history
Australian Cinema 1894 - 1904
In part 19 of this series, Chris Long chronicles the important events of Australia's first ten years of cinema
his chronology was origi nally intended as the closing instalment of this series on “Australia’s First Films”. We have advanced its publica tion to include in this issue, which is distributed widely at the 1 9 9 6 Cannes Film Festival. T h e chronology highlights Australia’s many pioneering contributions to world cin ema. Based on the original research presented earlier in this series by Clive Sowry, Pat Laughren, John Barnes, Bob Klepner and myself, it revises much of Australia’s existing cinema mythology. In its early adoption of motion pictures, in its vigorous pioneering production, particularly of documentary film, Aus tralia was incredibly active for a nation of less than four million inhabitants in 1901. 1 A u s tra lia n F ilm E x h ib itio n : 1894 to 1896 c. A ugust 1894 Theatrical entrepreneur
J. C. Williamson secures Australian exhibition rights to Edison’s 35mm film viewer, the kinetoscope.
16 S e p te m b e r 1895 Sound films first shown
in Australia. Three kinetophones are
Lumière Cinématographe: front view with lens board opened to show shutter. Courtesy of Mark Whitmore, Queensland Museum.
27 S e p te m b e r 1895 Kinetophones
introduce sound films to Mackay (Queensland) 27 S e p te m b e r 1895 Kinetoscopes
introduce movies to Rockhampton (Queensland) 4 O ctober 1895 Kinetophones introduce
Managed by the MacMahon brothers, the shopfront venue uses the same 35mm transparent movie films which remain the industrial standard today. 3 J a n u a ry 1895 25,000 patrons have vis
5 O ctober 1894 Five Edison “kinetoscope”
viewers and 16 film subjects ex-New Jersey are trans-shipped at London for dispatch to Sydney per the steamship “Orizaba”. 17 N o ve m b e r 1894 S.S. “Orizaba” arrives
ited Sydney’s Pitt Street movie venue. 5 February 1895 The five kinetoscopes are
moved to Tasmania and shown at the Tasmanian International Exhibition Building, temporarily erected on the Hobart Domain.
in Sydney Harbour with kinetoscopes. 5 M a rc h 1895 12,000 people have paid
to see the Hobart film show. 16 M a rc h 1895 Kinetoscopes move to a
Melbourne venue in Bourke Street East, introducing motion pictures to Victoria.
sound films to Rockhampton. 13 A ugust 1895 Kinetoscopes introduce
movies to Brisbane.
(unconfirmed report) begin at Mel bourne University, under the control of Engineering Demonstrator James Mann. 8 Ju n e 1895 First Melbourne movie
30 N o ve m b e r 1894 First Australian com
mercial exhibition of motion picture film. Five kinetoscopes, each with a differ ent film subject, are exhibited to the public at an exclusively dedicated venue, 148 Pitt Street, Sydney.
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season ends after 12 weeks and the paying attendance of 35,000 patrons. 11 J u n e 1895 Kinetoscopes introduce
movies to Bendigo. 19 J u n e 1895 Kinetoscopes introduce
8 N o ve m b e r 1895 Kinetoscopes introduce
28 A ugust 1895 The London-based specu
lator Launcelot Lee-Warner contracts with the kinetoscope’s exporters, Maguire and Baucus, for exclusive Australasian exhibition and sales rights covering the next seven years. LeeWarner agrees to immediately buy seven kinetophones for Australasian exhibition. These are kinetoscope movie viewers with cylinder phono graphs internally fitted, providing sound for the films.
movies to Charters Towers (Queens land).
movies to Geelong.
15 N o ve m b e r 1895 MacMahons announce
that they have a “library” of 40 films for their viewers. 29 N ovem ber 1895 Kinetoscopes introduce
movies to New Zealand. A. H . Whitehouse, probably working under the Lee-Warner Australasian franchise, exhibits four kinetoscopes at Bartlett’s Studio in Queen Street, Auckland.
sound films to Auckland, exhibited by A. H. Whitehouse. 18 J a n u a ry 1896 Kinetophones introduce
sound films to Adelaide. THE MARVELLOUS I
N
E T
O P
H O N
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will be exhibited TO-DAY (MONDAY), A T THE
KINETOSCOPE ROOMS, Next Alan B . Bright’s, Mosman-street. Th. KINETOPHONE eclipses the K IN E . TOSCOPE, and is now the Sensation of the World, The remarkable Machine reproduces SOUND Aim SPEECH, See it, and you wilbe astounded. Open from 11 a.m. till 10 pan ______________CHARLES MACMAHON. The Kinetophone whieh is a combination of the Kinetoscope and Phonograph will be shown next Alan B. Bright’s to-daj, Songs and dances are given true to life and excite general wonder.
movies to Ballarat. 28 J u n e 1895 Kinetoscopes introduce
movies to Adelaide (South Australia)
8 J a n u a ry 1896 Kinetophones introduce 7 S ep tem b e r 1895 Kinetoscopes introduce
M a rc h 1895 Film projection experiments
Edison's kinetoscope, the machine which provided Australia's first commercial exhibitions of motion picture film from 30 November 1894.
exhibited at Charters Towers. One kinetophone, probably from this group, survives in Sydney. Abroad, these machines only provided musical accompaniment for the films, but Australian shows include soundtracks with full dialogue, the w orld's first "talkies". The MacMahon brothers continue to manage the Australian Exhibitions. Five kinetoscopes and three kinetophones (later four) are now on show in Australia.
First "talkies" shown in Australia - from The Northern Miner (Charters Towers, Queensland), 16 September 1895.
22 February 1896 Kinetophones introduce
sound films to Broken Hill. 29 F ebruary 1896 Kinetoscopes
permanently displayed at W . J. N. Oldershaw’s Edison Electric Parlour, 162 Pitt Street, Sydney. These proba bly incorporate the MacMahons’ machines, a further five machines scheduled for delivery by February 1896 under the Lee-Warner contract, and “prize fight kinetoscopes” with extended film capacity. These can each reproduce a round of the CorbettCourtney and Leonard-Cushing boxing matches. They are probably imported from the Holland brothers, New C I N E M A P A P E R S • J UN E 1996