greg spoke to the curator Fiona Trigg.
https://www.mediafire.com/listen/sks9v64kib1jnj5/200310_001.MP3
