[Wallace Clarke Home Movies: Reel 4: Part 1]

Wallace Clarke was an amateur filmmaker during the 1960s to the 1990s. Wallace was particularly keen on capturing both the Australian landscape and the people who enjoyed it. As well as Australian urban settings and some world travels, Wallace’s films focus on the many hiking and camping destinations that he visited.

Often carrying the credit, ‘A Walkabout Film’, Wallace’s movies indicate that he was part of a nature study and walking group called ‘The Walkabouters Club of Victoria Inc’. The ‘Walkabouters’ formed in 1968 as a result of a Council of Adult Education (CAE), Outback Study Tour to Central Australia. Some of the attendees decided to start the Club in order to continue educative walks particularly around Victoria. The Club encouraged their resident artists and photographers to capture their activities.

The collection of Wallace’s films was donated to ACMI by his widow Gwenda Clarke and is shot on various formats, predominantly Standard 8mm and Super 8mm film.

This film, titled ‘Fascinating Fiji’, contains scenes of Fiji landscapes, towns and resorts. The filmmaker takes footage from a vehicle so that the scenes change with his travels. Much of the reel is taken up with scenic vistas of roadside crops, lush greenery, trees and flowers, hills in the distance and the sea.

Originally made on Super 8mm film.

Selected highlights list:
00:00:05:00 titles ‘A Walkabout Film’, ‘Fascinating Fiji’, ‘A WHC Film’
00:00:38:00 drive through a plantation
00:01:05:00 buffalo
00:01:31:00 sign for the Raki Raki Hotel.
00:03:44:00 seaside township
00:04:10:00 foraging on the foreshore.
00:04:40:00 sign ‘Welcome to Nausori’ before crossing the (old) Rewa bridge by car.
00:04:56:00 ‘Nausori Municipal Market’ on the island of ‘Viti Levu’ showing various vegetable stalls and some produce boxes from New Zealand.
00:05:45:00 sign for ‘Kings Road’ showing miles to various destinations
00:06:16:00 woman paddling a slim canoe on water before small boys in a boat.
00:10:14:00 football game
00:11:10:00 one of Wallace’s travelling companions holds a tourist pose for the camera.destinations
00:06:16:00 woman paddling a slim canoe on water before small boys in a boat.
00:10:14:00 football game
00:11:10:00 one of Wallace’s travelling companions holds a tourist pose for the camera.