Martha Ansara facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Martha Ansara
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Born | United States
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9 September 1942
Nationality | Australian |
Alma mater | Australian Film, Television and Radio School, University of Technology, Sydney |
Occupation | Documentary filmmaker, cinematographer, screenwriter |
Years active | 1969–present |
Employer | Ballad Films |
Martha Ansara (born 9 September 1942) is an Australian filmmaker. She is known for making documentaries about important social issues. Her films have won awards around the world.
Martha was one of the first women in Australia to work as a cinematographer. This means she was in charge of the camera and lighting for films. She is a member of the Australian Cinematographers Society (ACS) and was honored in their Hall of Fame in 2015. Martha also helped start Ozdox, a group for Australian documentary filmmakers. She has taught about film and written about it too. She has also been active in groups that support workers, women, and peace.
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Early Life and Film Journey
Martha Ansara was born in the United States. Her family moved to Australia in 1969. Here, she became involved with the Sydney Filmmakers Co-operative. This was a group where young filmmakers could work together.
Martha wanted to be a cinematographer. However, at that time, it was mostly a job for men. In 1975, she joined the Australian Film, Radio and Television School. She was part of the first full-time course there. She studied how to use cameras and lights for films. Many of her classmates also became famous filmmakers.
After finishing school, Martha started working as a camera assistant. She then became a cinematographer and made documentaries about social issues. She also wrote articles about film for newspapers and magazines. Martha helped teach filmmaking workshops for women. Later, she taught film production at universities. She also helped support women filmmakers through different film groups. You can learn more about her work in this video: Martha Ansara Salute.
Martha is a mother of three children. Her daughter, Alice Ansara, is an Australian actor.
Making Films for Change (1970s-1980s)
In the 1970s, Martha worked with many filmmakers and activists. She was involved in the movement against the Vietnam War. She also joined groups working for peace and against nuclear weapons.
With the help of a peace group, she made Changing the Needle (1982). This was one of the first documentaries filmed by Westerners in Vietnam. Later, she helped make The Pursuit of Happiness (1987). This was a feature film against nuclear weapons, which she directed. After this film, she received the Byron Kennedy Award for her work.
During this time, Martha was also active in the film industry union. She worked to support the rights of film workers.
In 1976, Martha worked on a film called Backroads in Brewarrina, NSW. There, she met Essie Coffey, an Aboriginal community leader and singer. This experience showed Martha the real lives of Aboriginal people in Australia.
Martha then filmed My Survival as an Aboriginal (1979). She also helped produce this important documentary with Essie Coffey. This film helped people around the world understand Aboriginal issues. It is now considered an Australian classic. Martha and Essie later made a sequel called My Life As I Live It (1993). In 2017, My Survival as an Aboriginal was chosen to be restored by Australia's National Film and Sound Archive.
In 1983, Martha filmed Lousy Little Sixpence. This documentary was about the Stolen Generations. These were Aboriginal children who were taken from their families by the government. She also worked with Aboriginal activist Robert Bropho in Western Australia. They made films like Munda Nyuringu (1983) and Always Was, Always Will Be (1989). These films were about Aboriginal rights and land issues, like the Swan Brewery Dispute. Martha also wrote a book about this dispute.
Later Work and Preserving Film History (1990s and Beyond)
After writing her book, Martha returned to a project she started earlier. She wanted to record the memories of Australian cinematographers. She earned a master's degree in history for this work. She also helped start a group to record the oral history of the film industry. This group worked closely with the National Film and Sound Archive (NFSA). They helped protect the Archive and its important collection of films and sounds.
During this time, Martha gradually stopped working as a cinematographer. She focused more on teaching film, including at the University of Technology, Sydney. She continued to direct and produce documentaries sometimes. In 1999, her films were shown at a special event at the Créteil Women's Film Festival in France.
In 2003, Martha helped form Ozdox, the Australian Documentary Forum. This group still holds screenings and discussions about documentaries.
In 2005, Martha worked on a project to create a photographic history of cinematography in Australia. This project became the book, The Shadowcatchers: A history of cinematography in Australia. It relied a lot on the oral histories she had collected.
Selected Films
- 1973 Film for Discussion (director, producer)
- 1977 Me and Daphne (cinematographer, co-producer)
- 1978 Letters from Poland (cinematographer)
- 1979 Child Welfare (cinematographer)
- 1979 My Survival as an Aboriginal (cinematographer, co-producer)
- 1980 Climbers (cinematographer)
- 1980 Age Before Beauty (cinematographer)
- 1981 Flamingo Park (cinematographer)
- 1982 Changing the Needle (co-director/producer, cinematographer)
- 1985 Taking a Look (cinematographer)
- 1985 Rocking the Foundations (cinematographer)
- 1988 The Pursuit of Happiness (director, producer)
- 1994 My Life as I Live It (cinematographer, co-director, co-producer)
- 2002 Ordinary People (producer)
- 2005 I Remember 1948 (producer)
- 2009 The Ballad of Betty and Joe (director, co-producer)
- 2020 Women of Steel (consulting producer)
Selected Books
- Always Was, Always Will Be: The sacred grounds of the Waugal, Kings Park, Perth W.A.: the Old Swan Brewery dispute (1989), Balmain, NSW, Fringe Dwellers of the Swan Valley, ISBN: 0731675711
- The Shadowcatchers: A history of cinematography in Australia (2012), North Sydney, Austcine, ISBN: 9780987225207