Media arts

11-12

Classification: Mature Accompanied (15+)

Set against the backdrop of Melbourne's late 70s punk rock scene, Dogs in Space chronicles life in a chaotic, squalid share house. Hippies, addicts, students and radicals fill their days and nights with sex, drugs, parties and television. A series of chaotic vignettes are balanced with the central romance between Sam (Michael Hutchence), the lead singer of the band, Dogs in Space and his lover Anna (Saskia Post) as the house spirals out of control.

Personal and social capability

11-12

Classification: Mature

Camp 14: Total Control Zone is the story of a man who was born and grew up in a Gulag-style North Korean camp. After his escape at the age of 23, he discovered the 'outside world' for the first time. The film relates his incredible story, as well as those of his fellow inmates and prison guards.

Geography

Business and economics

Earth and environment

Sustainability

9-10

11-12

Classification: Parental Guidance

It is happening all across America - rural landowners wake up one day to find a lucrative offer from an energy company wanting to lease their property. Reason? The company hopes to tap into a reservoir dubbed the 'Saudi Arabia of natural gas'. Halliburton developed a way to get the gas out of the ground by a hydraulic drilling process called 'fracking', but is fracking safe? Josh Fox set out on a journey across America's heartland to find out. Winner of the Special Jury Prize at the 2010 Sundance Movie Festival.

Personal and social capability

11-12

Classification: Mature

Internationally acclaimed filmmaker Werner Herzog turns a keen and understanding eye to the fates of two men on Texas' death row who destroyed their lives, and those of others, by a senseless triple murder. He gazes into the abyss of the human soul as he lets the two - one of whom will be executed eight days after the interview - sketch their version of the events.

Drama

Personal and social capability

11-12

Classification: Mature

Three years in the making, American: The Bill Hicks Story brings the tale of one of modern culture's most iconic heroes to the big screen. Much more than a comedian, Bill Hicks was and still is an inspiration to millions. His timeless comedy tackled the contradictions of America and modern life head on. But his unique gift was to tease apart the essence of religion, the dangers of unbridled government power and the double standards inherent in much of modern society, using nothing but his hilarious ideas and the uncompromising observational style that continues to resonate with successive generations.

Civics and citizenship

Personal and social capability

11-12

Classification: Mature

He has grown from Xhosa aristocrat, penniless migrant, lawyer, revolutionary, guerilla and prisoner to being a statesman and global icon. Now, aged 85, Nelson Mandela is one of the 20th century's towering leaders. This new documentary paints the portrait of a man unknown to the world beyond his inner circle.

Digital technologies

Music

Ethical understanding

9-10

11-12

Classification: Mature

Fans loved it, Metallica and Dr Dre vowed to destroy it, and after three years plundering the catalogues of the music behemoths, Napster was bankrupt. But the story of the toll it took can only be told now. Napster's rocketing rise to global fame and its spectacular crash in the largest corporate lawsuit in history is chronicled in this insightful and fascinating documentary. Featuring past and present interviews with Fanning and Parker, as well as musicians Noel Gallagher, Henry Rollins, Beastie Boy Mike D and more, we reflect on the media circus surrounding music piracy's bloody birth.

Music

History

9-10

11-12

Classification: General

Joseph Haydn (1723-1809) was one of the greatest musical innovators. His close friend Mozart, and his student Beethoven greatly revered him yet today in concert halls he is often overshadowed in favour of his younger contemporaries. By speaking to the greatest living exponents of Haydn's music, Phil Grabsky's film readdresses the balance and sheds light on the master and his work.

Ancient history

9-10

11-12

Classification: Parental Guidance

The Revelation Of The Pyramids takes an in depth look into one of the seven wonders of the world, the Great Pyramids of Egypt. Mystery has surrounded these epic structures for centuries with theories varying from the scientific to the bizarre. However with over 37 years of in depth research taking in sites from China, Peru, Mexico and Egypt, one scientist has as at last managed first to understand and then to reveal what lies behind this greatest of archaeological mysteries.

Media arts

Ethical understanding

Personal and social capability

Critical thinking

11-12

Classification: Mature

It takes a village to make a movie, but when that village is Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin and not Hollywood, CA, the results are at times bizarre, comical, and very American. With the help of his mother, his 82-year old uncle, and a local cast of hilarious and lovable characters, filmmaker Mark Borchardt fights his way through internal and external roadblocks to achieve his goal - to make his movie, his way. Broadcast as part of ABC's Sunday Best.

Religious studies

Geography

Intercultural understanding

Ethical understanding

Personal and social capability

Critical thinking

11-12

Classification: Mature

In this new documentary from director Larry Charles (Borat, Seinfeld), comedian and TV host Bill Maher (Real Time with Bill Maher, Politically Incorrect) takes a pilgrimage across the globe on a mind-opening journey into the ultimate taboo: questioning religion. Broadcast as part of ABC's Sunday Best.

English

History

Media arts

Indigenous Australians

Geography

9-10

11-12

Classification: Parental Guidance

In 1931, Harold Lasseter's body was found after perishing in Central Australia's deserts. His diary tantalisingly revealed he'd discovered a fabulous seven mile seam of gold, worth millions, but would 'give it all for a loaf of bread'. Despite hundreds of expeditions since, the gold has never been found. Obsessed with solving the mystery, filmmaker Luke Walker discovers Lasseter's 85-year-old son Bob, still wandering the desert, on a quixotic mission to find the gold that killed his father and destroyed his childhood. But now, 80 years on, is it still possible to piece together the fragments of history Lasseter left behind?

Modern history

Personal and social capability

Ethical understanding

11-12

Classification: Mature

This exclusive documentary honours the true story behind the heroic deeds of a group of young Australian and New Zealand soldiers in one of the most pivotal, dramatic and shocking engagements of the Vietnam War. Now 40 years on, their bravery places a new glow on the ANZAC legend and public perceptions of our role in the Vietnam War.

Geography

Intercultural Understanding

Earth and environment

7-8

9-10

Classification: General

Italy is a place of spectacular contrasts: a land stretching from the snow-capped peaks of the Alps to the sun-baked semi-desert of Sicily. It's a nation with a 2000-year history that only became united in its present form a century ago. A country torn between its ancient Catholic traditions and the breathtaking pace of change that marks the 21st century. This documentary special takes the viewer on a journey through the heart of Italy.

Personal and social capability

News and current affairs

11-12

Classification: Mature Accompanied (15+)

When operations get risky, adrenaline addiction and cynicism set in for the young soldiers at the front line in Afghanistan. Armadillo: Afghan Frontline is a journey into the minds of a small group of Danish soldiers and their experiences of modern warfare.

Personal and social capability

History

11-12

Classification: Mature

Premiering on the 10th anniversary of the events of 9/11, Rebirth is a riveting journey into living history - an act of personal witness to one of the most profoundly consequential events in American history and the healing that has come in its wake. How does the journey of grieving and recovery unfold for individuals and a nation? Rebirth chronicles the lives of five people profoundly affected by the 9/11 attacks.

Dance

English

Personal and social capability

7-8

9-10

Classification: General

Follows fifth graders from three NYC public schools as they train and compete for a dance competition trophy.

Personal and social capability

Critical thinking

Business and economics

Civics and citizenship

Ethical understanding

11-12

Classification: Mature

Reddit co-founder Aaron Swartz renounced the values of Silicon Valley start-up culture and used technology to tirelessly fight for social justice. But did that fight cost him his life?