Australian Cinémathèque

Australian Cinémathèque
The Australian Cinémathèque, as seen from the entrance of the Gallery of Modern Art, in 2026
Interactive map of Australian Cinémathèque
LocationGallery of Modern Art (GOMA), South Bank, Brisbane, Australia
Coordinates27°28′21″S 153°01′06″E / 27.4726°S 153.01828°E / -27.4726; 153.01828
OwnerQAGOMA
CapacityCinema A: 220 seats; Cinema B: 110 seats
TypePublic cinema within an art museum
Screen2
Construction
Opened2006
Website
Australian Cinémathèque official website

The Australian Cinémathèque is a public film institution at the Gallery of Modern Art (GOMA) in Brisbane, Queensland.[1] It is Australia's only purpose-built cinema within an art museum, providing an ongoing program of international, experimental and cult film, including rare 35mm prints and recent restorations.[2]

Overview

The Australian Cinémathèque occupies two purpose-built cinemas on the ground floor of GOMA: Cinema A, seating 220, and Cinema B, seating 110.[3] Both are equipped to project the full range of film formats including 35mm, 16mm, celluloid as well as digital, a capability shared by few other Australian venues. It is equipped with a restored 1929 Wurlitzer organ and hosts live musical accompaniment for selected screenings, performed by commissioned musicians on the organ or other instruments.[4]

Screenings are held on Wednesday and Friday evenings and Saturday and Sunday matinees. Many sessions are free to the public.[5]

History

Origins

The foundations of the Cinémathèque emerged in the 1990s, when the Queensland Art Gallery (QAG) began collecting video art and presenting moving-image exhibitions as part of the Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art (APT). Recognising the need for dedicated screening spaces, the Queensland Government incorporated a cinematheque into plans for the new Gallery of Modern Art, established at Kurilpa Point.[6]

Establishment at GOMA

The Queensland Government allocated A$260 million from the 1999 State Budget toward the new gallery, with the Cinémathèque specified as a core feature of the building alongside production facilities and a media gallery.[7][8] Sydney firm Architectus, in association with Davenport Campbell and Partners, was selected as the building's architect in July 2002, following an international design competition.[9][10][11]

The Cinémathèque was formally established in 2005, when an inaugural program of experimental film and moving-image art was presented ahead of GOMA's completion. Its two purpose-built cinemas opened to the public with GOMA's official opening in December 2006.[12][13] The venue operates as a distinct curatorial department within QAGOMA, alongside departments for Australian Art, Asian and Pacific Art, International Art and Conservation and Registration, reporting through the Gallery's Collection and Exhibitions division.[14]

Wurlitzer Organ

The Cinémathèque's Cinema A houses a 1929 Wurlitzer Style 260 Opus 2040 Pipe Organ, originally installed in Brisbane's Regent Theatre in 1929. The organ remained at the Regent until 1964, when it was removed into private ownership; it was subsequently negotiated back to Queensland in 2004, restored, and installed at GOMA alongside the building's opening in December 2006.[15][16]

Programming

The Cinémathèque's programming has combined exhibition-tied film seasons with standalone retrospectives since opening.[17] Early examples include a 2009 program of Andy Warhol's moving-image work, presented alongside a major exhibition of his art, and retrospectives of Portuguese filmmakers Pedro Costa and Pere Portabella, the latter curated by Mark Nash of London's Royal College of Art.[18][19][20] Breathless: French New Wave turns 50 surveyed the Nouvelle Vague, and Be Afraid: Fear in North American Cinema was the venue's first genre-themed program.[21][22] A season of David Lynch's films was presented alongside a major exhibition of his visual art at GOMA in 2015.[23][24] Melting into Air, comprising 57 films, was presented alongside GOMA's Air exhibition in 2022-23.[25][26][27][28] In 2024, the Cinémathèque presented retrospectives of Robert Bresson and of Powell and Pressburger; the Bresson season included a rare 35 mm print of The Devil, Probably, borrowed from the Cinémathèque Française archive with permission from Bresson's widow, Mylène Bresson.[29][30][31] A near-complete career survey of Tsai Ming-liang was presented later that year as part of Asia Pacific Triennial Cinema, and The Cracked Actor: Bowie on Screen surveyed David Bowie's screen performances, including Cracked Actor (1975), The Man Who Fell to Earth (1976) and Labyrinth (1986).[32][33][34][35]

