Frank Hurley
Director · 1885 – 1962 · Glebe, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
James Francis "Frank" Hurley (1885–1962) was an Australian photographer and filmmaker. He served as the official cinematographer on multiple polar expeditions, capturing raw footage that resulted in early documentary films such as Home of the Blizzard (1913) and South (1919). Hurley also worked as an official military photographer and cinematographer during both WWI and WWII, documenting campaigns across Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa. His broader filmography includes directing ethnographic documentaries and serving as a principal cinematographer on Australian narrative feature films.
Movies7
Movie7.1DocumentaryA century after Shackleton's Endurance sank beneath the ice, explorers uncover the legendary shipwreck and an amazing tale of survival.
Endurance
2024 · 31 votes
MovieDocumentaryDirected and filmed by Frank Hurley for Cinesound, this short industrial documentary captures the realities of 1930s mining in Broken Hill. This film opens with dramatised historical re-enactments of Captain Charles Sturt’s 1844 expedition and Charles Rasp’s 1883 silver lode discovery. Utilising extensive cable networks and specialised camera filters to overcome extreme dark and heat, Hurley takes his camera 2,000 ft below the surface. The footage captures miners drilling rock, pit ponies hauling ore cars, and an explosive rock blasting arrangement. Above ground, it documents men operating heavy machinery to extract zinc, lead, and silver deposits, and the refining of the raw minerals.
Silver City
1936
- MovieDocumentary
Filmed over six years, this documentary records the daily life, cultural traditions, wartime impacts, landscape and reconstruction across the Middle East and North Africa during WWII. Some locations include: Cairo markets, the Nile, the pyramids, Khartoum in the Sudan, and the liberation of Cyrenaica.
Mid-East
1945
MovieDocumentaryAdventurePresented by explorer Frank Hurley in his final film appearance, this documentary chronicles Australia's role in the scientific exploration of Antarctica and the hardships the pioneers endured. Using archival footage, this film spans from 1911, following Sir Douglas Mawson's first expedition, to Phillip Law establishing the continent's first permanent research station in 1954.
Movie10.0DocumentarySiege of the South is a 1931 Australian documentary film by Frank Hurley. It featured Douglas Mawson. It was based on footage taken on the BANZ Expedition to Antarctica in 1930–31. The film debuted in Brisbane in 1931.
Siege of the South
1930 · 1 votes
Movie9.0DocumentaryFrank Hurley (1885-1962) was firmly established by 1925 as Australia's most famous photographer. After World War 1, having filled the position as the first official photographer of the Australian war effort, Hurley became interested in Papua New Guinea. In December 1920, he left Australia to record the work of Anglican missions in Papua and to make "travelogue entertainment". The result was this documentary, "Pearls and Savages" which was released in Sydney, in December 1921. Following its initial success, the film was modularly expanded for subsequent theatrical re-releases including the 1923 edition, 'With the Headhunters of Unknown Papua' incorporating new expedition footage that features Hurley and ichthyologist Allan McCulloch on screen.
Pearls and Savages
1921 · 2 votes
- MovieDocumentary
A short documentary showing the construction and opening of the Sydney Harbour Bridge. Narrated by Frank Hurley, it also features aerial views and scenic locations around Sydney. This film is believed to be lost.