About the Film Collection

Image: Little Fish (2005). Courtesy Porchlight Films. NFSA ID: 672897

The NFSA’s holdings of features, documentaries, shorts, experimental and new technology productions include a significant collection of works relating to Australia and made by Australians.

Films include the earliest surviving footage of the Melbourne Cup (1896), the first acknowledged feature film produced anywhere in the world (The Story of the Kelly Gang, 1906), the cinema newsreels that kept Australians current with national and international events for four decades, acclaimed documentaries like Sherpa (2015) and haunting short films like Karroyul (2015).

With over 300,000 film works in the collection, the Australian experience of cinema is also reflected in its diverse representation of international classics. These range from the Soviet silent film Aelita, Queen of Mars (1924) to the works of Hong Kong’s Andy Lau to the international films of Australian actors like Rose Byrne and Nicole Kidman. Exciting restoration, research and programming projects continue to emerge from a collection that provokes, inspires and illuminates the film industry it represents.

If you have film material that you wish to offer the NFSA, please see the Collection offers page.