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National cinemas play an important role in the construction of national identities, representing the ‘self’ to both domestic and international audiences. Evidence of the material impacts of media representations on individuals and society, and the pervasiveness of movie-watching as a cultural activity, underscore the importance of scholarly inquiry into film. Here, we are concerned with how ethnic diversity has been negotiated within the Australian national cinema – specifically at the scale of intimate interpersonal relationships. Our analysis of twenty-five recent Australian films considers how cinema alerts audiences to the possibilities and limitations of love within and across ethnic boundaries. We find cause for modest optimism in regard to the frequency of Australian cinematic representations of inter-ethnic intimacy, although the narrow range of ethnic groups permitted to participate in these encounters, and an apparent reticence to portray marriage, co-habitation and child-bearing across ethnic boundaries, remain cause for concern. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The article discusses gay and lesbian activist initiatives in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia in the 1970s, focusing on the social impact of cinema and the exhibition of films. Topics include censorship laws, films such as "The Boys in the Band," the Gay Film Fund organization, the Paris Theatre, and the Filmmakers Co-operative Cinema.

This special issue of Media International Australia represents an effort to progress critical understanding of the broader social and economic formations that shape the circulation and consumption of films. The collection provides a range of diverse and compelling insights into the processes of film circulation and viewing, both within the home and at the cinema. Accordingly, these articles address important questions such as: Why do audiences seek out film content? How are films accessed and by whom? What place does film have in popular social memory? How does the site of consumption shape the meaning of these cultural encounters? By what processes can we identify and study audiences? [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents the author's insights on the procedure where a television series or a film has been constructed as good or worthy in the society. The author reflects on how the worthiness of these films and television series become bad for viewers and spectators. Moreover, the author discusses how this procedure has influenced popular reception of Indigenous television and film in Australia and in what way it contributes to the pre-conceptions of non-Indigenous student on Indigenous films.

This study of the Australian filmmaker Paul Cox aims to tease out a number of contradictions in the institution of Australian art cinema from the 1970s to the present day. It looks at the cultural, social and historical factors which position Cox as a supposedly 'maligned' artist; the interpretive work of film criticism and analysis that helps construct the reception of his career; and recent changes in the arthouse sector that have ushered in first a critique and then a rehabilitation of his oeuvre. Beyond this socially defined circle of art, artist and art cinema, the publicly 'repressed' aspects of Cox's cinema that tend more to resemble the excluded arena of avant-garde production are explored. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores ways in which the low-budget mockumentary film Kenny (Clayton Jacobson, 2006) evolves the figure of the Australian battler, from its earlier incarnation in The Castle (Rob Sitch, 1997). A surprise hit on Australian screens, Kenny is the quietly humorous story of a portaloo worker, one of the 'ordinary Australians' that the Howard government claimed it spoke for. But whilst Kenny brought some old-fashioned toilet humour to the box office, he was overworked, underappreciated and apprehensive. The article maps the film from the perspective of its Australian audience, to suggest ways in which this comic but uneasy version of the working-class battler responded to socioeconomic change. It scrutinises the circumstances of the film's Australian reception to examine the legacies of an era in which many people became disengaged from politics, the work/family balance seemed harder than ever, and fear was exploited for political advantage. Such an analysis of the representation of the battler figure suggests that both Kenny and The Castle present an idealisation of the battler figure, but they do so differently in response to their sociocultural milieu. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the developments of the Australian Film Institute (AFI) in Australia in 1990s and 2000s. It mentions that AFI Distribution headed by manager Sandra Sdraulig played a major role in the distribution of short films as AFI took over the market created by the advent of sell-thru video. It mentions that AFI underwent re-branding in 2000 but continued its mission to foster engagement between the screen industries and the Australian community. It cites that AFI Fellowship indicated its start of increased private support.

The article discusses the accomplishments of the Australian Film Institute (AFI) for the past fifty years as of the year 2009. It mentions that the AFI cultivated its history towards a national, cultural agenda. It notes that the organisation holds annual awards which foster the Australian screen industries and reward filmmakers and those involved in filmmaking. It cites that the AFI also maintains a research and information library which stores cultural treasures. It also discusses the AFI's marketing of independent films and its new roles in the Australian film industry.

The article focuses on the role and function of Australian Film Institution (AFI) as it celebrates its 50th anniversary in 2009. It provides a review on several historical moments of the history of the AFI Awards since their inception. It highlights the key role played by the AFI Awards in presenting the accomplishments of Australian film and television programs to government. It notes the role played by the awards in maintaining the visibility for the Australian industry globally.

The article offers information on the way in which various stakeholders of the Australian Film Institution (AFI) engaged with the organisation in Australia. It discusses how AFI stakeholders continuously participated in the AFI Awards which is a significant event in the screen culture environment that forms one of the reasons why AFI exists after fifty years. It highlights the role of the AFI as a cultural organisation which dealt with the domestic and international circulation of Australian film and television.

The article discusses the developments of the Australian Film Institute (AFI) in 1980s. It mentions that AFI executive director Kathleen Norris, who was based in Sydney, New South Wales, expanded the presence of the AFI when she opened an office in the city. It notes that AFI started an ambitious publications program and worked with Oxford University Press to publish the book "Australian Film 1900-1977: A Guide to Feature Film Production," by Andrew Pike and Ross Cooper. It cites that in 1986 the AFI and the Sydney Filmmakers Co-op merged.

The article discusses the growth of the Australian Film Institute (AFI) in reflection of the wider motion pictures industry in Australia in 1970s. It mentions that the AFI expanded as it established the Experimental Film and Television Fund, and the Vincent Library. It notes the expansion of its film culture focus and the delivery films from the Melbourne Film Co-operative. It notes that AFI also played a major role in the development of film culture through funding filmmaking, playing a role in distribution, and making important contributions to culture in the country.

The article offers an overview of the establishment of the Australian Film Institute and its role in the screen culture in 1950s and 1960s. It mentions that the audiences who loved films and attempted to find way to expand their film experiences established the AFI. It notes that the inauguration of the AFI in 1958 was a time of intense engagement with film in the country and the people who valued screen culture came together to encourage growth in the sector. It cites that the people came from the film society movement, film criticism and the production sector.

The article focuses on the effort of the Australian Film Institute to promote the growth of different film cultures and remain afloat in Australia. It mentions that AFI reduced its activities, however, it has not left its aspirations to do more in screen culture. It notes that AFI is well positioned to transfer support to the film culture of the country, but it need all sectors of the industry to pull together and support screen culture to widen the development of audiences. It cites that the Australian screen culture and the AFI are not the same but they are inseparable.

The article focuses on a particular movie personality who is seen to have broached the politics of memory and history in the context of youth cinema, and the role of film in facilitating the restoration of what history has omitted. Particular focus is given to American film actress Molly Ringwald who is of the present but remains firmly, and problematically, entrenched in the past. Her contribution in the motion picture industry in the mid-1980's is discussed.

This article draws on a body of interviews conducted during 2003–04 with movie‐viewers, distributors and exhibitors of Indian movies in Australia, primarily in the Sydney region of New South Wales. My immediate concern is with the manner in which Indian movies reach an audience in Australia and how that audience is described, both by themselves and by those who seek to cater to them. The wider context of this study is its contribution to a transnational perspective on Indian movies and the cultural understandings that they generate within and across specific localities. As such, this article attempts to reformulate the conception of media‐communities by replacing an ethnographic model with an emphasis on surveying the diverse inhabitants of a ‘cultural field’ constructed around the Indian movie. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]