Tom O'Regan's book is the first of its kind on Australian post-war cinema. It takes as its starting point Bazin's question 'What is cinema?'and asks what the construct of a 'national' cinema means. It looks at the broader concept from a different angle, taking film beyond the confines of 'art' into the broader cultural world. O'Regan's analysis situates Australian cinema in its historical and cultural perspective producing a valuable insight into the issues that have been raised by film policy, the cinema market place and public discourse on film production strategies. Since 1970 Australian film has enjoyed a revival. This book contains detailed critiques of the key films of this period and uses them to illustrate the recent theories on the international and Australian cinema industries. Its conclusions on the nature of the nation's cinema and the discourses within it are relevant within a far wider context; film as a global phenomenon.

Concerned with the period 1970-1987; Dedicated to Bill Bonney, d.1985.

The Oxford Companion to Australian Film is an indispensable reference for anyone interested in Australian movies. This Companion is a comprehensive guide to the people and ideas that have made Australian cinema. It contains more than a thousand entries and was written by almost a hundred scholars and writers with expertise in different facets of Australian film. No other reference book on this subject contains so many features: * succinct yet detailed entries on key figures (actors, directors, producers, writers, designers, composers etc.) * incisive discussions of major films, with credits and plot summaries * longer essays on critical and historical themes * a series of extended interviews (specially prepared for this Companion) with some of the luminaries of Australian film, including Goeffrey Rush and Pamela Rabe * over 100 illustrations (portraits, stills, and posters) * thorough bibliography * full list of AFI awards * subject index providing easy access to relevant entries. This Companion celebrates Australia's love of the movies and provides a comprehensive and entertaining account of its unique contribution to the art.

Issues for 1901/07-1901/20 include corrected statistics for the period 1788 to 1900.