Craft Australia Film Screenings
Presented by Craft Australia
13 November 2026
Day + Time | Friday | 4:15pm – 5:30pm
Location | National Film and Sound Archive of Australia, 1 McCoy Circuit, Acton ACT 2601
Entry | Free | Registration required
Access | Wheelchair accessible, accessible parking, accessible bathroom, off street parking, assistance animals welcome
In the late 1970s, the Crafts Council of Australia commissioned a series of extraordinary short films celebrating Australian craft practitioners, featuring leading directors of the time including Peter Weir and Gillian Armstrong. These films capture the idealism that inspired the emergence of Australian craft onto the national stage and remain a remarkable record of a pivotal moment in the history of the craft movement in Australia.
This screening program brings together two of these significant works, inviting audiences to reflect on that legacy and consider how it continues to resonate today.
Crafts in Australia (1975) is an ABC documentary featuring leading craft practitioners discussing their work and the place of craft in modern society. The film spans pottery, weaving, leather and jewellery, with contributions from Peter Rushforth, Col Levy, Colin Smart, Marea Gazzard, Joan Campbell, Jean Smart, Pru Medlin, Gary Greenwood, Larani Lewers and Helga Larsen. Directed by Tony Wilson and produced by Stafford Garner. 42 minutes.
Heart, Head and Hand (1979) is a documentary portrait of potter Peter Rushforth, exploring how his philosophy and deep belief in craft as a way of life has shaped all those who have come into contact with him, and the respect and admiration in which he is held by students, colleagues and friends alike. 20 minutes.
The screening with be followed by drinks with the new Craft Australia board.
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Craft Australia began as the Craft Association of Australia in 1964. After it was defunded in 2011, World Crafts Council Australia was established to revive a national platform for Australia that opened international opportunities. Its reach has broadened now and it is reverting to Craft Australia to help amplify the voice of crafts in Australia and overseas.
SEE WEBSITE HERE
Image | Still from Head, Heart and Hand (1979) | Image courtesy of Craft Australia