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Watch six 'lost' American silent short films
Short films presumed lost now available to the public
An international collaboration between the NFSA and the US National Film Preservation Foundation (NFPF) has returned to the public eight American silent short films previously presumed lost. Preserved copies of the film are now available to view online with supporting scholarly research, and copies are also held in the US and Australia for screenings.
Follow the links below to view six of the rediscovered films (thumbnails courtesy US National Preservation Foundation).
The Prospector (1912)
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Follows a familiar storyline in which the Westerner, though unschooled in human wiles, thwarts his foe and creates a new community.
View the clip and read film notes on the NFPF website »
U.S Navy of 1915 (1915)
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Although incomplete, this documentary appears to be the longest surviving non-fiction film about the US Navy dating from before the First World War.
View the clip and read film notes on the NFPF website »
Trip Through Japan with the YWCA (c1919)
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This fragment comes from a documentary sponsored by the YWCA to celebrate its 15th anniversary of service to Japan.
View the clip and read film notes on the NFPF website »
Mutt and Jeff: On Strike (1920)
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On Strike is one of more than 300 animated ‘half-reelers’ produced between 1913 and 1926 starring the popular American comic-strip characters Mutt and Jeff.
View the clip and read film notes on the NFPF website »
The Sin Woman Trailer (1922?)
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This ad promoting the Australian release of a 1917 American potboiler still tantalises today, although for different reasons: it teases with a glimpse of a film that can no longer be seen.
View the clip and read film notes on the NFPF website »
Pathé News, No. 15? (1922)
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Actuality films capturing news and sporting events were part of the movie repertory as early as 1895 but it was not until 1909 or 1910 that Charles Pathé introduced a film compilation of the events of the day. This newsreel contains events from January and February of 1922.
View the clip and read film notes on the NFPF website »
More to explore
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The Story of the Kelly Gang
Sally Jackson and Graham Shirley describe the restoration of the landmark 'The Story of the Kelly Gang' (1906), the world's first feature-length narrative film.
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NFSA's most wanted
Our curators are continually searching for key items that are needed for the national collection.
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Captain Thunderbolt Trailer
'Wake in Fright', 'The Sentimental Bloke' and 'The Story of the Kelly Gang' - now comes another important discovery in Australia's search for 'lost' films.
The National Film and Sound Archive of Australia acknowledges Australia’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the Traditional Custodians of the land on which we work and live and gives respect to their Elders both past and present.