TITLE: Newsfront
YEAR OF MOVIE RELEASE: 1978
FILM STUDIO / PRODUCTION COMPANY: Palm Beach Pictures
AUSTRALIAN DISTRIBUTOR: Roadshow
TAGLINE: “They covered the action and shared the excitement”
DIRECTOR: Phillip Noyce, credited on the poster as Phil Noyce
CAST: Bill Hunter, Wendy Hughes, Gerard Kennedy, John Ewart, Chris Haywood, Angela Punch, Don Crosby and Bryan Brown
PRODUCER: David Elfick
ASSOCIATE PRODUCER: Richard Brennan
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Vincent Monton
SCREENPLAY: Bob Ellis and Phillip Noyce
MUSIC: William Motzing
POSTER PRINTER: M.A.P.S. Litho Pty. Ltd.
FORMAT: Australian One Sheet
GENRE: Historical Drama
COLLECTOR’S NOTE
Newsfront recreates the working lives of Australian newsreel cameramen during the years before television transformed how audiences received the news. It combines dramatic scenes with genuine archival newsreels, moving between black-and-white and colour to connect its fictional characters with recorded Australian history.
The film won Best Film at the 1978 Australian Film Institute Awards. Its historical subjects include the Redex reliability trials and the Maitland floods, giving it particular interest for collectors of Australian cinema, journalism and New South Wales history. This locally printed One Sheet places a working cameraman at the centre of its advertising.
POSTER DESIGN FEATURES
Bright green and deep brown-purple dominate a textured central image of a newsreel cameraman carrying filming equipment. Radiating streaks extend around the figure, creating a sense of movement and urgency that echoes the headline’s promise of action and excitement.
Five rectangular photographic panels run beneath the main image, introducing characters through individual portraits and a wedding photograph. Their quieter presentation contrasts with the energetic cameraman image above.
The large NEWSFRONT title curves across the lower section in green lettering with white edging and a dark shadow. Matching double-line borders unite the title, main image and upper tagline panel. A broad white outer margin carries the compact production credits, Australian NRC marking and M.A.P.S. printer’s name.