First contact

Australia, 1983

Film

Documents the clash of two cultures that occurred in the 1930s when the people of the highlands of New Guinea encountered the first Europeans to enter their world - for an El Dorado. One of these Australians, Michael Leahy, took a movie camera with him, and so managed to capture on film the confrontation between one civilisation and the representatives of another.

Last on display

ACMI Viewing Booths

Credits

production company

Dick Smith Adventure

Arundel Productions

producer/director

Robin Anderson

Bob Connolly

Language

English

Duration

00:54:00:00

Colour

Black and White and Colour

ACMI Identifier

33233

Audience classifications

Mediatheque - all ages (ACMI classified)

PG

Subject categories

Agriculture, Business, Commerce & Industry → Gold mines and mining

Agriculture, Business, Commerce & Industry → Industries - Papua New Guinea

Anthropology, Ethnology, Exploration & Travel → Explorers

Anthropology, Ethnology, Exploration & Travel → Leahy, Michael

Anthropology, Ethnology, Exploration & Travel → Papua New Guinea

Anthropology, Ethnology, Exploration & Travel → Papua New Guinea - Exploring expeditions

Documentary

Documentary → Documentary films - Australia

Economics, Philosophy, Politics, Religion & Sociology → Acculturation

Economics, Philosophy, Politics, Religion & Sociology → Culture conflict

Economics, Philosophy, Politics, Religion & Sociology → Leahy, Michael

Family, Gender Identity, Relationships & Sexuality → Acculturation

History → Explorers

History → History

History → Leahy, Michael

History → Papua New Guinea - History

People → Leahy, Michael

Places → Papua New Guinea

Short films

Short films → Short films - Australia

Sound/audio

Sound

Holdings

16mm film; Access Print (Section 1)

VHS; Access Print (Section 1)

MOV file H264; NFSA Digital Access Copy

16mm film; Preservation Print (Section 5)

16mm film; Limited Access Print (Section 2)

Appears in

Constellation

Bob Connolly

Australian audiences just can't seem to get enough of exploring local governments, bureaucracy and politics, whether that's through documentaries or biting social satire.

Explore

Collected

1 times

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Cite this work

If you would like to cite this item, please use the following template: {{cite web |url=https://acmi.net.au/works/77454--first-contact/ |title=First contact |author=Australian Centre for the Moving Image |access-date=24 January 2021 |publisher=Australian Centre for the Moving Image}}