Parer, Damien (1912-1944), was probably Australia’s best-known photographer. Parer became internationally known for his combat photographs and motion pictures during World War II (1939-1945). Parer and the Australian director Ken Hall shared the 1942 Academy Award for best documentary feature for their film Kokoda Front Line. It was Australia’s first Oscar.
Parer was born on Aug. 1, 1912, in Malvern, Victoria, and started his career in various photographic studios in Melbourne. He entered the motion-picture business in 1933 as a cameraman for the Australian director Charles Chauvel. Parer became an official cameraman in the war in 1940 and accompanied the first Australian forces to the Middle East. He filmed the documentaries The Fall of Bardia (1941), The Relief of Tobruk (1941), and The RAAF in the Western Desert (1942). In 1942, Parer joined Australian troops fighting in New Guinea, filming several documentaries in 1942 and 1943, including Kokoda Front Line. In late 1943, he joined American forces fighting in the Pacific. He was killed in action on Sept. 17, 1944, during the landing on the island of Peleliu.
