ABC Documentaries

We wanted to make a film about the iconic Parrots & Cockatoos of Australia which would not only show how extraordinarily adaptable they were, but somehow capture the magnificent landscapes in which they live, while at the same time revealing the latest cutting-edge information about their behaviour and lives.

The wreckage of HMAS Sydney, sunk off the West Australian coast in 1941, has at last been found. The Sydney’s entire crew of 645 went down with the ship in the Indian Ocean and its location has been a mystery for 66 years. The Hunt for HMAS Sydney tells the incredible story of a ship lost in the middle of nowhere and that of the dedicated search team who always had a strong belief they would find it.

The incredible true story of an Australian World War 1 submarine, lost in the Dardanelles for nearly 100 years, is told with dramatic re-enactment accompanied by modern day footage of a daring rescue expedition to save it from the murky depths. The AE2 is the stuff of submarine legend but her story was lost among the horrors of the Western front and the bungled Gallipoli campaign in 1915. Her captain, Lt Commander Henry Stoker and the 32 crew were attempting to break through the heavily defended Dardanelles Strait and disrupt Turkish supply lines. But after a confrontation with a Turkish gunboat, Stoker abandoned her, opened her tanks and scuttled her. She lay undisturbed on the sea bed until her discovery in 1998. Her deterioration is considerable, but as she is buried in fine deep silt to her waterline, her main pressure hull may be preserved. The Submarine Institute of Australia mounted an archaeological expedition last year to see if the AE2 could be saved. Their assessment told in Gallipoli Submarine, uses intimate documentary footage, dramatic re-enactment, archival footage, underwater photography and state-of-the-art computer-generated imagery.

The Douglas Mawson Antarctic Expedition of 1912 is considered one of the most amazing feats of endurance of all time. Although his two companions perished, Douglas Mawson survived, but how? In a bold historical experiment, scientist and adventurer Tim Jarvis is retracing the gruelling experience, with the same meagre rations, primitive clothing and equipment to uncover what happened to Mawson physically-and mentally-as a man hanging on the precipice of life and death. A Screen Australia Making History Production in association with Orana Films. Produced in association with the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and Channel 4.

Deep inside the arctic, scientists are experimenting with extreme palaeontology methods to unlock the secrets of polar dinosaurs, and perhaps the key to our own survival on Earth. On Alaska's north slope there are dinosaur bones, lots of them. But they're trapped in an icy tomb - an impenetrable wall of permafrost. Dinosaurs on Ice follows the journey of two scientists, Dr Tom Rich and Dr Tony Fiorillo, who undertake separate expeditions to the Colville River in Alaska's far north to uncover the dinosaurs' bones and break the ice on a prehistoric world that until now has been unreachable. But the task is not easy. The weather is extreme, the location remote.

This documentary relates the story of the discovery of a tomb of miniature terracotta warriors in China and the subsequent archaeological sleuthing that went on over years to discover which king was in the tomb.

With Australia at war in Vietnam in 1967, suddenly Prime Minister Harold Holt disappeared without a trace—an event unparalleled in the history of western democracy. The nation was in shock and disbelief at the shattering news, hoping for a miracle for the man who famously declared it was “all the way with LBJ”. Police led a ‘softly softly’ investigation and concluded accidental drowning. But at the height of Cold War paranoia, persistent doubts about his disappearance fuelled rumour and wild speculation. Why did Holt go into such violent surf that day? Had he chosen a bizarre way out of a difficult situation? Why were police withholding crucial facts? What had they overlooked? Holt himself left tantalising clues that challenged the official explanation. This is the story of the Prime Minister’s secret world in the months before he disappeared, a world of betrayal, blackmail, political treachery, a poisonous feud, mounting physical and mental strain, and near-death experiences. Reconstructed from eyewitness accounts, this dramatised documentary examines the political implications of the Prime Minister’s disappearance and reveals explosive new aspects of the case. A Screen Australia Making History Production in association with Blackwattle Films. Developed and produced in association with the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.

The true story of the dark days of 1941 when Menzies battled with Winston Churchill over the strategic direction of the Second World War with the fate of Australia hanging in the balance.

The Hobbit Enigma examines one of the greatest controversies in science today. Just what did scientists discover when they uncovered the tiny, human-like skeleton of a strange creature on the Indonesian island of Flores in 2003?

Built on layers of samba rhythms, classical and jazz guitar and poetic lyricism, the sultry Bossa Nova sound was spawned in the beaches and bars of Rio, Brazil in the late 50s, and soon dominated the world's clubs and lounge rooms when anthems like "The Girl from Ipanema" became huge international hits. These seductive songs of love by the ocean are celebrated in this compelling documentary - first aired on ABC TV and filmed on location around Rio - that features interviews with giants of the genre including Marcos Valle, Carlos Lyra and Sergio Mendes, whose Brazil '66 (and the song "Mas Que Nada") took the Bossa beat to new heights in the late 60s and 70s. Rare live clips of Bossa pioneers Joao and Astrud Gilberto revive the beauty, depth and timeless legacy of the sound that seduced the world.

The story of how Australia's 'ANZAC myth' was born and the role of General John Monash in this process as soldier and statesman both during and after WW1