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Poster for A Nation Is Built
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Released
1938 · FILM

A Nation Is Built

Directed by
Written by
Runtime
47 min
Documentary

Synopsis

At a picnic to celebrate Australia's 150th 'birthday', a family discusses significant events that shaped the nation. From re-enacting the arrival of the First Fleet and the birth of John Macarthur's wool-producing enterprise, the film then turns to the present, focusing on rural production, industrial efficiency and the splendid urban landscape of Sydney. As the introductory title grandly proclaims: "From so small a beginning has sprung the virile Australian Nation." Frank Hurley, at the peak of his fame as a photographer, film maker and adventurer, was the obvious choice to direct the film and he delivered spectacular imagery and patriotic commentary with gusto.

Credits

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How many hands made this film

The scale of the collaboration

Principal cast & crew: 3

These are the principals we have on file — the full crew ran to the hundreds. Every film this size was made by far more hands than any credits list ever names.

Why a floor?

This is a minimum, not a total. We only count the credits we’ve captured so far, and coverage is uneven — a blockbuster might show a few hundred names while another of the same size shows a couple dozen. The real crews all ran into the thousands. The number here only grows as full credits are enriched — so we frame it as a floor, never a headcount.

Craft leads on file

Edited by Frank Coffey

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