American singer Fabian's performance was also shot, but this was cut from the Australian version of the film as the producers did not wish to pay the fee his management requested.

It was considered lost media for decades until March 2020, when a print of the Australian version (sans Fabian) was discovered by Mark Iaria in a suitcase on a nature strip in the suburbs of Melbourne.

The print was eventually restored to excellent condition, digitised and screened around Australia from 2021, then uploaded to YouTube in 2024.

[5] Directed by Lee Robinson, cameramen included Johnny Leake, Keith Loon, Bill Grimmo Bobby Wright, and Ron Horner.

The movie did receive a reasonably wide release in New Zealand through the Kerridge Organisation who paid £3,000 for the screening rights.

[1] In the rescued film's current state, Fabian's cut section (apart from his singing) remains unclear, though it may have included an interview and images of his dramatic arrival at Essendon airport, where he was mobbed by 2,000 teenagers and had to be taken away on a forklift.

In December 1959, Johnny Devlin was granted an injunction preventing the exhibition of the film by Greater Union theatres.

[5] It was reported to be in excellent condition for its age, with the image quality far surpassing any existing footage of this era.

[2][15] Until 2020, Rock 'n' Roll was classified as a lost film by the NFSA and rested in their 'most wanted' list for a number of years.

In early 2021, a short clip from the documentary was posted onto YouTube, featuring O'Keefe performing "Swanee River".