one of the world's first film studios, founded in Melbourne 1891
The story is ready. The screen awaits.
Details coming soon.
FROM THE CREATORS OF BEYOND THE WASTELAND
The story is ready. The screen awaits.
Details coming soon.
LIMELIGHT tells the extraordinary true story of Melbourne’s Limelight Department, a pioneering force in early film projection, music, and performance.
About
Founded in 1891, the department’s revolutionary magic lantern shows laid the foundation for Australia’s film industry, making it one of the world’s first film studios.
In just 19 years, this innovative team produced around 400 films, capturing major events like the Inauguration of the Commonwealth and creating the world’s first narrative drama, Soldiers of the Cross.
Though the studio was forced to close in 1910, its legacy endures. Through restored footage and original sound design, LIMELIGHT revives this visionary chapter of The Salvation Army’s history.
When 69 Bourke Street was purchased in October 1894 for the new Salvation Army Australasian headquarters, the attic roof was raised, a photographic studio installed, and a new film and photography department was set up in this attic, which quickly progressed to having “The Salvation Army Studio” printed on each photograph produced by the Army.
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The Limelight Brigade had progressed to a travelling limelight projector and over 60 glass slides, and had visited nearly every corps in Australia and New Zealand, travelling 46,000 kms by train, ship, coach, cart and horseback. 522 liminary photographs had been produced with 469 souls recorded as saved.
Specialising in what were revolutionary magic lantern shows and early film projection, music and performance, the Limelight Department became one of the world's first functioning film studios in Melbourne, paving the way for the birth of the Australian film industry.
limelight
[laɪm.lait]
the focus of public attention.
Soldiers of the Cross, written by Commander Herbert Booth, premiered at the Melbourne Town Hall to an audience of 4,000 people. It was one of the first multi-media productions, combining a large choir, stirring, and often harrowing music, along with the new art of Christian martyrs. The film has been claimed as one of the first attempts to combine film with a live performance, and was perhaps the most significant achievement by the Limelight Department in telling the Gospel story in a dynamic new way.
Inauguration of the Australian Commonwealth saw the Department commissioned to film the 1901 Federation of Australia. They had five cameras set up at various points of the parade, using a fire carriage to get from one camera to the next in order to capture an amazing moment in our nation's history.
Before it closed, the Limelight Department had produced more than 300 films, capturing important events and producing training, educational, fundraising, and entertainment films for The Salvation Army. While the Army’s pioneering photography, glass lantern slides and film not only recorded historical events, they also provided entertainment, raised funds, and presented the gospel to thousands of people in Australia and New Zealand.
Contributors
Lindsay Cox, OAM
Museum Manager & The Salvation Army Heritage Centre Territorial Archivist
A proud member of The Salvation Army for 65 years and has been employed by The Salvation Army since 1996.
Lindsay has been the Manager of The Salvation Army Australia Museum since 1998, and is the Author of five published books including; Cuppa Tea, Digger: Brave & True, Fire a Folley, Fire another Folley, and Banned for Life, as well as supervisor and designer for Australia Remembers, a research project outlining The Salvation Army’s work during WW2, funded by the Department of Employment, Education and Training.
Lindsay is Guest Speaker, contributor, and Illustrator to many books, journals, and newsletters, and has illustrated books for several prominent military historians and authors.
Lindsay received the Order of Australia Medal (OAM) for Services to History in 2021.
Dr. Martyn Jolly
Honorary Associate Professor, Australian National University
One of the most recognised authorities on early Australian photography and visual culture.
With a long list of academic achievements and media appearances as a selected professional, Martyn has had his own works shown in several major curated exhibitions and developed solo exhibitions which creatively re-use archival photographs.
In 2015, Martyn received an Australian Research Council Discovery Grant to lead the international project, Heritage in the Limelight: The Magic Lantern in Australia and the World. Since then, Martyn has developed a series of collaborative magic lantern performances which he continues to exhibit around Australia, and in 2020, co-edited, The Magic Lantern at Work: Witnessing, Persuading, Experiencing and Connecting, with nineteenth-century photography historian, Dr Elisa DeCourcy.
Martyn has contributed to countless articles, and been actively involved at talks, seminars and various forums.
