Australian Cinémathèque

The Australian Cinémathèque, located within the Gallery of Modern Art (GOMA) in Brisbane, is an Australian institution dedicated to film and the moving image. It offers a diverse program of historical, contemporary and archival film and visual media and is a key venue for the Brisbane International Film Festival (BIFF). The Australian Cinémathèque is an Associate Member of the International Federation of Film Archives (FIAF), an organisation of the world's leading film archives dedicated to the preservation and exhibition of film.

History

The development of the Gallery of Modern Art (GOMA) and the Australian Cinémathèque in Brisbane was driven by the Queensland Government's vision to enhance the state's cultural infrastructure and provide a venue for contemporary art and film.

Early foundations

In 1996, QAG began collecting video art, recognizing its growing importance in contemporary art practice. This collection initiative laid the foundation for the Australian Cinémathèque, which aimed to bridge the gap between old and new moving-image media through retrospective and thematic screening programs.

The impetus for a gallery of modern art was a result of the continued success of the Queensland Art Gallery in collecting and exhibiting contemporary artworks. In particular, the Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art, which was first held in 1993, had developed to be internationally recognised as a major event in the exhibition of Asia–Pacific art.

In the mid-1990s the Queensland Government earmarked land at Kurilpa Point for the future expansion of the Queensland Art Gallery (QAG). This laid the groundwork for what would become the Gallery of Modern Art (GOMA), envisioned as a space to showcase contemporary art and house dedicated screens for curated cinema content.

Establishmemt at GOMA

The project to create GOMA was championed by the Queensland Government in the early 2000s, signalling their commitment to the arts by allocating $260 million out of the 1999 State Budget. This was part of a broader strategy to position Queensland as a cultural and creative hub, fostering tourism, economic growth and community engagement.

In May 2000, the then Queensland Premier Peter Beattie and Arts Minister Matt Foley announced an international design competition for a new Gallery of Modern Art. The new facility would include the Cinémathèque a core feature, production facilities and a media gallery, setting the stage for a new type of institution that integrated cinema into an art museum context.

From over 170 submissions across 24 countries, Sydney-based firm Architectus, in association with Davenport Campbell and Partners, were declared successful in July 2002.

Opening and inaugural exhibitions

The Australian Cinémathèque was officially launched in 2005, a year before GOMA's official opening, with the program Kiss of the Beast: exploring the racial, gender, and aesthetic associations of man– apes and near– human monsters in film and art.

On December 2, 2006, both GOMA and the refurbished Queensland Art Gallery were inaugurated by the 5th Asia– Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art (APT5), highlighting contemporary art from the Asia– Pacific region with a mix of visual art, cinema, and performance. Showcasing the Cinémathèque's role in presenting a rich mix of visual media, it served to further establish its importance within the cultural precinct and has since hosted numerous film events and exhibitions.

Wurlitzer Organ

The Australian Cinémathèque is home to a 1929 Wurlitzer Style 260 Opus 2040 Pipe Organ. Originally located within Brisbane's Regent Theatre between 1929 to1964, it remained in private ownership for decades until it was restored and installed in Cinema A in December 2006.

The Wurlitzer Organ has remained largely unchanged and continues to serve as a notable element of Queensland's cultural heritage. It is utilised for accompanying classic silent films, providing an immersive audio experience through powerful pipes which are positioned beneath the seating area.

Programs and events

The Australian Cinémathèque provides an ongoing program of film and visual media that includes screenings of influential filmmakers, international cinema, rare 35mm and 16mm prints, recent restorations, and silent films with live musical accompaniment.

The two main cinemas are located on the ground floor of the gallery and are one of the few in Australia capable of screening a full range of movie media, including 35mm and 16mm celluloid film, tape and various digital file formats. Cinema A seats 200 and Cinema B seats 110.Envisioning the black box: The Australian Cinémathèque and BIFF - QAGOMA Blog
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Screenings take place Wednesday and Friday nights, as well as matinees on weekends. Most screenings are free admission.

Film programs

2024 programs

, the Cinematheque's programs include:

*
Asia-Pacific Triennial Cinema
Tsai Ming-liang –'' A near-complete career survey of the celebrated Taiwan-based Malaysian filmmaker, featuring an Australian-exclusive in-person 'In Conversation' event.
*
For the Love of It: A Curator's Pick
–'' A select program of films chosen by the Cinémathèque's curatorial team for their personal or cultural significance.
*
Yvonne Rainer: Everything is a Performance
–'' Exploring Rainer's pioneering contributions to avant-garde cinema through seven feature films directed between 1972 and 1996.
*
Live Music & Film
–'' An ongoing program combining of film with a live musical accompaniment by local musicians or on the Gallery's 1929 Wurlitzer Organ.

Thematic and genre programs

The Cinematheque is notable for its thematic and genre programming. , recent programming includes:

*
The Cracked Actor: Bowie on Screen
–'' A special retrospective of David Bowie's cinematic contributions.
*
Transcendence: A Cinema of Awe
' – Exploring wonder, awe and positing profound questions about the human experience.
*
Necessary Images: The Films of Robert Bresson
' – A special retrospective of Robert Bresson, one of the monumental figures of French cinema.
*
Mad Science
–'' Exploring science and scientists throughout the history of cinema.
*
Fairy Tales Cinema: Truth, Power and Enchantment
–'' Presented in conjunction with GOMA's summer exhibition ‘Fairy Tales’, showcasing beloved classics of the genre alongside contemporary retellings.
*
Cinema Obstructed
–'' An eclectic survey of films which navigate literal, political or creative obstructions by their makers.
Other notable programs have showcased the work of actors, directors and cinematographers through special retrospectives and dedicated programs. These include Robert Bresson, Powell & Pressburger, Ute Araund & Robert Beavers, Gregory J. Markopoulos, Andrzej Zulawski, John Seale, Juliette Binoche, Mikio Naruse, Joyce Godenzi, Jane Campion, Frederico Fellini, Ernst Lubitsch, Wong Kar-wai, Aleksei German, Mahamat-Saleh Haroun, Luchino Visconti, Ida Lupino, Rainer Werner Fassbinder, Ingmar Bergman, Masaki Kobayashi, Shirley Clarke, David Lynch, Andrey Tarkovsky, Claire Denis, Andy Warhol and David Bowie.

Film festivals

Festival partners

* Brisbane International Film Festival (BIFF)

Brisbane Asia Pacific Film Festival
(BAPFF)

Japanese Film Festival
(JFF)

New Caledonia Film Festival

World Science Festival Brisbane

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Australian Cinematheque
Culture of Brisbane
Film organisations in Australia
2005 establishments in Australia
South Brisbane, Queensland