Page 34 - CinemaRecord #84

which the film was projected from behind and
onto a translucent screen. Programs featured
two or three newsreels, a couple of cartoons,
a two reel comedy and perhaps a travelogue,
with session durations of 75 minutes, screening
continuously from 10am to 11pm.

With the onset of the Second World War,
newsreels took on even greater popularity as
the people on the home front grew more
hungry for news from overseas (especially of
Australian troops). The newsreels of this
period contained much propaganda, but also a
great deal of footage of the war. Cinesound
Review's report "Bismarck Convoy Smashed"
(1943) contained footage of the dive-bombing
of a Japanese ship, filmed from behind the pilot
of one of the planes. The commentary over this
section of film said, "Remember Manila, Hong
Kong, Nanking and a few others, Mr Nippon?
You'd better duck!" Cinesound even won an
American Academy Award for one of its
reports, "Kokoda Front Line".

Numerous others were to open in city centres
Albany Theatrette Interior, Collins Street, Melbourne
across the country. Newsreel cinemas had
continuous sessions consisting of Australian
Australian Editions, Paramount News, Metro and overseas (mainly English) newsreels. With
News, Universal News, etc., and later the In Bourke Street, just west of Swanston Street, more and shorter sessions than regular
Australian government through the two cinemas stood side by side. These were
Department of the Interior produced its own the Melba and the Brittania. At one time, the
newsreel, the Australian Diary pictorial, which Brittania housed a small film processing
continued well into the 1970s. laboratory and also employed a cameraman
who would go out during the day filming any
From 1922 up until the start of television, the events around the city streets, such as a cable
main source of news for the Australian public tram jumping the rails or shoppers in busy
came in the form of newspapers, the then still Bourke Street. The film would be taken back
infant radio broadcast, and the cinema to the theatre, processed and be on screen
newsreel. By the time foreign newsreels within a few short hours. To promote custom,
reached our cinema screens, they would show a billboard proclaimed “see yourself as others
events that, in most cases, had taken place see you!”
weeks prior, so often as not while newsworthy
events were featured in the newsreel, the In 1932, following the success of a newsreel
majority of items were of a topical nature and theatre in Sydney, excavation commenced for
items were frequently recycled year after year construction of a basement beneath the Melba
using stock footage. To cater for the public theatre, without causing any disruption to daily
thirst to get all the news, a novel idea emerged screenings. In September 1932, Melbourne's
in London to create small basement cinemas first newsreel theatre, the Times theatrette
purely for the exhibition of newsreels and short opened, having seating for 210. The Times
educational films. was unique, as rear projection was used in

cinemas, they did not need to be as large. Their
smaller seating capacity was also due to the
limited appeal of newsreels. They showed a
specialised product rather than a varied
programme and so would not expect as large
an audience. People attending a newsreel
cinema wanted to be informed rather than
entertained. That's not to say, however, that
newsreels couldn't be entertaining. In addition
to seriously covering important events, they
also contained light hearted and human interest
stories but, on the whole, audiences came to
be informed. Their limited appeal resulted in
only a few of these cinemas in each State, all
situated in city centres, for it was the city
culture and the combination of workers and
shoppers that they required. Suburban cinemas
tended to be patronised by families in the
evenings and children during the day-time
matinees - not the type of audience attracted to
newsreel cinemas. Cities were the focus of
business and commerce, and more likely to
Foyer of Tatler Theatrette, Collins Street, Melbourne C1938 provide the audience that the newsreel cinemas