Historical information

In 1906, Australia produced The Story of the Kelly Gang, claimed to be the world’s first commercial feature-length fiction film. Shot on location outside Melbourne, the film traces the life of the legendary Australian bushranger, Ned Kelly.

The 1906 film is believed to have been about one hour in length. Only fragments, approximately 15 minutes survive, the majority of the cellulose nitrate film stock degrading. In 2006 with meticulous restoration work by the National Film & Sound Archive, nearly a quarter of the film was pieced together and digitally restored by Haghefilm preservation laboratories in Amsterdam. The film's narrative has been reconstructed based on the original footage and intertitles. Additional titles (based on text from original program booklet) and associated material has been inserted to provide a more complete sense of the original production.

The film is of particular interest to the Society as it is alleged that some scenes were filmed in and around the Eltham district though not yet identified or confirmed.

Physical description

Digital file only
MP4 00:31:52; 233MB
(Reference only - not for public access)