The Thrive of the Ocker in the 1970’s
The gems of the 1970’s Australian film industry have been since forgotten, or all but forgotten. The films, known as the ocker comedies represent the important renaissance of the industry that prove to be a lesson for todays less than thriving industry. It is valuable to audiences, filmmakers and critics alike to recognize the significance of films such as The Adventures of Barry Mckenzie (Bruce Beresford, 1972) as well as the gothic horrors that utilized similar ‘Aussie’ character types such as The Long Weekend (Colin Eggleston, 1979).
Emerging in the beginning of the revival and contributing to it, ocker cinema was viewed as both a celebration and critique of the Australian masculine national character. For example, The Adventures of Barry Mckenzie and its sequel Barry Mckenzie Holds His Own (1974) satirized “a host of anxieties confronting Australians in a time of rapid social change, over sex roles, race, colonialism, national identity, suburbia, philistinism and politics.” (Moore, 2006) The ockers were a mixture of realization and identification of culture tensions previously brushed of or ignored in Australian films and even society in general. Australian writer, director and producer known for his contribution to the revival, Tim Burstall, argued “one of the best ways of getting an Australian audience to accept itself, one of the things we’re fondest of, is the send-up.” And, as screenwriter and critic Bob Ellis argued: “A country can’t mature until it has learned to celebrate its gaucheries.” The ocker was the precise platform need for this development to occur.
The 1973 Tariff Board Report identified issues of sustaining levels of Australian film and TV production related to the industry's organisation as an import market. The 'ocker comedies' represented an attempt to make viable films for an Australian theatrical market, dominated by Hollywood products. The viability of the ocker was a concern of the government bodies and producers relied upon to fund the films. They concerned themselves primarily with what films had potential as commercial successes and as the need for a recognizable Australian genre was identified, the ocker satiating this. “If market acceptance of Australian films had to be predicated upon a strategy of Australianness, their frankly commercial requirement was reliance on the sex comedy.” (O’Regan)
The introduction of the popular ocker films soon led the way for ‘sex comedies’, such as Burstall's Alvin Purple (1973), which emerged in the 1970s as an alternative to the ocker comedies. These films were less confrontational in their criticisms of Australian attitudes but still applied the structure and characters of the ocker to a recognisable extent.
A major factor to recognize of the ocker and sex comedies is the effect they had on the Australian industries international image. During the thrive of such films British and American audiences in particular were well receiving them and appreciated the fresh images they brought to the screen. Overseas audiences admired the approach Australian filmmakers were utilizing for filmmaking of the time, seeing the films as having quality in them that was lacking in American films. “They saw that there was a way we shot our bush, there was a way we shot our cars, that was very distinctly Australian.” (Hartley, 2008)
On top of this, there was the repetitive and unavoidable inclusion of sex, which in retrospect led Actress’s featured in the Australian Documentary Not Quite Hollywood (Mark Hartley, 2008) to look back on the 1970’s film industry as perhaps a time of liberation for women. When asked on their work during the time of the sex and ocker comedies, the Actress’ affirmed that they did not feel any sense of exploitation and instead believed they were making statements on “womanhood and feminism”. (Hartley, 2008)
Between the elements of liberation, vitality, social confrontations and representations of classic Australian identity, the films of the 1970’s in particular proved to be crucial to the Australian industry. Even taking into consideration the demise of these films that began in the 1980’s, the thrive and revival that resulted from the introduction of ocker and sex comedies has played a major role in the development of the Australian industry and the success of Australian films both nationally and internationally.
Emerging in the beginning of the revival and contributing to it, ocker cinema was viewed as both a celebration and critique of the Australian masculine national character. For example, The Adventures of Barry Mckenzie and its sequel Barry Mckenzie Holds His Own (1974) satirized “a host of anxieties confronting Australians in a time of rapid social change, over sex roles, race, colonialism, national identity, suburbia, philistinism and politics.” (Moore, 2006) The ockers were a mixture of realization and identification of culture tensions previously brushed of or ignored in Australian films and even society in general. Australian writer, director and producer known for his contribution to the revival, Tim Burstall, argued “one of the best ways of getting an Australian audience to accept itself, one of the things we’re fondest of, is the send-up.” And, as screenwriter and critic Bob Ellis argued: “A country can’t mature until it has learned to celebrate its gaucheries.” The ocker was the precise platform need for this development to occur.
The 1973 Tariff Board Report identified issues of sustaining levels of Australian film and TV production related to the industry's organisation as an import market. The 'ocker comedies' represented an attempt to make viable films for an Australian theatrical market, dominated by Hollywood products. The viability of the ocker was a concern of the government bodies and producers relied upon to fund the films. They concerned themselves primarily with what films had potential as commercial successes and as the need for a recognizable Australian genre was identified, the ocker satiating this. “If market acceptance of Australian films had to be predicated upon a strategy of Australianness, their frankly commercial requirement was reliance on the sex comedy.” (O’Regan)
The introduction of the popular ocker films soon led the way for ‘sex comedies’, such as Burstall's Alvin Purple (1973), which emerged in the 1970s as an alternative to the ocker comedies. These films were less confrontational in their criticisms of Australian attitudes but still applied the structure and characters of the ocker to a recognisable extent.
A major factor to recognize of the ocker and sex comedies is the effect they had on the Australian industries international image. During the thrive of such films British and American audiences in particular were well receiving them and appreciated the fresh images they brought to the screen. Overseas audiences admired the approach Australian filmmakers were utilizing for filmmaking of the time, seeing the films as having quality in them that was lacking in American films. “They saw that there was a way we shot our bush, there was a way we shot our cars, that was very distinctly Australian.” (Hartley, 2008)
On top of this, there was the repetitive and unavoidable inclusion of sex, which in retrospect led Actress’s featured in the Australian Documentary Not Quite Hollywood (Mark Hartley, 2008) to look back on the 1970’s film industry as perhaps a time of liberation for women. When asked on their work during the time of the sex and ocker comedies, the Actress’ affirmed that they did not feel any sense of exploitation and instead believed they were making statements on “womanhood and feminism”. (Hartley, 2008)
Between the elements of liberation, vitality, social confrontations and representations of classic Australian identity, the films of the 1970’s in particular proved to be crucial to the Australian industry. Even taking into consideration the demise of these films that began in the 1980’s, the thrive and revival that resulted from the introduction of ocker and sex comedies has played a major role in the development of the Australian industry and the success of Australian films both nationally and internationally.