Edward ‘Ned’ Kelly was born in Victoria in December 1854. In 1906, 26 years after his death, The Story of the Kelly Gang graced Australian screens to tell the story of the infamous outlaw bushranger.
A silent film, written and directed by Charles Tait, The Story of the Kelly Gang was Australia’s first-ever feature-length narrative film, with a total running time of 70-80 minutes, which was highly unusual at the time. Films with that type of running time would not become the norm until roughly 1910-1915.
The film depicts the Kelly Gang’s final venture together, set out in six scenes. Audiences are given insight into the moments when police discussed the arrest of Dan Kelly; the murders at Stringybark Creek; the hold-up at Younghusbands’ station and the bank hold-up; the murder of Aaron Sheritt; the events at Glenrowan Inn, where the police surround the hotel; and finally, the final fight and killing of Ned Kelly. In between scenes, the film includes notecards, with italicised information about what is happening in between scenes and what will be shown in the following scene, to enable audiences to keep up with the story, as there is no sound.
Since its initial release in 1906, the film has unfortunately lost much of its content. But the Australian National Sound and Video Archive has preserved what footage is left to recreate the original piece the best that they can. Where footage is missing, artwork depicting the scenes described is put in their place, to allow the story to flow coherently.
After watching the recreated work on ABC iView, there are numerous aspects of the film that differ to the way movies are made today. Aside from silent films no longer being the standard these days, what stood out was the minimal locations used in the film. Today, movies have multiple locations in which they shoot, and if they don’t have a physical location, they create it using green screens. In 1906, Charles Tait used what was available to him. There were no green screens or animations or cool editing tricks to bring to life the forest, the station or the Glenrowan Inn. Instead, Tait utilised areas in various suburbs such as St Kilda, Ivanhoe, Heidelberg, Eltham, Greensborough and Rosanna. Costumes were supplied by the Bohemian Theatre Company, and the famous armour Ned Kelly wears was loaned by Sir Rupert Clarke, who had it in his possession at the time.
The total cost of making the film was €1000, which today would be about £157,829.92. In AUD, that would be $258,657.20 in 2026 and would therefore be considered quite a low budget film!
While the footage was patchy when watching, the lighting was incredibly consistent, given it seems they mostly relied on sunlight when filming. While there was no variation of lighting to depict time of day, for the time period the film was made in, it was quite well done. As for the scene where the Glenrowan Inn catches fire, red lighting was used to portray the fire. Admittedly, with no shadows to show that there were any flames, it was a little strange to have the black-and-white film suddenly turn red, but that being said, it was very simple to understand the intent of the red lighting, and you could sense the urgency of the situation solely from the lighting colour. Furthermore, the way the film created smoke for gunshots and for the fire was quite impressive.
Another aspect of the film’s storyline that was quite impressive was the inclusion of Ned Kelly’s sister, Kate Kelly. At the time, women in film were depicted as damsels in distress, or wanton woman there to seduce the main character. The portrayal of Kate Kelly, however, was far from the usual role women received. Charles Tait highlighted how instrumental Kate was in helping the Kelly Gang evade capture. She held a police officer at gunpoint to allow her brothers to escape, she traveled the land to deliver supplies to them, she alerted them of the police when they were closing in on them. She even led the police on a wild goose chase on horseback. Seeing women as brave and heroic in this silent film was a huge step for women at the time, and greatly appreciated as a female viewer years later.
The Story of the Kelly Gang was the second film to depict a bushranger, coming after the 1904 short film, Bushranging in North Queensland, by the Limelight Department of the Salvation Army. However, it was the first full length bushranging film, and the first film to ever tell the story of Ned Kelly and the Kelly Gang. It also set the stage for the Film and Television Industry of Australia that we have today, and reminded audiences that while American films are prominent in our world, Australians have such an interesting culture that translates into a very unique genre of film. All we have to do is look at our past.
Since The Story of the Kelly Gang’s release, various films depicting the life of Ned Kelly have been madeeover the years, including bushranger film, Ned Kelly, named after the infamous figure, in 1970, with Mick Jagger playing the titular role. This film marked the seventh Ned Kelly film made by the time it released. Directed by Tony Richardson, with the screenplay by Tony Richardson and Ian Jones, the film was shot around Braidwood in New South Wales, but was funded by Columbia Pictures in Britain. Like The Story of the Kelly Gang, the Ned Kelly film recounts the final days of Ned Kelly before the showdown between himself and the police at Glenrowan Inn.
There have also been theatre productions depicting the infamous gang and their exploits, such as Catching the Kellys (stage play; 1879); Ned Kelly (the musical; 1977-1978); and Ned: A New Musical (2017). Furthermore, Ned Kelly has also inspired many other pieces of work, including poetry, novels, sculptures, artworks, music, tv series and video games.
The Story of the Kelly Gang, directed by Charles Tait and reworked by the Australian National Sound and Video Archive is a wonderful film showcasing an Australian story and reminds you of the rich history of our country. Despite only spanning 17 minutes now, you can still experience the incredible story of Australia’s most famous outlaw on ABC iView.
To watch The Story of the Kelly Gang, head to https://iview.abc.net.au/video/ZW4424A001S00
*Fun Fact: After the release of The Story of the Kelly Gang, the Victorian government claimed the film was the reason for increased crime in the state and banned the film from being shown in towns with connections to the historical story and iconic figure, most notably in Wangaratta and Banella. Despite the Victorian government trying to censor such artistic talent, the public was drawn to the film anyway, and The Story of the Kelly Gang became a huge success.
A note on sources:
While writing about The Story of the Kelly Gang and researching into the filmmaking processes in Australia in the 1900s, I found the Australian Geographic’s article, Defining moments in Australian history: World’s first feature film produced in Victoria, to be very helpful and informative on the history of how this film was made as well as how monumental it was when this film became Australia’s first feature. Likewise, I felt the National Museum of Australia gave me a lot of insight into the controversy this film had surrounding it, as well as locations used for the making of this film.
Read more from Marina Cerra HERE.
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Thanks for this, Marina.
I have always been fascinated by the story of the Kelly Gang.
“True history of the Kelly Gang” by Peter Carey is one of the best books I have ever read.
Ta Marina, this is an iconic movie. Made so close to the time of the Kelly Outbreak it certainly was topical, also very challenging.
Anyhow a few little facts to add to the equation. I’m not aware of Kate, or any of the sisters holding police at gunpoint. The sister who was most pivotal during the Kelly Outbreak was Margaret,Maggie Skillion (Skilling). She undertook a series of tasks, roles, in supporting her brothers, and their ‘partners in crime’. I’m not saying Kate played no role but Margaret was the eldest, her mother, and husband, imprisoned over the Fitzpatrick Episode. Margaret proved a person the police could not cower, her commitment to her family beyond question.
Such was the difficulty the police experienced with Margaret they invented stories of Steve Hart dressed as a woman. They didn’t want the public know they were regularly outsmarted by a woman like Margaret.
The 1970 film starring Mick Jagger you mention, standing in comparison to the marvellous 1906 film, was the other bookend of Ned Kelly films. To use an old term, “what were they thinking?”
The best screen footage of the Kelly Outbreak is the four part 1980 series produced by Ian Jones, The Last Outlaw. Accurate, well acted, highly recommended. Do Channel 7 still have it in their archives?
Glen!