''Calling Australia'' () was a 1943 Japanese short film, by directed by Dr. Huyung (formerly known as Hinatsu Eitaro, Hae Yeong, and Hŏ Yŏng).
History
The film was made by the Imperial Japanese Army Secret Service and Australian servicemen, and served as
propaganda
Propaganda is communication that is primarily used to influence or persuade an audience to further an agenda, which may not be objective and may be selectively presenting facts to encourage a particular synthesis or perception, or using loaded ...
to train the Australian public to accept occupation of their country by the Japanese military.
The film depicts Australian
prisoners of war
A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held Captivity, captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610.
Belligerents hold priso ...
(POWs) in
Java
Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's List ...
,
Indonesia
Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...
who are drinking beer, playing sports, eating balanced meals;
and culminates in a stage show by the POWs, some performing in
drag.
The
Allies
An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...
responded with the film produced by the Australian Army, ''Nippon Presents'' (1945).
An invasion of Australia by Japan never happened and the film had been forgotten and lost, only to be rediscovered in 1969.
However there are conflicting reports on who found the film.
''Prisoners of Propaganda'' (1987) is an Australian documentary film about the making of ''Calling Australia,'' directed by
Graham Shirley
Graham Shirley is an Australian author, researcher, curator and filmmaker best known for his work in the area of Australian film history.
He was one of the original class of the Australian Film Television and Radio School and is the co-author ...
.
See also
*''
Indonesia Calling
''Indonesia Calling'' is a 1946 Australian short documentary film directed by Joris Ivens and produced by the Waterside Workers' Federation. The film depicts post-World War II Sydney as trade union seamen and waterside workers refuse to service D ...
''
*
Cinema of Indonesia
Cinema of Indonesia is film that is produced domestically in Indonesia. The Indonesian Film Agency or BPI defines Indonesian film as "movies that are made with Indonesian resources, and wholly or partly Intellectual Property is owned by Indones ...
*
List of documentary films about World War II
*
Union Films
Union Films was a film production company located in Batavia, Dutch East Indies (now Jakarta, Indonesia). Established by ethnic Chinese businessmen Ang Hock Liem and Tjoa Ma Tjoen in 1940, it produced seven black-and-white films before it was dis ...
*
Netherlands Indies Government Information Service
The Netherlands Indies Government Information Service (NIGIS) was a civil secret service and propaganda organisation based in Australia, during and after World War II. NIGIS was affiliated with the Netherlands East Indies Forces Intelligence Ser ...
*
South Pacific Film Corporation
The South Pacific Film Corporation (SPFC) was a Dutch government sponsored feature film producer in the Dutch West Indies. A separate unit produced newsreels in Indonesia. The production company was sponsored under the Netherlands Indies Civil Admi ...
References
{{Authority control
1943 films
Documentary films about World War II
1940s English-language films
Japanese short documentary films
Japanese World War II propaganda films