In-person filmmaker appearances have also recurred throughout the Cinémathèque's history. In 2009, a retrospective of Peter Greenaway's films was accompanied by a live VJ performance from Greenaway himself in GOMA's Long Gallery, as part of that year's Brisbane Festival.[36][37][38] Academy Award–winning Australian cinematographer John Seale appeared in person for an In Conversation event alongside a retrospective of his work in 2023.[39][40] Tsai Ming-liang appeared in person for an Australian-exclusive In Conversation event as part of the 2024 retrospective and in 2025 composer Eiko Ishibashi presented GIFT, a live reworking of footage from Academy Award–winning filmmaker Ryusuke Hamaguchi's Evil Does Not Exist.[41][42][43][44][45]

Asia Pacific Triennial Cinema is the Cinémathèque's recurring film program presented alongside each edition of the Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art.[46][47]For the 11th Triennial, the program comprised more than 110 feature, documentary and short films between November 2024 and May 2025, including filmmaker surveys spotlighting Kamila Andini, among others.[48][49][50][51]

Festivals and partnerships

The Cinémathèque has served as the principal Brisbane venue for the Brisbane International Film Festival (BIFF), including its 2018–2020 editions. It is an Associate Member of the International Federation of Film Archives (FIAF).[52] The Cinémathèque also maintains ongoing partnerships with a range of festival and cultural organisations, including the National Film and Sound Archive,[53] Alliance Française de Brisbane,[6] the Brisbane Asia Pacific Film Festival,[54] the Japanese Film Festival Australia,[55] the Queensland Film Festival,[56] the New Caledonia Film Festival,[57] the Czech and Slovak Film Festival of Australia,[58] and the World Science Festival Brisbane.[59]

