GOMA's Australian Cinémathèque Programs 90+ Films for Jim Henson Exhibition

Brisbane film lovers are in for something special this spring. The Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art (QAGOMA) will screen over 90 films across three curated cinema programs accompanying the upcoming exhibition Make, Believe, Magic: The Worlds of The Jim Henson Company, opening 12 September at GOMA.

The three programs at GOMA's Australian Cinémathèque — the only dedicated cinémathèque in an Australian art museum — will run throughout the exhibition's seven-month season, covering cinema classics, fan favourites and rarely seen treasures from the world of puppetry, creature effects and imaginative filmmaking.

Screened to be Believed: The Jim Henson Company showcases the Company's own productions, from the much-loved fantasy films The Dark Crystal (1982) and Labyrinth (1986) through to more recent titles including the Queensland-filmed The Portable Door (2023).

Where the Wild Things Are Made: Jim Henson's Creature Shop celebrates the artisans behind the Creature Shop — the practical effects workshop responsible for the half-shell heroes of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1990), the farmyard cast of Babe (1995) and the intergalactic menagerie of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (2005).

Beyond Henson: Puppetry and World Cinema looks outward, surveying puppetry's role in international cinema. The program ranges from Lav Diaz's The History of Ha (2021) — from the renowned Filipino proponent of slow cinema — to Spike Jonze's Being John Malkovich (1999).

QAGOMA Director Chris Saines CNZM said the programs amplify the exhibition's exploration of the relationship between screen and visual culture. "The featured films explore a rich history of storytelling through the combined art forms of cinema and puppetry in productions by The Jim Henson Company, and others that feature creatures brought to life by Jim Henson's Creature Shop," Mr Saines said.

Assistant Curator and film program curator Victoria Wareham said the cinema programs reveal Henson's influence on the broader canon of on-screen puppetry. "Together, these films celebrate the Company's ability to create immersive worlds, unforgettable stories and deeply expressive characters that have made for some of the most memorable moments in cinema history," Dr Wareham said.

Visitors will be able to draw direct connections between hundreds of objects on display in the exhibition and their big-screen appearances — from Big Bird and Mr Snuffleupagus in Sesame Street Presents: Follow That Bird (1985) to the Gelfling and Skeksis in The Dark Crystal (1982) and its behind-the-scenes documentary The World of the Dark Crystal (1983).

All screenings are free, with sessions on selected Wednesday and Friday nights and throughout the day on Saturdays and Sundays.

Make, Believe, Magic: The Worlds of The Jim Henson Company runs at GOMA from 12 September 2026 to 18 April 2027. Exhibition tickets and full cinema program details are available at qagoma.qld.gov.au.