Book launch and speech by the author

Before Hollywood came Valby: The Pre-WWI Craze for Danish Silent Films in Australia

In the era of silent cinema, Danish films were a coveted import across the world, not least in Australia. Danish film stars like Valdemar Psilander, Asta Nielsen, Clara Wieth, and Olaf Fønss were frequent visitors to Melbourne cinemas, and the Nordisk brand was celebrated as a mark of quality “like the hallmark on silver.” Drawing from her recent book Screening Europe in Australasia, Julie Allen reveals the forgotten history of the craze for Danish silent films in pre-World War I Australia and how it connected Australia’s settler-colonial European populations to the glamour of the Old World.

Julie K Allen, Professor of Comparative Arts and Letters at Bringam Young University, USA, will be in Australia to promote her new book, Screening Europe in Australasia: Transnational Silent Film Before and After the Rise of Hollywood. 

The evening will include a two course dinner, with a presentation by the author, and books available to purchase.

Members $45, general public $55