Dr. Elizabeth Hartrick
BFA, PhD
Author of The Magic Lantern in Colonial Australia & New Zealand; an illustrated book based on her six-year doctoral research project at the University of Melbourne.
Elizabeth’s interest in nineteenth century popular visual culture, and a sense of the strong bond between Australia and New Zealand, led her to research the social and cultural history of the lantern slide projector in the Australasian colonies and its place in the project of British Imperialism.
Elizabeth has published articles and presented conference papers on her research, including Curiosities and Rare Scientific Instruments, Seize the Day: Exhibitions (Australia and the World), and That’s Me Up There!
Elizabeth co-convened the Second Biennial Magic Lantern Society Convention in Melbourne 2012, participated in the Protected Image Heritage Symposium at Australian National University, and contributed to Heritage in the limelight: the magic lantern in Australia and the world, an Australian Research Council project led by Dr Martyn Jolly at Australian National University.
Dr. Ray Edmondson
OAM, B.A., Dip Lib, PhD
International consultant, teacher and writer on audiovisual archiving and documentary heritage issues, and received lifetime achievement awards in relevant professional associations, along with recipient of the Medal of the Order of Australia.
Described as the ‘moving spirit’ behind the creation of the National Film and Sound Archive of Australia in 1984, Ray was the NFSA’s Deputy Director until 2001, when he retired and was named its first Honorary Curator Emeritus, later serving on its Advisory Committee between 2004 to 2008. In 2012, he completed his doctoral thesis which analyses the institution’s history.
Ray has conducted missions for UNESCO and lectured in over 40 developed and developing countries, with UNESCO publishing his best-known monograph, Audiovisual Archiving: Philosophy and Principles.
His major writings have been published in ten languages, and Ray is currently President of the Friends of the National Film and Sound Archive.
Major Warren Elliott
Public Relations Secretary, The Salvation Army - Victoria
A Salvation Army Officer since 1991, currently serving as the Public Relations Secretary for Victoria.
In his 33 years with The Salvation Army, he has held roles in various Corps (Ministry/Pastoral) appointments, as well as time as a Mission Resource Secretary and Social Justice Coordinator. Before returning to Victoria in 2021 to take up his current role, he also represented The Salvation Army on the Western Australian Ecumenical Social Justice Roundtable and as a member of the Council of Churches WA Executive.
Captain Rebecca Inglis
B.Com, MTh & Area Officer in Metro West Melbourne, The Salvation Army - Victoria
Rebecca Inglis has been a Salvation Army Officer for over 20 years and is currently an Area Officer in Metro West Melbourne.
Prior to this role, Rebecca spent eight years as a Corps Officer at Wollongong Corps in NSW. She has also been a Corps Officer in East Maitland and Bonnells Bay, NSW, and spent four years as a Divisional Youth Secretary, supporting, training and mentoring youth leaders in Western Sydney. Prior to working for the Salvation Army, Rebecca studied Human Resource Management and worked for the Commonwealth Bank in Executive Recruitment and Development.
Rebecca is particularly drawn to learning about change and growth in people and the church, and supporting change processes. She is motivated by the desire to see lives transformed and the Salvation Army serving in relevant ways to meet real community need. She is committed to seeing all generations engaged and thriving in healthy, communities, listening to one another with curiosity and serving one another in love and with mutual respect and radical inclusion.
Michael Wollenberg
The great-grandson of cinematographer and entrepreneur, Joseph Perry.
Joseph, with the help of The Salvation Army, established Australia’s first film studio in Melbourne, paving the way for the birth of the Australian film industry; his own son, Reginald Perry, eventually heading abroad and working in Hollywood. Following the family tradition, Michael has had a long and varied career in the Australian television and film industries as art director, director, production designer and writer.
His work has also seen him travel extensively overseas, including North America and French Polynesia. Michael is an award-winning television art director and since 1995, has worked as director and writer for various television commercials, videos and film productions both in Adelaide and Sydney.
Michael continues to work as a freelance art director and writer in Adelaide for local television and film, and has written four feature film screenplays. He is currently writing a fourth draft script for his most recent production entitled WARRIMOO.
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Salvation and the silver screen.
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