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Birth of cinema in Australia
The first screening of film in Australia took place in a shop in Sydney, in 1894. The public paid a shilling to view images of an American circus and vaudeville performers on the Edison Kinetoscope. -
The Story of the Kelly Gang produced
Running between 40 and 60 minutes depending on film projection speed, The Story of the Kelly Gang was the first feature-length narrative film produced in Australia. It is believed by some film historians to also be the first of its type in the world. -
First colour films exhibited
In 1912 the US-based National Cinematograph Company produced and exhibited the first colour films shot in Australia. Using their patented Kinemacolor process, the company showed a series of short travelogues and films depicting Australian industry at work. -
First Australian talkie
Shooting commenced in June 1930 on Showgirl’s Luck; the first full-talkie feature made in Australia. -
Australian Broadcasting Commission
Australia set up the Australian Broadcasting Commission, as a government agency that was largely separate from political interference. -
Radio
By the late 1930s, almost every Australian home in cities and towns had a radio. Radio played an important role in people’s lives and became a normal part of a person’s day. It created a new sense of community as people all over the country would be listening to the same programs at the same time. -
Department of Information Film Division established
The Commonwealth Government’s Department of Information (formed five days after the outbreak of the Second World War) launched its film division on 9 August 1940 to 'mobilise the film medium for national ends’. -
Australian radio broadcasting scene
By the early 1940s the Australian radio broadcasting scene was established. There were about 130 commercial stations and a roughly equivalent number of ABC stations. -
Commercial FM radio
Commercial FM radio was introduced in 1980. The quality of the sound was far better than the old AM radio and programs could now be transmitted in stereo. This caused a split in the radio market. -
Broadcasting renaissance
The Labor government under Prime Minister Gough Whitlam commenced a broadcasting renaissance so that by the 1990s there were 50 different radio services available for groups based on tastes, languages, religion, or geography.
