April 2023
Can money buy happiness? New documentary examines the FIRE phenomenon
Disillusioned Millennials and Gen Z workers are trying out a new approach: save hard, invest the difference and retire early. “Seeking Fire” asks them why.
June 2021
How COVID-19 kickstarted Australia’s screen industry
Relative pandemic freedom has given local TV and film producers a lucky break they hope to convert into permanent globalisation.
January 2021
Bring back the public information film
The pandemic begs for a return to those old effective government messages, the documentary.
Why a 55-year-long documentary series deserves an ending
For more than half a century, Michael Apted and his documentary crew followed the lives of a group of ordinary British schoolchildren. Then he died.
December 2020
Pogues frontman the very definition of excess
The former lead singer of the Irish punk band the Pogues is a survivor, albeit heavily scarred, and a new film illustrates how fortunate we are to still have him.
New Bee Gees doco charts the band's success and celebrity
A new documentary about the tuneful trio steers clear of personal relations to put the emphasis on their music and the fickle nature of celebrity.
October 2020
Locked-down listeners double their podcast hours
New data from Spotify also shows Australia is in the top 10 countries that listen to podcasts out of the 92 markets the audio streaming company operates in.
September 2020
The accidental historian of fashion's inflection point
Paris-based documentary filmmaker Loïc Prigent enjoys the kind of access to designers most can only dream of – and he's never been in higher demand.
Hillary Clinton, a politician beaten by politics
This 4-part series is a rollicking overview of just how messy politics can get as seen through one of the most prominent female politicians of our time.
July 2020
The man who changed fashion forever
Pierre Cardin was almost Christian Dior's successor. Instead, he founded his own house and broke the mould, a new documentary reveals.
'People should thank me for not having children'
Filmmaker Maxine Trump is tackling the taboo around women who choose not to have children.
January 2020
Why 'The Rise of Skywalker' is a letdown, and 'Cats' is trash
The two latest blockbusters are self-consciously designed to appeal to a wide audience and rake in cash at the box office, but the art of storytelling is forgotten.
December 2019
Jojo Rabbit: Imaginary Adolf offers a jolt to the system
In a world that welcomes 'alternative truths', director Taika Waititi suggests humour may ultimately be an effective weapon.
The defining films of the past decade
The most rewarding movies of the past 10 years weren't the popcorn blockbusters, but those that twisted genres, defied conventions and celebrated diversity.
Film review: 'Machine' charts the upcoming rise of the robots
This fast-moving documentary examines the utopian and dystopian possibilities of a technological revolution that is already under way.
How to win friends and influence weirdos
Louis Theroux says he has found common ground with almost every person he's interviewed for his documentaries about the strangest pockets of society.
'Where’s My Roy Cohn?' helps explain US politics' crazed amorality
Matt Tyrnauer's documentary examines the life of the Trump mentor whose MO was to deny everything, never back down and attack accusers with maximum force.
November 2019
The story of Mojo is more mirror than magic
The feelgood ads made by Mojo in the 1970s and 1980s sold a lot of product but claims they were on the cultural cutting edge are overstated.
October 2019
Suzi Quatro: wild one or mild one?
The iconic bass player, now almost 70, has a new album, is touring Australia, and is the subject of an imminent documentary. It's all in a day's work.