Peter Weir's 'Picnic at Hanging Rock' (1975) to be published in the BFI CLASSICS series (Bloomsbury: 2022)
I have secured a book contract with Bloomsbury/BFI Classics to write the first standalone volume on Weir’s classic film 'Picnic at Hanging Rock', which combines history of the film’s production and reception with a re-working of the film’s key themes through a feminist and decolonial lens. 'Picnic at Hanging Rock' is widely hailed as a classic by film scholars and critics alike. It is seen as exemplary of what has come to be known as the ‘AFC’ style of filmmaking, a term coined by Susan Dermody and Elizabeth Jacka to describe a particular style of heritage costume drama sponsored by the Australian Film Commission. However, 'Picnic' does not readily fit into this archetype, nor does it uphold the implicit moral code associated with this ‘national’ form of cinema. This elusive, ambiguous and poetic film has inspired reams of scholarship. Certain readings of the film that play into notions of patriarchal fantasy (Bruzzi), tropes of ‘white-vanishing’ (Tilley) and colonial national identity have become dominant. This volume will examine the cardinal themes explored in this haunting, yet terrifying film from feminist, psychoanalytic and decolonial perspectives to argue that the film is, in fact, highly subversive in contradistinction to many critical readings of the film. In short, I argue that this film is deeply critical of both 'white settler logic' and patriarchy. This book will be published in 2022 in the very prestigious British Film Institute Classics series.
Final report
The book manuscript was submitted to the publisher at the end of September and returned after 3 anonymous peer reviewers suggested only minor additions/changes. I worked with the publicity department and the graphic design department to finalise all the images to be included in the book and to agree upon the cover design. I finalised the book manuscript and handed it in to Bloomsbury in December 2021. It will be published this year – October 6th 2022. It is already available for pre-order.
Due to the pandemic, travel abroad had to be cancelled at the last minute; however, an alternative was sought early on in 2021 to work with Angus Johnstone at the Australian NFSA foundation. I was able to access all archival information in their collection subject to permission from copyright holders. This significantly helped the completion of the research during the global Covid 19 pandemic.
I have been in touch with several independent cinemas in Göteborg about the possibility of screening 'Picnic at Hanging Rock' in conjunction with the release of the book later in the year. We are still in discussion over possible opportunities. I will certainly take part in an event at the British Film Institute in London later this year for the book. I have also been invited to present my book at the University of Groningen, Netherlands in the Autumn of 2022.
Due to the pandemic, travel abroad had to be cancelled at the last minute; however, an alternative was sought early on in 2021 to work with Angus Johnstone at the Australian NFSA foundation. I was able to access all archival information in their collection subject to permission from copyright holders. This significantly helped the completion of the research during the global Covid 19 pandemic.
I have been in touch with several independent cinemas in Göteborg about the possibility of screening 'Picnic at Hanging Rock' in conjunction with the release of the book later in the year. We are still in discussion over possible opportunities. I will certainly take part in an event at the British Film Institute in London later this year for the book. I have also been invited to present my book at the University of Groningen, Netherlands in the Autumn of 2022.