Autopsy on a Dream (2013)

Autopsy on a Dream

In 1968, John Weiley shot 'Autopsy on a Dream' - a film about the Sydney Opera House detailing its construction process and the politics of Jorn Utzon's dismissal. Weiley's film was controversial; it was screened once and then he was told it had been destroyed. Forty five years later a copy was discovered in the BBC vaults by an ABC producer looking for archive footage of the Opera House. Weiley was contacted and told about a film that had no sound track. Weiley was overjoyed; for years he had kept the original sound. So began the painstaking process of restoring this record of a unique moment in Australian culture to its former glory, complete with updated voice-over from the original narrator, Bob Ellis. It is set in context by a 30 minute prologue entitled 'The Dream of Perfection'. Made by the same filmmaker, John Weiley, forty-five years on, 'Dream of Perfection' tells the story of the 1968 film - from commission to destruction, to surprise resurrection.

Casting arrow_drop_down

Bob Ellis
as Self

John Weiley
as Self

Jan Utzon
as Self

Lin Utzon
as Self

Jorn Utzon
as Self

Richard le Plaistrier
as Self

David Attenborough
as Self

arrow_drop_down

Crew arrow_drop_down

John Maynard
Producer

Donna Chang
Producer

John Weiley
Director

John Weiley
Writer

arrow_drop_down