Documentary News Letter (1940)

DOCUMENTARY NEWS LETTER JUNE 1940 17 BRITISH DOCUMENTARY ACTIVITY 'SMI Icmer absoli' should otainm »illK »aris qOSo itten ■HE G.p.o. HLM UNIT, now officially a part of he Ministry of Information, has followed up its 'quadron 992 (which still has not been seen by e public; why not?) with Jennings' agriculture ilm Spring Offensive. David Macdonald's lighthips film is being cut and Holmes is back from he Mediterranean with material for his Merchant Jervice film. Cavalcanti, as noted elsewhere in his issue, is loaned to the Ealing Studios for a tory-film. G.B. Instructional reports that Mary Field's 'ivilian Front has been delivered to the Ministry ^'^'^ nd their economics film is reviewed elsewhere. .«on Schauder, the young South African now ■™'S' mder Bruce Woolfe's wing, has finished cutting ^acock's two non-theatrical films for the Interlational Wool Secretariat and has begun films on 'orts and on Shipbuilding, both officially spon.•le BraMored films. The all-diagram film Empire Round he Atlantic for the British Council is almost iii!e(l-(Jpady. At Realist Film Unit, John Taylor is preparing o make a Railways in Wartime film with Arthur Iton producing. Ruby Grierson is scripting a lumber of food films for the British Commercial 3as Association under Film Centre's super/ision, and Rotha has now a show-copy of The ''ourth Estate. Final work is being done on the Film Centre ■"'^ *port for P.E.P. and dealing with the impact bf the war on British democracy. The four Scenarios — Public Opinion, Evacuation, Food, ind Leisure — are finished. J. D. Davidson (having finished his seven-reel ;echnical oil film) and Ralph Bond are working with Strand Films, the former to make a Bren Gun film under Elton's supervision, the latter to make Overground Underground, a transport film. "'^I Ellitt has been shooting for Fitness which will Jpave a commentary by C. B. Fry. The Shell Film Unit reports much activity. Ciiiemagazine No. 5 is complete, as is a hospitals *^ film. Spanish and Portugese versions of eleven films are being finished by Geoftrey Bell, and J j Baylis is making a tractor film with Edgar Anstey producing. ju^i March of Time's B.E.F. Unit is back from France and is shooting training sequences in England. Another of its units is getting material here for an item on the American Press and its foreign correspondents in France and Britain. Slocombe, who shot material for Kline in Poland, was in Holland for A/o/c/jo/T/we, but escaped the Nazis. BOOK REVIEWS Shooting Without Stars. Cliflbrd Hornby. Hutchinson. \6s. Illustrated. MR HORNBY is a Cameraman whose job has taken him to India, Africa and Iran. This book is concerned with his experiences on his travels, eked out with a chapter on his apprenticeship to the film industry, and another on locationshooting in England. It is for the most part a pleasantly written string of anecdotes about the amusing things which happen from time to time on production, the things which become part of the folk-lore of studio canteen gossip; how a revolving turntable made Madeleine Carroll sick ; how, in a battle scene, a soldier got bayonetted in mistake for a dummy; and about the time Wally Basco was gaoled as a soldier of the Red Army by the Latvian police. It must be said that some of these stories have a greater significance for Mr Hornby himself than they have for the general public, but others are worth telling anywhere. From time to time the book gets completely away from movie-making, and it is only then that Mr Hornby's well-developed powers of observation are able to have full play. On these occasions he shows a real capacity for describing vividly and with sensibility the life and scenery of the countries he visits. For these passages alone the book is worth reading. Roads to Citizenship: Issued under the auspices of the Association for Education in Citizenship. O.xford University Press. \s. 6d. A STIMULATING booklet on various methods of informal education in citizenship. The methods discussed include study circles, debates, commissions, B.B.C. talks, and newspaper analyses: regional surveys and "projects", civic weeks and exhibitions, films and drama. Three new Points of View: Why Work Anyway?, Man or Machine, and What is Federation? — are ready for trade show by Spectator Short Films under Ivan Scott's direction. He asks it to be put on record that he is a Scotsman and not a "young Londoner" as frequently stated. CORRESPONDENCE sir; In the May issue of the documentary NEWS letter you ask a few questions in regard to Squadron 992 which is a Ministry of Information short, and, whilst I am unable to answer your questions, I do, as an exhibitor, ask some of my own, which I hope you will be able to answer for me. One short, which has received very excellent reports, not only as entertainment, but on its value as prestige and propaganda, I regret to say has not been offered to me for exhibition in any of my cinemas. In regard to other shorts of this class, I wrote to the renting organisation handling them on the 9th April last, and received a reply dated the 11th April informing me that arrangements for the release dates were then being discussed and that as soon as they were definitely fixed I should be informed. A few days ago, a month after my application to show the films, I am now able to book them. Whilst I cannot speak for the exhibiting trade as a whole, I would like you to know that as an exhibitor, I feel it is my duty to put any and all of these subjects on my screen. They are being made with a sound object, and whether they turn out good or bad, or whether their cost of production is criticised, it does not alter the object for which they were made which is to show them to the public, and therefore I consider it my duty in serving the public to show them at the earliest opportunity. F. w. allwood London and Provincial Cinemas Ltd., 150 Southampton Row, W.C.I. A DECADE IN THE SERVICE OF DOCUMENTARY AND— AS EVER— ALWAYS READY TO CARRY OUT COMPETENTLY, EXPEDITIOUSLY AND OBLIGINGLY EVERY REQUIREMENT THAT CAN BE USEFULLY PROVIDED BY A MODERN LABORATORY PREVIEW THEATRE (R.C.A.) and PRIVATE CUTTING ROOMS TELEPHONE: 1366 GERRARD STUDIO FILM LABORATORIES L™ 80-82 WARDOUR STREET & 71 DEAN STREET, LONDON, W.l