This is the first of three film items and is the final film production 'Scenes of Aboriginal Life' documenting the Board for Anthropological Research (BAR) expedition to Wilgena and Ooldea, South Australia during 7-21 May 1926. The expedition party included numerous BAR members.
The party visited localities including Quorn, Port Augusta, Wilgena, Tarcoola and Ooldea. See: TD Campbell 'Notes 1926 Ooldea Trip' (AA 52/1).
The cinematographer was TD Campbell (AA 52). The original nitrate film is managed as 'NFSA Title No. 34189.' In 1979 the South Australian Museum Archive (SAMA) deposited its nitrate film collection with the National Film and Sound Archive (NFSA) for cold storage. The history of the SAMA nitrate film deposit at NFSA in 1979 has been documented in the Series Report (AA 346/9).
In this summary all intertitles are italicised and within quotation marks. All spelling within intertitles have been left as originally spelt. Language and terms which reflect the author's attitude or that of the period in which the item was produced may be considered inappropriate today.
The method adopted by BAR expeditions to undertake research and record the results involved assigning a unique number to each individual (here called 'individual subject number'). This number was given the expedition symbol as a prefix, and remained consistent throughout the research. This expedition was assigned the symbol 'B.' All individuals recorded during the expedition were assigned an individual subject number, for example [B5]. Where possible the 'individual subject number' of those who appear in film have been noted.
The summary is in minutes and seconds. Following the summary of this film is a list of references. Formats held: SP Betacam, Digital Betacam, DVDs.
Summary (Time Coded): Taken from Access DVD 3 (AA 346/9/1/12)
00:00 'Ooldea, SA, 1926. Copy of 'NFSA Title No. 34189.'
00:00 'Cultural Sensitivity Warning.'
00:00 'The Museum Board of South Australia © 1926.'
01:43 'Scenes of Aboriginal Life - Recorded at Ooldea, SA, May 1926.'
01:46 'Photography by Dr TD Campbell. Film processed by FA Jeffrey SMPE, Adelaide.'
01:56 East-West steam train arriving at Ooldea.
01:58 People stand beside a stationary train at Ooldea siding.
02:14 'Ooldea Soak.'
02:17 Panorama of the Ooldea soak, buildings and shelters can be seen.
02:55 'General Views of Camp Life.'
03:00 Close up of shelters among mallee, an Australian Aboriginal child is running about, a woman carries branches to a shelter.
03:31 An Australian Aboriginal man approaches the camera with a spear and spear thrower in hand. Many people are sitting on the ground and standing watching the camera.
03:52 Close up view of a camp, many people sit beside fires and outside shelters.
04:35 An old Australian Aboriginal man possibly 'Old Charlie' See: TD Campbell (AA 52/1).
04:45 Two old Australian Aboriginal men beside a fire.
04:55 'A Native Wurley of Modern Type. Compare this with one built in true Native fashion.'
05:05 A shelter covered with branches and fabric.
05:25 Charlie [B5] of the Jangkundjara people selects branches and begins to construct the shelter. See: Campbell, TD & Lewis, AJ 'The Aborigines of South Australia: Anthropometric, Descriptive and other observations recorded at Ooldea' Trans RSSA 50 [1926] p. 184, Plate XXX. See also Campbell, TD 'Notes on 1926 Ooldea Trip [with] A Lewis.' (AA 52/1)
06:14 Placing leafy foliage against the frame of the shelter; until the entire structure is covered.
07:15 Charlie [B5] of the Jangkundjara people prepares the internal ground of the shelter by moving all sand to the edges of the structure.
07:29 A small fire has been lit at the entrance of the shelter, Charlie enters the shelter, sits down and tends the fire.
07:55 Two large mallee trees.
08:14 'Obtaining water from a mallee tree root.'
08:22 Charlie [B5] of the Jangkundjara people digs up a mallee tree root from the sand with a boomerang.
09:03 Once the whole root has been dug up he begins to break the root into segments, which he then rests vertically in a dish.
09:18 Charlie [B5] of the Jangkundjara people stands in front of the camera blowing into a section of mallee root to extract the water.
09:38 Charlie [B5] of the Jangkundjara people shows to the camera how much water was collected in the dish from the draining mallee roots. He proceeds to lift the water with his hand from the dish, then pours the water on the ground.
10:15 'The various stages of making fire.'
10:22 Charlie [B5] of the Jangkundjara people gathers suitable pieces of wood for fire making.
10:50 In front of the newly make shelter, Charlie prepares to make a fire by wedging dried grass into a crack in the wood, he then proceeds to make fire by the 'saw' method.
12:14 Close up of the dried grass and wood with a wedged groove in it, used to make a fire.
12:24 The embers are encouraged into flames by blowing.
13:00 The fire is lit and tended.
13:14 'Making string from wombat fur.'
13:19 Charlie [B5] of the Jangkundjara people demonstrates how to roll a spindle along the thigh to make wombat fur. Three children watch on.
13:49 Close up shot of the string on the spindle.
13:56 Gouging out a pirra.
13:59 An old man gouges out a pirra with a metal instrument.
14:07 'First stage of making a wommerah.'
14:14 A tree with a large portion of it's bark removed.
14:26 Dr Lewis recording vocabulary.
14:30 Dr AJ Lewis recording vocabulary with Tommy [B13] of the Jangkundjara people and another older Australian Aboriginal man. See: TD Campbell 'Notes 1926 Ooldea Trip' (AA 52/1).
14:59 'Amusing the children.'
15:03 Children listening to a gramophone record, Old Judy [B4] of the Jangkundjara people near by. See: See: TD Campbell 'Notes 1926 Ooldea Trip' (AA 52/1).
15:28 Women and children gather to listen to a gramophone record.
15:51 'Views of the natives.'
15:54 An older Australian Aboriginal woman stands in profile, at Ooldea siding.
16:00 Four young Australian Aboriginal boys, fourth from the left is 'Laurence.' See: Campbell, TD & Lewis, AJ 1926 Trans RSSA 50 p.191., plate XXXII.
16:04 Six young Australian Aboriginal women standing in group.
16:28 A young Australian Aboriginal boy 'Laurence.' See: Campbell, TD & Lewis, AJ 1926 Trans RSSA 50 p.191., plate XXXII.
16:37 A young Australian Aboriginal boy, two women stand in the background.
16:44 Bill [B24] of the Jangkundjara people stands facing the camera then turns 90 degrees to stand in profile.
16:49 An Australian Aboriginal woman stands facing the camera then turns 90 degrees to stand in profile.
17:04 An Australian Aboriginal man stands facing the camera then turns 90 degrees to stand in profile.
17:13 An Australian Aboriginal woman stands facing the camera then turns 90 degrees to stand in profile.
17:18 End of film [no intertitle].
Tribal / language groups recorded during this expedition as noted in the Data Cards (AA 346/4/7).
Tindale Tribes: Jangkundjara; Ngalea.
AIATSIS Tribal / Language Groups: Yankuntjatjara; Ngalea.