References

  1. ↑ Klerk, Nico de (2019-03-25). Showing and Telling: Film heritage institutes and their performance of public accountability. Vernon Press. ISBN 978-1-62273-652-2.
  2. ↑ "Opening the black box: The Australian Cinémathèque and BIFF – QAGOMA Stories". Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art. 2018-09-10. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  3. ↑ "Opening the black box: The Australian Cinémathèque and BIFF – QAGOMA Stories". Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art. 2018-09-10. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  4. ↑ "Live Music & Film – Cinema". Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art. Retrieved 2026-07-02.
  5. ↑ "Australian Cinémathèque". Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  6. 1 2 Queensland Art Gallery Board of Trustees (2005). "QUEENSLAND ART GALLERY ANNUAL REPORT 2004–05" (PDF). Queensland Art Gallery Board of Trustees. p. 10. Retrieved 30 July 2024.
  7. ↑ Est Cte B 2000 (parliament.qld.gov.au)
  8. ↑ "NEW GALLERY PUTS BRISBANE ON INTERNATIONAL ARTS AND CULTURE MAP". Ministerial Media Statements. Retrieved 2024-07-30.
  9. ↑ "About". Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art. Retrieved 2024-07-30.
  10. ↑ Gargett, Conrad (2017). "QUEENSLAND CULTURAL CENTRE: Conservation Management Plan" (PDF). Arts Queensland (A report for Arts Queensland). p. 102. Retrieved 30 July 2024.
  11. ↑ P Beattie & M Foley, ‘Queensland to get World Class Gallery of Modern Art’, Media release, 16 May 2000.
  12. ↑ Stead, Naomi. “The Brisbane Effect: GOMA and the Architectural Competition for a New Institutional Building.” In Proceedings of the Society of Architectural Historians, Australia and New Zealand: 32, Architecture, Institutions and Change, edited by Paul Hogben and Judith O’Callaghan, 627-639. Sydney: SAHANZ, 2015
  13. ↑ Queensland Art Gallery Annual Report 2008-09
  14. ↑ Queensland Art Gallery Board of Trustees (25 August 2025). Annual Report 2024–25 (PDF) (Report). Queensland Parliament (Tabled Paper). Retrieved 1 July 2026.
  15. ↑ Murphy, Rachel (2021-08-06). "MoB Sunday Stories: The Regent Theatre". Museum of Brisbane | MoB. Retrieved 2024-07-31.
  16. ↑ "Wurlitzer brings silent films back to life – QAGOMA Stories". 29 November 2022.
  17. ↑ "Beyond the Frame: A Q&A with Australian Cinémathèque Associate Curator Robert Hughes". Rough Cut. 2025-02-03. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  18. ↑ Queensland Art Gallery Board of Trustees (2009). Annual Report 2008–09 (PDF) (Report). Queensland Parliament (Tabled Paper). Retrieved 1 July 2026.
  19. ↑ "The view from elsewhere". SCAF - Sherman Contemporary Art Foundation. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  20. ↑ "Andy Warhol". Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  21. ↑ "Breathless: French New Wave Turns 50 – Cinema". Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  22. ↑ "Be Afraid: Fear in North American Cinema – Cinema". Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  23. ↑ "australia to get its first david lynch exhibition". Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  24. ↑ Almanac, Art (2015-02-25). "David Lynch: Between Two Worlds". Art Almanac. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  25. ↑ "Air". Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  26. ↑ Burke, Kelly (2022-11-30). "The politics of air: Goma's blockbuster exhibition is an 'incredibly powerful' ode to an element". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  27. ↑ "These artists draw attention to the 'invisible resource' of air — and how it shapes our lives". ABC News. 2022-11-28. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  28. ↑ Ward, Sarah (2022-11-04). "Floating Mirrored Spheres and Eerie Volcanic Mounds Will Fill GOMA for Its Big Summer 'Air' Exhibition". Concrete Playground. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  29. ↑ "Beyond the Frame: A Q&A with Australian Cinémathèque Associate Curator Robert Hughes". Rough Cut. 2025-02-03. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  30. ↑ "Necessary Images – Cinema". Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  31. ↑ admin (2024-07-14). "Necessary Images: The Films of Robert Bresson". BNE ART - Brisbane Art Guide. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  32. ↑ "The Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art brings us the most exciting and original art of our region". Yahoo News. 2024-12-02. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  33. ↑ QAGOMA (2025-04-01). Film In Conversation/ Tsai Ming-liang. Retrieved 2026-07-01 – via YouTube.
  34. ↑ "The Cracked Actor: Bowie On Screen Goma | Must Do Brisbane". www.mustdobrisbane.com. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  35. ↑ Dent, Nick (2024-08-14). "'Forgotten' Bowie movie resurfaces in GOMA film season". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  36. ↑ "Prepare to be provoked by daring Peter Greenaway". The Sydney Morning Herald. 2009-07-08. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  37. ↑ "Peter Greenaway - Moving Image Source". movingimagesource.us. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  38. ↑ National, Brought to you byABC Radio (2009-08-19). "Peter Greenaway". ABC listen. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  39. ↑ "Eye of the Storm – Cinema". Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  40. ↑ QAGOMA (2023-10-24). Film In Conversation/ Cinematographer John Seale. Retrieved 2026-07-01 – via YouTube.
  41. ↑ Festival, Taiwan Film (2024-11-21). "QAGOMA Asia Pacific Triennial Cinema – Dir Tsai Ming-liang". Taiwan Film Festival. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  42. ↑ Team, Internet. "A complete retrospective of the films of director Tsai Ming-liang will be showcasing at the Gallery of Modern Art cinema". Taipei Economic and Cultural Office, Brisbane, Australia 駐布里斯本台北經濟文化辦事處. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  43. ↑ "See Eiko Ishibashi and Ryusuke Hamaguchi's live cinematic experience". www.indailyqld.com.au. 2024-07-19. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  44. ↑ "Asia Pacific Triennial Cinema – Cinema". Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  45. ↑ "Gift: A Live Score By Eiko Ishibashi X Film By Ryusuke Hamaguchi Goma | Must Do Brisbane". www.mustdobrisbane.com. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  46. ↑ "APT10 Cinema – Cinema". Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  47. ↑ "APT11 has a Free Film Program - InReview | InDaily, Inside Queensland". www.indailyqld.com.au. 2024-12-03. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  48. ↑ "Asia Pacific Triennial Cinema – Cinema". Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  49. ↑ Quanchi, Max (2026-01-02). "APT11; Eleventh Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art, Gallery of Modern Art/Queensland Art Gallery, Southbank Precinct, Brisbane, 30 November 2024–5 May 2025, Free". The Journal of Pacific History. 61 (1): 189–193. doi:10.1080/00223344.2025.2523634. ISSN 0022-3344.
  50. ↑ "From science fiction to the wild west of Kazakhstan – experience rare and acclaimed films at QAGOMA's Asia Pacific Triennial Cinema". www.indailyqld.com.au. 2025-01-21. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  51. ↑ Review, Arts (2024-12-02). "The 11th Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art opens at QAGOMA". Australian Arts Review. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  52. ↑ "International Federation of Film Archives". www.fiafnet.org. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  53. ↑ "Media Release: Gala Premiere Screenings of NFSA's new commission: Winhanganha". NFSA. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  54. ↑ Gong, Shasha (2014-11-25). "Introducing BAPFF - the inaugural Brisbane Asia Pacific Film Festival". The AU Review. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  55. ↑ "Japanese Paper Films - The Japanese Film Festival Australia". Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  56. ↑ "Queensland Film Festival: A female-first utopia for cinema lovers". ABC News. 2018-07-19. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  57. ↑ "New Caledonia Film Festival". New Caledonia Tourism: The official website for tourism in New Caledonia. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  58. ↑ "Queensland Film Festival – Cinema". Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
  59. ↑ "GOMA Film Series: Fantastic Voyage". World Science Festival Brisbane. Retrieved 2026-07-01.
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