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Lisa French, Professor & Dean, School of Media and Communication, RMIT University

Makeshift screens, censored films and ASIO: how the Melbourne International Film Festival began 70 years ago

Author provided.

On the Australia Day weekend in 1952, a group of die-hard film buffs put on a film festival. They had selected the leafy hills of Olinda in Victoria’s Dandenong Ranges for the event. They expected 80 people – but more than 600 turned up!

In the 1950s, very few Australian films were being made. Those that were produced were largely documentaries, with narrative features extremely rare. Despite this, an avid film culture flourished through local film societies.

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