Minutes of evidence taken before the Departmental Committee on Cinematograph Films (1936)

172 COMMITTEE ON CINEMATOGRAPH FILMS 1 ! July, 1936.] [Contvn \ii d. to the cinema. There have been comments from abroad on the effect of showing highly-sophisticated western films to eastern audiences. 3. On the general ground of the desirability of maintaining and extending industrial and commercial activity within this country, the General Council of the Trades Union Congress are anxious to see the production of British films soundly established and progressively developed. Though the amount of employment that is and can directly be given by film production is not to be compared to the amount of employment that is given by the basic industries of this country, it can nevertheless provide direct employment for a substantial number of British workpeople and that, judging from current experience, under reasonably decent conditions and at reasonably good wages. The indirect employment and industrial value of a wellestablished and progressively developing British film producing industry is indeterminate but considerable. 4. It is, however, because of the possession by a film industry, particularly film production and distribution, of a unique power to influence the customs, habits and ideas — all that may be described broadly as the level of cultural and educational attainment — of cinema audiences and the power to sustain, extend or diminish the prestige and the sale of the products of a country in other lands, that the Trades Union Congress General Council desires to have an intelligently conducted British film producing industry maintained and developed. The Trades Union Congress General Council believe that the proposals put forward in this memorandum will assist in the attainment of that object. 5. The Trades Union Congress General Council do not wish that the attainment of that object shall be made the excuse for the production of poor quality films or for the propping-up of an inefficient industry. They have given the most careful consideration to this matter and they are convinced that for several reasons British film production cannot hope to be maintained and developed on quality and merit alone. The prevalence of practices whereby the exhibitor is more or less firmly controlled by the distributing agent — the renter — who, in turn. in Great Britain, is often little more than the agent of a foreign producer, makes it difficult to secure bookings for films, other than the undoubted " hits ", not produced by producers in control of or in close association with the renters. The business of distributing or renting is largely under American control or influence partly by reason of the opportunities open to American producers during the War when production in England was suspended, and partly by reason of the fact that the American producer, having by his control of distribution in America practically closed the American market to British producers, is enabled to recover his costs in his own country and supply an expensively produced film at a low figure for distribution here. Under such handicaps the British producer's difficulty in securing a satisfactory distribution and exhibition of his films is not one that merit alone will help him to resolve. 6. The quality of British films, once low, has improved considerably and rapidly during the past several years and it is suggested that the proposals of this memorandum will assist in the maintenance of that rate of improvement. The Quota Provisions of the present Act. 7. The Trades Union Congress General Council believes that, on the whole, the Quota Provisions of the 1927 Act have worked for the benefit of the British film industry. Certainly, during the period of the operation of the Act, British film production and capacity to produce has increased and the quality of British films has shown considerable improvement. Quite early, however, in the operation of the Act it became apparent thai means had been found of evading the fulfilment of the intention of the Act though not of its provisions. The method of evasion is for Renters who desire mainly to distribute foreign films, to make or to have made for them in the British Empire, films at a very low cost and usually of very poor quality simply in order that they may fulfil the legal Quota requirements necessary to enable them to distribute foreign films. This practice is acceptable to the Renter of foreign films since it serves both to enable him to fulfil his Quota requirements at little cost and does not provide any real competition with the products he is most desirous of distributing. In fact, the practice tends to show up British films in general in a poor light in contrast with the comparatively excellent foreign product. The existence of this practice is not disputed and the effect has undoubtedly been to create an entirely unwarranted prejudice against British films in general. The Trades Union Congress General Council strongly urge the need to eliminate this type of cheap Quota film, and the proposals of this memorandum for a minimum cost requirement for films eligible for Quota are submitted for that purpose. 8. The Act of 1927 distinguishes long films (films of three thousand feet and upwards) and short films (films of less than three thousand feet) and provides that Quota requirements shall be satisfied in respect of long films as well as in respect of all films. Thus, under the present Act, Renters and Exhibitors must acquire and exhibit respectively a proportion of long British films, if long films are acquired and exhibited at all, but there is no compulsion upon Renters and Exhibitors to acquire and exhibit short British films. . 9. In considering the effect upon short film production of the omission from the present Act of any compulsion upon Renters and Exhibitors respectively to acquire and to exhibit short British films, the Trades Union Congress General Council have been concerned with the probable effect of the inclusion of such a provision rather than with the known effects of its omission. 10. It is, however, known that the difficulties of finding a market for " short " British films have been increased by the development during recent years of the " two feature programme " in cinema theatres and that the present Quota provisions are less favourable to the exhibition of short films than to the exhibition of long films. 11. Certain types of short British films have always been in an exceptionally unfavourable position in relation to films generally. Films of quite exceptional merit and of high social, educational and cultural value are almost exclusively of the " short " variety and are often produced by small groups of persons possessing a limited amount of capital and whose influence with Renters and Exhibitors is negligible in comparison with larger producers. Because of these limitations and because their products are often less obviously likely to be to the taste of the unimaginative sections of film audiences, such producers are at an even greater disadvantage in finding a market for these products than are British producers generally. The Importance of Short Film Production. 12. Yet the need to encourage the production and exhibition of short British films of exceptional merit and of high social, educational and cultural value is as great if not greater than the need to maintain and develop an intelligently conducted film-producing industry. It is in the production of short " Documentary", "special subject" or "special treatment" type of film that the industrj as a whole finds the material — the men and the ideas — with the use of which the quality and the presentation of film plays is improved. 13. The General Council of the Trade Union Congress is convinced that if legal provision can be made with the object of encouraging persons possessed of