Maslyn Williams Maslyn Williams i(A13598 works by) (a.k.a. Ronald Robert Maslyn Williams)
Born: Established: 20 Feb 1911
c
England,
c
c
United Kingdom (UK),
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Western Europe, Europe,
; Died: Ceased: 11 Aug 1999 Bowral, Mittagong - Bowral area, Southern Highlands - Southern Tablelands, Southeastern NSW, New South Wales,
Gender: Male
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BiographyHistory

Maslyn Williams moved to Australia in the 1920s. He grew up on New South Wales rural properties in the New England and Southern Highlands districts after the death of both parents. Williams initially studied music at the Conservatorium in Sydney before turning to journalism and radio scriptwriting. He joined National Studios in 1935 where he was assistant to Frank Coffey, editor of the Charles Chauvel film, Uncivilised (1936). After the Studio closed in 1938, Williams joined the Commonwealth Government's Cinema and Photographic Branch, the first government filmmaking unit.

The Department of Information (DOI) formed in September 1939 took over the Cinema and Photographic Branch; Williams became a war correspondent working for the Middle East Unit of the DOI under Frank Hurley. The Unit covered the war in the Middle East with footage supplied to Cinesound and Movietone. After the war, Williams joined the Film Division, DOI as a senior producer. Williams belonged to the 'art form stream, the stream that was culturally oriented' and sought to imbue his work with a more personal approach focused on individuals. He is best remembered for his docudrama, Mike and Stefani (1952).

Williams became Head of the PNG Division of the Film Unit from 1955, producing a series of films on Papua New Guinea. He left the Unit in 1962, unhappy with the constraints, and concentrated on writing books on China, Cambodia, Papua New Guinea and Indonesia.

Williams also wrote The East Is Red (1967), The Land In Between : The Cambodian Dilemma (1969), In One Lifetime (1970), a study of Papua New Guinea, The Story of Indonesia (1976), Faces of My Neighbour : Three Journeys into East Asia (1979) and The Phosphateers: A History of the British Phosphate Commissioners and the Christmas Island Phosphate Commission (1985) .

Most Referenced Works

Awards for Works

y separately published work icon His Mother's Country Carlton : Melbourne University Press , 1988 Z288198 1988 single work autobiography 'Written in the third person, the autobiography describes both his experiences in 1920s New England, the lives and personalities of numerous individuals he encountered, and the distinctive identity of the landscape which ultimately claimed his loyalty.' The Oxford Companion to Australian Literature, ed. William H. Wilde et. al. (1994): 817.
1988 winner The Fellowship of Australian Writers Victoria Inc. National Literary Awards FAW Christina Stead Award
1989 winner New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards Douglas Stewart Prize for Non-Fiction
1988 highly commended FAW Wilke Award
1989 winner New South Wales State Literary Awards Douglas Stewart Prize for Non-Fiction

Known archival holdings

Albinski 237
National Library of Australia (ACT)
State Library of NSW (NSW)
Last amended 16 Jun 2008 14:23:13
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