Sydney Film Festival, and by extension the very culture of cinema in Australia, would not exist as it does today without the remarkable passion and devotion of David Stratton who was the Festival Director from 1966 until 1983.

His achievements are too innumerable to list in totality, and would include his successful fight against censorship of films in Australia, the establishment of the Travelling Film Festival, support for emerging filmmakers from Australia and around the world, and fostering of a brave and adventurous cinema culture in Australian audiences.

Our thoughts are with his family who have released the following statement.

“David’s passion for film, commitment to Australian cinema, and generous spirit touched countless lives,” his family said.

“He was adored as a husband, father, grand and great grandfather and admired friend.

“David’s family would like to express their heartfelt gratitude for the overwhelming support from friends, colleagues, and the public recently and across his lifetime.”

Stratton’s family has asked for privacy in the wake of his death, but issued a special request to the movie-going public.

“[We] invite everyone to celebrate David’s remarkable life and legacy by watching their favourite movie, or David’s favourite movie of all time — Singin’ In the Rain.”

Details of a public memorial service will be announced in the near future.

You can read a comprehensive obituary and tribute to David Stratton, written by long time SFF employee, and current Australian Documentary Programmer Jenny Neighbour for the National Film and Sound Archive here: https://www.nfsa.gov.au/latest/vale-david-stratton

See below for a photo gallery of David over the years at Sydney Film Festival.