Film Australia's Australia: Women in Change

1986, 50 Minutes

Looks at the changing role of women in Australian society over the 20th century.

The filmmakers’ record over nearly 90 years observes the changing role of women in Australian society through a juxtaposition of old and new footage. Older films show women pursuing traditional roles - housewife, typist, nurse and factory worker. In the early 20th century, the degree of choice was still very limited and film treatments were often sexist and demeaning to women. Film portrayals today are mostly serious and sensitive. In more recent films, women are shown achieving independence and determining their own futures to a much greater extent.

The program is divided into five themes: Women in Wartime, Women’s Work, Wife and Mother, issues (specifically childcare, multiple roles, overwork, occupational illness, unemployment, single mothers, boredom, frustration, poverty, loneliness and aggression), Changing Opportunities and Relating (which looks broadly at a variety of relationships through the eyes of women).

© 2011 National Film and Sound Archive of Australia.