A documentary film by a Charles Sturt University (CSU) graduate was recently shortlisted as a finalist for the 2015 NSW Premier's History Awards.

The Dalfram Dispute 1938: Pig Iron Bob was produced by Ms Sandra Pires (pictured) who studied the Bachelor of Communication (Media Practice) in the CSU School of Communication and Creative Industries in Bathurst from 2005 to 2007.

The film was one of 180 submissions in six NSW Premier's History Awards categories.

"We didn't win the award, but it was an honour to be a finalist and the judges praised the film," Ms Pires said. "Our film was one of three finalists selected from the 40 or so submissions for the Multimedia Category, and as a totally independent production it beat submissions from ABC and SBS-funded films."

The award judges said The Dalfram Dispute 1938: Pig Iron Bob was a " ... well-balanced and finely crafted account of this dramatic episode in Australian political culture".

The 80-minute documentary was four years in the making. It tells the story of the famous dispute which resulted in then-Prime Minister Robert Menzies being dubbed 'Pig Iron Bob' when he intervened in the November 1938 ban by the wharf labourers union to stop 'pig iron' from the Port Kembla steel works being loaded on the ship Dalfram bound for Japan. In this pre-World War Two dispute, the wharfies argued the iron would be used by Japan in its continuing invasion of China, which had already resulted in massive casualties.

Ms Pires grew up in Newtown, Sydney, and her production company Why Documentaries is based in Wollongong in the Illawarra region south of Sydney. She particularly acknowledges the role of her CSU course lecturers who helped shape her professional outlook.

"I greatly appreciate the support of former lecturer the late Dr Anne Dunn who mentored me to become a self-starter," Ms Pires said.

The Dalfram Dispute 1938: Pig Iron Bob will screen on the History Channel on Sunday 15 November. An ABC Illawarra online report about the documentary is here, and DVDs of the film can be purchased from Why Documentaries or the film's Facebook page.