This history of the co-op film movements of Sydney and Melbourne comes from two of the major figures in Australian documentary who were intimately involved in the filmmaking groundswell that first emerged in the 1960s. The Ubu group in Sydney, born from the influence of avant-garde filmmaking mingled with a rich range of social movements including unionism, feminism, Indigenous self-expression, and queer theory. A few names should give you a sense of the main participants here: Philip Noyce, Gillian Armstrong, Albie Thoms, Stephen Wallace, Martha Ansara, Essie Coffey, and many, many others. This is the story of the rise of alternative forms of filmmaking, and their fall at the hands of government agencies. It is a story of a road not taken, but of a moment full of possibility when fresh voices and new ways of seeing struggled to establish themselves in Australian cinema.—Adelaide Film Festival

As notions of civil rights transformed across the world, so was the screen landscape reformed by the ascension of grassroots film movements seeking to challenge the mainstream. Some aspired to push form to its limit; others worked to destabilise what they saw as a homogenous industry, or to provoke questions around gender, sexuality, migration and race. Among those in Australia were the Sydney Filmmakers Co-op and Ubu Films, the Melbourne Co-op, the Sydney Women's Film Group and the LGBT-focused One in Seven Collective. Senses of Cinema is a robust, granular genealogy from co-directors John Hughes and Tom Zubrycki. To the heartbeat of a thrumming jazz score, it showcases excerpts of rare experimental works and vivid clippings from press, programs and posters, and interviews the likes of Phillip Noyce, Albie Thoms, Jan Chapman, Gillian Armstrong, Digby Duncan, Madeline McGrady and Ivan Gaal. In its impressive breadth, the documentary also highlights the influence of events such as the Vietnam War in interrogating film's relationship with ideology and explores the inherent complexity of change-making - including the schism that formed between those who championed art for art's sake and art as a vehicle for polemic.—Melbourne International Film Festival

In mid 60's in Australia and around the world artists and filmmakers organised filmmakers cooperatives supporting self-managed production, distribution and exhibition. The Co-ops nurtured Australia's cinema renaissance and created new markets for strikingly innovate Australian content. It was a time that was rich, reckless and rewarding.—Antidote Films