The clothing worn by the women in this clip gives an idea of the fashions of the time. One woman wears a full length floral-print pantsuit. Another wears overalls and a third wears flared pants with suspenders. Similarly, their walking gear through the scrub consists of dark coloured three-quarter length pants. This attire allows the women to move freely (and cartwheel!) without losing their femininity.

The nitrate print of this film was acquired by the National Film and Sound Archive from Jim Ness in the late 1980s. Ness was involved with the cinema industry in Victoria and began his career as a spool boy at the Empire Theatre, Bourke Street, Melbourne. He worked his way up to become an assistant projectionist and later a projectionist. As with many projectionists and filmmakers early last century, Jim Ness acquired a collection of films. Films such as this kept and cared for by film lovers make a significant contribution to Australia’s early audiovisual history.

Notes by Poppy De Souza