Heritage is a 1935

1935 in film

-Events:*Judy Garland signs a contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer .*Seven year old Shirley Temple wins a special Academy Award.*The Bantu Educational Kinema Experiment started in order to educate the Bantu peoples.-Top grossing films:-Academy Awards:...

 Australian historical film directed by Charles Chauvel.

Production

Heritage was originally conceived in 1933, while Charles Chauvel was organising publicity for his previous film, In the Wake of the Bounty

In the Wake of the Bounty

In the Wake of the Bounty was an Australian film exploring the story of the Bounty. It preceded MGM's more famous Mutiny on the Bounty by two years and featured the screen debut of Errol Flynn, playing Fletcher Christian. Mayne Lynton portrayed Captain Bligh and Charles Chauvel directed the film. ...

. The Australian government, in a bid to encourage the local film industry, announced the Commonwealth Prize, an award of £2,500 to the best Australian-made film. Chauvel declared his intentions to enter the competition, and conceived a large-scale historical drama, spanning 150 years of Australian history, to maximise his likelihood of winning. Chauvel was able to secure a budget of £24,000 from his company Expeditionary Films. Extensive research was undertaken to ensure that props, costumes, hairstyles and music were accurate to their historical settings. Production began in 1934 at Efftee Studios

Efftee Studios

Efftee Studios was established by F.W. Thring in 1930.In 1931 the first commercially viable Australian made sound feature film, Diggers, was produced by Efftee Films in Melbourne using optical sound equipment imported from the USA.Efftee was also the first licensee of Melbourne radio station 3XY...

 in St Kilda

St Kilda, Victoria

St Kilda is an inner city suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 6 km south from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Port Phillip...

, Melbourne

Melbourne

Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...

. Outdoor filming took place in New South Wales

New South Wales

New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...

 and Queensland

Queensland

Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...

. Forty aborigines were employed to appear in a scene filmed at Canungra, Queensland.

Reception

Heritage was first released on 13 April 1935, and distributed by Universal Films

Universal Pictures

-1920:* White Youth* The Flaming Disc* Am I Dreaming?* The Dragon's Net* The Adorable Savage* Putting It Over* The Line Runners-1921:* The Fire Eater* A Battle of Wits* Dream Girl* The Millionaire...

 through the General Theatres Corporation. Of the thirteen films in contention for the Australian government's Commonwealth Prize, Heritage was awarded the top prize of £2,500. The runner-up films were Ken G. Hall

Ken G. Hall

Kenneth George Hall, AO OBE , better known as Ken G. Hall, was an Australian film director, considered one of the most important figures in the history of the Australian film industry.-Early years:...

's The Silence of Dean Maitland, in second place (£1,250), and Frank Harvey

Frank Harvey (Australian screenwriter)

Frank Harvey was an English-born actor, producer and writer best known for his work in Australia.-Biography:...

's Clara Gibbings, in third place (£750). The critical reception was mixed. Some reviewers celebrated the film as "worthy of Australia's hopes" and "a challenge to the overseas film industry." Other commentators criticised Heritage as uneven, some blaming the comparatively small budget. Historically, the film is often considered a commercial failure, though contemporary press releases report that the film's six-week takings matched those of the highest-grossing imported films. Heritage was received with mixed success in England, but was profitable in the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

for an American distributor who had cheaply purchased the distribution rights.