MOTHER TONGUE: AUSTRALIAN WOMEN IN ANIMATION

Although animation generally receives much less attention than what we broadly term “live-action” cinema, the century-long history of Australian animation has seen women make an indelible impact. In the years before animation courses and degrees were available domestically, many of these artists came to animation through more indirect pathways. Australia’s first woman animator, Anne Jolliffe (1933–2021), began her career working at the CSIRO Film Unit before moving to the UK, working on films such as Yellow Submarine (1968) and on Oscar-winning films with British animator Bob Godfrey. She then returned to Australia to set up her own studio, Jollification. Others came to animation from other areas of filmmaking; Lee Whitmore began her career as a graphic artist and production designer, before receiving support from the Women’s Film Fund to make Ned Wethered in 1983. As Australia’s animation industry grew and courses and degrees became more commonplace, opportunities have emerged with increasing numbers of women seeing their films screened internationally and awarded at festivals. The films selected for this program span a 30-year period from the 1980s to the mid-2010s and present a snapshot of a range of different styles and approaches including 2D cel animation, sand and salt, charcoal and pastel, and mixed media approaches. They also deal with a range of themes and subject matter, from memory and family, grief, loss and anger to music and poetry. This program, co-curated by RMIT University lecturer Dr Ruth Richards, highlights the work of key figures in the field like Whitmore, Jolliffe, Antoinette Starkiewicz, Marieka Walsh, Sarah Watt and Sabrina Schmid.

Wednesday 26 November

7:00pm BREAKING GROUND: FIVE ANIMATIONS FROM THE 1980s

(1983-1989) 77 mins – Unclassified 15+

This program includes five key films made by Australian women animators in the 1980s. Lee Whitmore’s pencil on paper film, Ned Wethered (1983), probes the animator’s own memory as she reflects on a family friend. Pianoforte (1984) showcases Antoinette Starkiewicz’s mastery of metamorphosis and alluring musicality. Sabrina Schmid’s Elephant Theatre (1985) uses a mix of cut-outs and cel animation to bring to life one man’s imagination. The narrator in Maggie Fooke’s Pleasure Domes (1987) meditates on her sense of place while looking out from her St Kilda balcony. Finally, Anne Jolliffe’s The Maitland and Morpeth String Quartet (1989), narrated by Ruth Cracknell and featuring the artwork of Victoria Roberts, contains delightful interjections of visual music.

Prints of most films courtesy of the National Film and Sound Archive, Australia.

To be introduced by season co-curator Dr Ruth Richards.

Screening order: Elephant Theatre, Pleasure Domes, Ned Wethered, Pianoforte, The Maitland and Morpeth String Quartet.

CTEQ ANNOTATION
Breaking Ground: Five Animations from the 1980s
by Ruth Richards

8:45pm PERSONAL AND POETIC: AUSTRALIAN WOMEN’S ANIMATION AFTER 1990

(1990-2016) 67 mins – Unclassified 15+

This collection of six short animations showcases the diversity of styles and approaches across this 25-year period. On a Full Moon (1997) and Ada (2002) demonstrate Lee Whitmore’s evolving style and interest in childhood memory. Susan Kim Danta’s Mother Tongue (2002) is a meditation on language and forgetting. Marieka Walsh’s The Crossing (2016) uses salt and sand to tell the haunting story of a sea captain who risks the lives of his crew. Finally, this program pays tribute to Sarah Watt. Her student film Catch of the Day (1990) is a wry look at the casual sexism experienced by a fish-shop worker. Watt’s later film, Small Treasures (1995), is a tender, diary-like reflection on pregnancy and loss.

Prints of several titles courtesy of the National Film and Sound Archive, Australia.

To be introduced by season co-curator Dr Ruth Richards.

Screening order: On a Full Moon, Ada, The Crossing, Catch of the Day, Small Treasures, Mother Tongue.

CTEQ ANNOTATION
Personal and Poetic: Australian Women’s Animation after 1990
by Ruth Richards