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

MINUTES OF EVIDENCE 11 5 May, 1936.] Mr. R. D. Fennelly. [Contmi in J. 72. The Table shows that the number of British films which are booked tor 5,001 days and upwards was in excess of the number of foreign films so booked in each of the years 1932-33 and 1933-34. This comparison is even more striking when it is remembered that the number of foreign long films registered is between two and three times as great as the number of British long films registered. It must, of course, be remembered that a large number of films in the higher range of bookings are those made by the British producers who have affiliated renting and exhibiting organisations and also that there is a certain demand for the good British films for quota purposes. 73. It will be observed that in the category of the lowest range of bookings (1 to 2,000 days) there is a larger percentage of British films than of foreign films. The British films falling within this class include a large number of films acquired by the foreign-controlled renters in order to meet their obligations under the Act. It is a constant complaint of exhibitors that a large proportion of the films acquired by these renters are of poor quality and that they do not offer a satisfactory booking proposition in the case of most cinemas. It is around this question of the quality of " quota " films that the chief controversy regarding the operation of the Act has arisen. 74. The quality of British films may be examined from another aspect. Reference has already been made in paragraph 51 to the markings assigned to films by the Cinematograph Exhibitors' Association Review. The Board of Trade have no means of judging whether the standard of marking is constant throughout a year or as between one year and another, and in the case of particular films the markings may perhaps be open to criticism. It may perhaps be assumed, however, that throughout the range they represent fairly accurate marking from the exhibitors' point of view. The scale of markings has already been described in the footnote to paragraph 51. 75. The following Table " L " shows in summary form the markings assigned by the Review to British films in the quota year 1932-33 and also in the calendar years 1934 and 1935. In the Table a comparison is made between the British films registered by British renters and those registered by foreigncontrolled renters. Full details of the markings of the films acquired by the different companies are given in Appendix VI. Table L. Quota year 1st April, 1932 Calendar Year 1st January Calendar Year 1st January Scale of Markings. to 31st March, 1933. to 31st December, 1934. to 31st December, 1935. British Renters. No. of films. Per cent. No. of films. Per cent. No. of films. Per cent. Under 7 7 9 7 9 2 2 7to7J: 5 7 3 4 6 7 7|to7f 5 7 16 21 22 26 8 to 8£ 38 51 41 54 52 60 8| and over 19 26 9 12 4 5 Total 74 100 76 100 86 100 U.S. Controlled Renters. Under 7 9 11 33 31 33 34 7 to 74. 16 20 32 29 29 30 7£to7f 18 23 29 27 19 20 8 to 81 33 42 12 11 14 14 8| and over 3 4 2 2 2 2 Total 79 100 108 100 97 100 76. Taking a marking of eight and above as the criterion of a good film, it will be seen that in the calendar year 1935, 56 out of 86 films registered by British renters, as compared with only 16 out of 97 registered by foreign-controlled renters, fell within this category. Whether or not in consequence of some variation in the standard of marking, the proportion of British films falling within this class has tended to fall on a comparison of the three periods ; but the fall has been considerably greater in the case of the foreign-controlled renters than in the case of the British renters. 77. Since the exhibitors' quota has increased to 15 and 20 per cent, the Board of Trade have received complaints from the exhibitors that they are unable to obtain sufficient British pictures of good quality and that in order to meet their obligations under the Act they are forced to book British films of inferior quality and consequently with low earning capacity. The films registered in the year 1935 represent more or less those available to exhibitors during the quota year 1st October, 1935, to 30th September, 1936. Again on the assumption that a marking of eight and above represents a good film, it will be seen that the number of such lilms available to exhibitors was 72. Where an exhibitor shows two feature films in his programme and changes his programme once a week he requires, with a quota of 20 per cent., some 25 British long films after making some allowance to cover his deficiency in quota on foreign short films. Where the independent exhibitor is in competition with one or both of the producer-renter-exhibitor circuits he has no opportunity of booking their films " first run " and his choice is therefore somewhal restricted, especially when allowance is made for the competition of smaller circuits or with other independents and for films which, although of good quality, do not suit particular localities. Too much stress should perhaps not be laid on these calculations, especially as some of the films marked 71, ami ~i may be specially suitable for particular parts of the count i\ . 78. It is clear, however, that the tendency oi foreign-controlled renters has been to acquire cheaply produced British films in order to meet 3G152 B 2