Originally produced for British television in 1958 this thirteen part series follows internationally renowned Australian filmmakers Charles Chauvel and Elsa Chauvel on a 3,000 mile journey through Australia. Setting off from Sydney they travel across the Great Dividing Range, heading westward to the outback “dead heart” of Australia through Central Australia and on to the Northern Territory. They look at the outback with all its “bewildering contradictions” - deserts, pasturelands, wide grasslands, opal country, mountain ranges and rivers - join a cattle muster, catch brumbies, observe unique wildlife and visit Aboriginal communities. The series is a time capsule of Australian outback life in the middle of the twentieth century reflecting the attitudes held by white Australians towards Aboriginal peoples and the land at the time. Narrated by Elsa and Charles Chauvel.
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How to watch
Collection
In ACMI's collection
Credits
Collection metadata
ACMI Identifier
312258
Language
English
Audience classification
PG
Subject categories
Advertising, Film, Journalism, Mass Media & TV → Television
Animals & Wildlife → Zoology - Australia
Anthropology, Ethnology, Exploration & Travel → Alice Springs (N.T.)
Anthropology, Ethnology, Exploration & Travel → Broken Hill (N.S.W.)
Anthropology, Ethnology, Exploration & Travel → Coober Pedy (S. Aust.)
Anthropology, Ethnology, Exploration & Travel → Katherine (N.T.)
Anthropology, Ethnology, Exploration & Travel → Outback Australia
Anthropology, Ethnology, Exploration & Travel → Port Augusta (S. Aust.)
Anthropology, Ethnology, Exploration & Travel → Tennant Creek (N.T.)
Documentary → Documentary films - Australia
History → Australia - History - 20th century
Places → Coober Pedy (S. Aust.)
Sound/audio
Sound
Colour
Colour
Holdings
VHS; Access Print (Section 1)