Her parents and uncles came to Australia with nothing, but by the time she was born they were relatively comfortable. In later life she always acknowledged her family who gave her the opportunity to study and develop as she saw fit.  

Freda attended the local private girls’ school in Kew which she later described us a preparatory school for middle class housewives.  She must have had a point, because in her year, she was the only one to attend university. Her parents ensured that she had Hebrew and Yiddish lessons from the legendary Mr Gilligich.  She also learnt to ride a horse and how to fish for flathead in Port Phillip Bay.

She had a talent for languages, learnt French at school, and when we were teenagers in the 1970s went back to uni to study Japanese because she felt her education was incomplete without learning an Asian language. She enjoyed boating and swimming.  And smoking. 

She loved doing her BA at Melbourne university where she made life-long friends.  Perhaps her undergraduate results could have been better; but she had a great time. She always followed her own interests.  She did not involve herself in Jewish Communal Life. It may have been hard, with her parents’ huge involvement with the welfare of the Jewish Community filling that space.  However, she was inspired by her mother to help others, and her father to read and develop intellectual pursuits. 

When she completed her B.A., she had a vacation on the 'Hachshara' in Shepparton. Martin Freiberg was delegated to pick up Freda from the train station. Martin took this pick-up instruction seriously. In Freda’s own words: he was very handsome; his blond hair bleached by the sun, his skin tanned from outdoor work.  She fell in love with him immediately.  In hindsight, she thinks that it may have been a case of opposites attracting.  She was an intellectual uni student interested in philosophy and literature from a privileged background.  He was a traumatised holocaust survivor with no formal education but a commitment to working in agriculture for the young state of Israel.  They married 2 years later, on Kibbutz Tzorah. 

Freda cared for Dad with great dedication at home when he became ill.  On July 15, 2014, the year before he died, they celebrated their 60^th wedding anniversary.  When asked what the secret is to a long marriage, Freda said it is important to have nothing in common.  She was not interested in the synagogue and Martin didn’t want to join the LIP committee. 

This 61 year union produced 4 children in 5 years before Freda turned 30, 10 grandchildren and 7 great grandchildren. 

Freda taught high school in Collingwood and Heidelberg and then at Coburg Teachers College where she was a pioneer in teaching film and media studies. She was on the executive of the Australian Screen Studies Association, and faithfully retained the organisation’s minutes. They are now held in the Monash University Freda Freiberg Film and Screen Studies Library. 

She commenced her Masters at Monash Japanese Studies Department, where her monograph on women in Mizoguchi films was, and still is, an international hit. She later taught film at Monash. 

Freda had an incredibly diverse range of interests: Jewish history, particularly the Jews of Shanghai and the Mediterranean during World War II, Feminism, Film, Photography, Japanese film, art, culture and even pornography. Many scholarly pieces were written on each subject in magazines, books, newspapers, on-line and there is even her DVD audio commentary on Japanese director Naruse for the British Film Institute which is soon to be re-released. Special mention should be made of her work on the Lip Collective, the ground breaking feminist arts journal published between 1976 and 1984; and the book Don’t Shoot Darling, on Australian Women’s Film, which she co-edited. 

Despite her forthright nature she was an expert in making friends and influencing people. She was an expert in everything; and very good at critical thinking and criticism. Freda inspired family members, personal friends and many colleagues and students, to study hard and be their best. She was a mentor, confidante and fiercely loyal friend to many. 

When she didn’t have work to do – Freda volunteered – the Asian students host family scheme, meals on wheels, and U3A among others. She also served on numerous academic and arts- focussed boards and committees. 

Freda was a self-acknowledged paradox. Despite being a feminist, she enjoyed the Jewish cultural traditions that involved caring and catering for family. She catered large family gatherings every Friday night for over 50 years, only ceasing recently. Freda dearly loved her extended family: her brother Nathan, sisters in law Silvia and Elly and brothers in law Bob and Steven; and all her cousins, nieces and nephews. 

Everyone who knew Freda knows that she had a lot to say.  It wasn’t always easy to get a word in.  But she was always relevant.  And often as not, she was right. 

To conclude: Freda was, as you all know, ahead of her time. In the early 1950s when the White Australia Policy was in full force, she was the secretary of the International Students Club at Melbourne University – a haven for the Asian students.  In 1992 an old friend visited Freda at home. Ong had been treasurer of the club and went on to an illustrious career which included being the governor of the Bank of Thailand.  On leaving the house, Ong confided to Freda’s brother and sister-in-law: ‘Today it’s fashionable to be pro-Asian.  In the 1950s there was only one person who was pro-Asian, Freda.’ 

Mum you will be sorely missed by us all.  Our memories of you will keep us and future generations inspired and entertained.