A production of 'The Battle of Broken Hill' was announced in the Friday 1st April 1977 edition of the Australian 'Film News' publication. The article cited the following crew: Donald Crombie (director), Russell Boyd (cinematographer), Ross Matthews (associate producer), Ralph Petersen (screenwriter), Ayten Kuyululu (producer and screenwriter). Principal photography was estimated to start in October 1977 or January 1978. The article reported that Kuyululu had received finance from both the Greater Union Organisation and the Australian Film Commission.
In an interview with Australian film critic and historian David Stratton by Tracey Korsten to promote his film 'David Stratton: A Cinematic Life' (2017) published in 'Glam Adelaide' on 6th March 2017, Stratton said: "...an incident I would love to see made into film is 'The Battle of Broken Hill'. It's an incredible story. Two Islamic men, living in Broken Hill in 1915, who were working as ice-cream sellers. They decided that they should do their bit for the Turkish cause, so on New Year's Day, at the picnic grounds, they went with their ice-cream cart and opened fire. This story was nearly made into a film in the 70s. [A documentary feature was made about it in 1981, directed by Robin Levinson]."
The South Australian Film Corporation gave the director a bottle of Dom Perignon champagne as a gift after the film was completed.
The screenplay for this film was first written around 1975-1976.
Principal photography began on this film in early 1979 at Burra, South Australia, Australia.
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Top Gap
By what name was The Battle of Broken Hill (1981) officially released in Canada in English?
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