14/12/2024 @ 9:30 am – 4:00 pm $3 – $20 Minerva Space Get tickets Step Back in Time for a Vintage Christmas at the Ballaarat Mechanics’ Institute! This Christmas, the Ballaarat Mechanics’ Institute invites you to a magical experience of nostalgia and holiday cheer. Experience the wonder of early cinema with a special screening of classic silent films that capture the spirit of the season..…
Vintage Christmas Festival at the BMI Read More »
22/01/2025 @ 7:00 pm – 8:40 pm $15 – $35 Curated by BMI Heritage Curator – Ellen Becker January 22 @ 7:00 pm – 11:00 pm Bar open at 6pm $15 – $35 Minerva Theatre Get tickets Gimme Shelter Director: Albert Maysles, David Maysles & Charlotte Zwerin (1hr 31m) The Rolling Stones To celebrate the Art Gallery of Ballarat’s Medieval to Metal exhibition, the Ballaarat Mechanics’
‘Gimme Shelter’ 1970 | THIS EVENT HAS BEEN CANCELLED DUE TO TECH ISSUES Read More »
15/01/2025 @ 7:00 pm – 8:45 pm $15 – $35 Curated by BMI Heritage Curator – Ellen Becker January 15 @ 7:00 pm – 11:00 pm Bar open at 6pm $15 – $35 Minerva Theatre Get tickets This is Spinal Tap Director: Rob Reiner, 1984 (1hr 22m) Spinal Tap To celebrate the Art Gallery of Ballarat’s Medieval to Metal exhibition, the Ballaarat Mechanics’ Institute is screening
Medieval to Metal Rockumentary Film Series: ‘This is Spinal Tap’ 1984 Read More »
11/12/2024 @ 7:00 pm – 9:15 pm $15 – $35 Curated by BMI Heritage Curator – Ellen Becker December 11 @ 7:00 pm – 11:00 pm Bar open at 6pm $15 – $35 Minerva Theatre Get tickets Don’t Look Back Director: D.A. Pennebaker, 1967 (1hr 36m) Bob Dylan To celebrate the Art Gallery of Ballarat’s Medieval to Metal exhibition, the Ballaarat Mechanics’ Institute is screening three
Medieval to Metal Rockumentary Film Series: ‘Don’t Look Back’ 1967 Read More »
17/05/2024 @ 10:30 am – 30/05/2024 @ 4:00 pm Free – $5 – $5 This event is part of the Ballarat Heritage Festival This event takes place on Wadawurrung Country. Ballaarat Mechanics’ Institute acknowledges the Wadawurrung People of the Kulin Nation as the first inhabitants and Traditional Custodians of the lands where we work, learn and create. Always Was, Always Will Be, Aboriginal Land. BMI news White
Exhibition | Not the Last Picture Show: From the Archives Read More »
17/05/2024 @ 10:30 am – 30/05/2024 @ 4:00 pm Free MH 94 Coliseum Grenville Street, Ballarat Just a year after the Lumière brothers invented the cinematograph in 1895, the first screenings of this new technology of ‘moving pictures’ were held at the Mechanics’ Institute. By the 1970’s, cinema’s death was being heralded after the devastating impact of television and the attraction of the drive-in, making
Exhibition | Not the Last Picture Show Read More »
18/05/2024 @ 7:00 pm – 11:30 pm $20 – $30 Returning for one night only The Vegas 70 was once the most popular cinema in Ballarat. The Ballaarat Mechanics’ Institute and Showbiz Cinemas have collaborated to bring back the Vegas for the Ballarat Heritage Festival. The first moving pictures (called cinematograph) in Ballarat were shown at the Ballaarat Mechanics’ Institute in 1896! In 1909 the
The Vegas 70 returns to Ballarat | Ballarat Heritage Festival Read More »
12/12/2024 @ 7:30 pm – 9:00 pm Australian 1950s Outback DramaTo conclude this year marking our 70-year existence, let’s watch a 1956 Australian film classic about an imaginative young boy who lives in the fictional small town of Murrumbilla in the Australian outback. Listen to an older generation of Australian accents; watch two-up games and immerse yourself in a 1950s country sensibility.
Ballarat Film Society | Smiley Read More »
14/11/2024 @ 7:30 pm – 9:00 pm Cinematic Donkey Odyssey Described by critics as a ‘sensuous reimagining of Robert Bresson’s Au hazard Balthazar’ (1966), EO is the name of a donkey sprung free from a circus and separated from Kasandra (Sandra Drzymalska), a young woman who dotes on him, only to wander around Poland witnessing degrees of difficulty as well as moments
Ballarat Film Society | EO Read More »
10/10/2024 @ 7:30 pm – 9:00 pm Lavish Italian Artist Drama The famous 17th century Italian artist Caravaggio is well known for his intense realism and use of strong contrasts of light and dark. Living in Milan, Naples, Malta and Sicily he was a rebellious man with an eye for beauty, the streets and high drama, and was hugely influential on succeeding
Ballarat Film Society | L’Ombra di Caravaggio (Caravaggio’s Shadow) Read More »
Fundraiser for Ballarat RSL & BMI
$33 per person
Minerva's Secrets Night Tours
Tue 19 May with special visit to Lantern Vaults
Tour 1 at 7pm – Tour 2 at 9pm.
Calling for Pre-loved books
These donation assist in our Library Fundraising Activities
We can take delivery during regular Library operating hours. See website footer.
Spring Season, History Talks:
Ballarat's Henry Lawson - The Dragon's Den - Gold! Gold! Gold!
Wed 3, 17 & 24 September, 5.30pm.
Bubbly on arrival featuring quality items from our Vintage Shop
Sunday 6 September at 2pm - Cost $65
The Ballaarat Mechanics' Institute 2026 Calendar
Featuring illustrations from our Heritage Book Collection $40
Your gift will be tax-deductible this financial year if you make it before June 30.
Like many organisations the BMI faces significant funding challenges.
