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Mar 2019
An aerial shot of a hotel and railway line in a vast expanse of outback, in a scene from the 1971 film Wake in Fright

Wake in Fright: 2009 Restoration

For years the negative of Wake in Fright (1971) was thought to be lost forever. Here is the story behind the restoration and re-release of the classic Australian film.

Film
Jan 2019
Popstar and TV personality Jimmy Hannan walking down the aisle at the Sydney Stadium with a crowd of people around him.

Jimmy Hannan: a winning smile

Vale Jimmy Hannan, who passed away on 7 January 2019, at the age of 84. We celebrate his life and work, and acknowledge his kind donation to the NFSA.

By Beth Taylor / 8 Jan 2019
Photographs
Sound
Television
Dec 2018
A long exposure image of lights. They have left trails across the image.

Newscaf: Christmas lights

As part of our Newscaf series, we bring you some notable Christmas light displays, from Toowoomba to Tasmania.

By Beth Taylor / 7 Dec 2018
Television
Oct 2018
The Sydney Opera House is festooned with red ribbons. There are many boats on the water in front of it.

Sydney Opera House Opening

Photographs, news and home movie footage capture the excitement of the opening of the Sydney Opera House, 45 years ago on 20 October 1973.

By Beth Taylor / 16 Oct 2018
Film
Photographs
Television
Aug 2018
A section of a telegraph pole on a sidewalk with some blue and white chequered police tape tied around it.

Newscaf: Police Under Attack

As part of our Newscaf series, we look back at a chilling crime that devastated Victorian police 30 years ago.

By Mel Bondfield / 27 Aug 2018
Television
Actor Heath Ledger striking a dramatic pose with his arms out, one leg up in the air and his mouth open wide and eyes shut. He is in a yellow kitchen.

Heath Ledger exhibition

Audiences are about to discover the man behind the camera in the NFSA’s new exhibition Heath Ledger: A Life in Pictures.

By Miguel Gonzalez / 7 Aug 2018
Film
Apr 2018
Two Australian soldiers from the First World War walk in uniform, accompanied by three women

Anzac films restored

The NFSA has supplied hundreds of ultra-high definition clips to the Sir John Monash Centre in France, including the restored The Digger Carries On (1919).

By Simon Drake / 23 Apr 2018
Film
Oct 2017
Black and white glass slide of a person with a sheet over their head pretending to be a ghost

19th century ghost photos

These 19th century photographic glass slides purport to show images of both the living and the dead.

By Adam Blackshaw / 27 Oct 2017
Photographs
Dec 2016

2016 at the NFSA

The NFSA collects tens of thousands of items every year. What were some of the highlights for 2016?

By Adam Blackshaw / 23 Dec 2016
Documents
Film
Object
Oral History
Photographs
Radio
Sound
Television

Prisoner

We take you back to Wentworth Detention Centre to celebrate 30 years since the final episode of the iconic Aussie soap.

By Miguel Gonzalez / 12 Dec 2016
Television