The Overlanders, made in 1946, is the story of ‘one man’ – Don, played by Chips Rafferty (John William Pilbean Goffage 1909-1971) – and his small group of drovers crossing three states of Australia with more than a thousand head of cattle over 2000 miles during the Second World War. The film is set in 1943 outback Australia and is based on the true story of a cattle drive in 1942 organized by the government to vacate the land of people and supplies in the threat of a Japanese invasion. (more…)

FLINDERS FLICKS OF LONG AGO – BUT DID IT EVER GO AHEAD?

From The Advertiser, Wednesday 5 September 1906

TOPICS OF THE DAY.
THE RAILWAYS COMMISSIONER’S REPORT
The financial year 1905-6 was the most prosperous in the history of the South Australian railways. Mr. Pendleton, in his annual report, states that the result of the year’s working was a record, the revenue being £76,444 higher than ever be- fore. The net revenue for the year was £85,380, equal to 4.30 per cent, on the total capital expenditure of £13,610,520 on miles open, compared with 3.95 in the previous year, which means that, after paying interest on the public debt for railways, £110,425 was carried to the credit of the general revenue. (more…)

Have you been wondering what the 2010 Film Maker in Residence project will be about? Our visiting film maker, Malcolm McKinnon, has been exploring possible stories of interest for a couple of new short films about the Flinders Ranges Region, and has decided to link into the stories of another awesome project also happening in the region… the Flinders Flavours book to be published during 2010.

Flinders Flavours is a collection of stories about the food and culture of the central Flinders Ranges, primarily researched and written by local writer, Tarla Kramer (who has also written for Flinders News regional papers). Other contributors include oral historian John Mannion, local artist Liz Collins, among others. Each story is based on interviews or anecdotes of the food growing, preparation, making and eating, of recipes and flavours found in the region.

Malcolm McKinnon’s residency films will be based on stories from a chapter of the book about foods made from local feral animals such as goat, and rabbit. He will be conducting interviews and collecting video footage during early April and the finished films will be ready to be screened in a couple of months.

It is hoped to extend this project later in the year by inviting local people to add their own contributions, by making short documentaries and photo movies of their own recipes, which will be collected into a video web site. The Quorn Area School are among local groups who have already expressed interest in working with Malcolm Mckinnon to participate in the project.

The 2010 Film Maker in Residence project is being supported by Arts SA, Flinders Flicks and is being made with the support of Jane Egerton-Warburton (project coordinator) and Cindi Drennan (project manager). For further information contact Flinders Flicks, and for info about Flinders Flavours, contact communityflavours @ flindersbushfestival . org . au

Flinders Flicks provided assistance to John Mannion to be involved in the Quorn community, as Film Maker in Residence in 2009. In 2010 it is planned to hold this project again, and part funding has been provided by Arts SA for us to work with Malcolm McKinnon, a highly regarded filmmaker familiar with regional South Australian communities.

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Flinders Flicks is a film society based in Quorn, South Australia. We get together to enjoy interesting, films in a friendly local venue.

We have been running film nights since 2007, mostly in Quorn but occasionally in other towns or venues in the Flinders Ranges.

In 2010 we are working with neighbouring communities and groups so that film screenings can happen in other Flinders Ranges towns. We are interested in hearing from groups who would like access to the screening equipment and training, to be able to hold their own Flinders Flicks film nights. Contact us for further info.

Flinders Flicks Film Society owns and maintains equipment for the benefit of its members. We are currently discussing a proposed borrowing scheme which will allow the equipment to be available to community groups. (more…)

2009 is the second year that films have been regularly screened in Quorn. This year we tried a few different ways of marketing, using the Mercury to put in a schedule at the start of the year, and doing a 4 month program which was letterbox dropped throughout Quorn mid year. Programming films for several months at a time is very hard work and although its great to have time to promote films in advance, we lost flexibility to add in new films. Other ways we looked at promoting were letters to our members, posters, emails out, and last but not least, a big banner stuck on the side of my van!

We boldly go... Portable Flinders Flicks Signage!

Of course as always our best ways of getting people to come along was word of mouth, so we’re really grateful to our dedicated members who came regularly and invited friends and neighbours. Having new faces and people to meet has kept it interesting.

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John Mack’s film footage of the World War Troop Trains was presented by John Mannion during the Film Maker in Residency 2009.

John Mack is in his nineties now,  and has been a South Australian photographer and cinematographer. As a young bloke he worked in a photographic firm in Adelaide and began working with moving images soon after that. Mack became involved in the amateur cinema movement in South Australia during the 1930s and 1950s. During the Second World War he was an army staff sergeant and was posted to the Northern Territory where he was involved with the Australian Army Education Service. It was during this time that he filmed his footage of the troop trains moving through Quorn. (more…)

‘The Mercury’ (Quorn) Thursday, September 15, 1950

TREES TO BE SPRAYED WITH GREEN PAINT

NOT QUITE RIGHT SHADE FOR COLOUR FILM

An American walked into a Waymouth Street, Adelaide engineering supplies firm this week and asked for a spray for spraying trees with green paint.

The sales assistant looked cautiously at the customer who went on to explain he was from the “Kangaroo” Film Unit and the trees in the Flinders Ranges near Port Augusta, the site of the new 20^th Century Fox production weren’t quite the right shade of green for shooting the film in Technicolor.

One never knows what to expect next now that film-making has really come to South Australia.

This is a rough list of possible sources for films and film makers, to be compiled into better info later!

SA state library
ACMI Library
Media Resource Centre
National Film & Video Lending Service
Gordana Bacic – Big Screen
jo fleming 02 8202 0108 sydney short films
Australian Film Commission (Now part of Screen Australia) bec somerton cath mcintyre – project officers for doc / edu / short film contacts