5 July 2022

Colonists For a Day


From the Film Australia Collection. Made by Film Australia 1993. Directed by Alec Morgan

 

Papua New Guinea was Australia's brief and only attempt at colonisation, lasting from 1906 to 1975. It was marked by the colonists' incompetence and inexperience and the inevitable cultural clashes between the tribal clans and their administrators. This documentary combines eyewitness accounts from both colonists and Papua New Guineans with archival footage that was filmed by the colonists as they ventured into the unknown tribal lands of the interior.