The National Film and Sound Archive has rolled out the red carpet for its latest exhibition, Australians & Hollywood.
The archive's first major original exhibition in two decades opened to the public on Friday, bringing with it an insight into Australian films and film talent - both behind and in front of the camera.
Exclusive to Canberra, the show features rare behind-the-scenes footage and iconic on-screen moments, as well as never-before-displayed costumes, memorabilia and props from the archive's collection.
Part of what the exhibition reflects on is that Hollywood is no longer the only place to be if you want to be a filmmaker.
"There are so many Australians now achieving great things the highest levels in the international screen industry without having to move to Los Angeles," National Film and Sound Archive chief executive Patrick McIntyre said.
"And that's either because you can now come and go - we now have a greater use of remote conferencing for meetings, so it's actually easier to stay centred in Australia, and maintain your international career - but also, so much of what we think of as Hollywood content is now made here.
"It's either entirely made here or the post-production takes place here, or different parts of the process take place here."
Some of the items on display will be familiar to many, including the red Satine dress worn by Nicole Kidman in Moulin Rouge!, the wedding dress worn by Toni Collette in Muriel's Wedding, and Paul Hogan's knife from Crocodile Dundee.
But there are also items that even the biggest film buffs will be less familiar with, such as the make-up kit used by Vivien Mepham for Mad Max.
"They're things that people just never would otherwise get to see," Mr McIntyre said.
"It's about the fine grain of filmmaking. And it's about the fine grain, in particular, of Australian filmmakers.
"It's brilliant to be able to showcase some of the work of people who you might have never heard of, but have just made a huge impact on the industry and culture through their work."
- Australians & Hollywood is at the National Film and Sound Archive until July 17. Tickets from nfsa.gov.au
