GPO 30s Britain (Vol 1)

Granton Trawler - 11 min, John Grierson (1934) - A trawler out fishing on Viking bank. "The one credit I was absolutely insistent on was putting my name on as cameram... more >

Granton Trawler - 11 min, John Grierson (1934) - A trawler out fishing on Viking bank. "The one credit I was absolutely insistent on was putting my name on as cameraman… I had to put my name on because there was nobody else on the picture except me. It was a solo effort… It is a sweet little film." Grierson. Coal Face, 12 min, Cavalcanti (1935) - A prestigious experiment in sound using coal-mining shots made by various members of the unit over a long period. A Job In A Million, 18 min, Evelyn Spice (1937) - This documentary showing a Cockney lad training to be a messenger boy is a perfect example of the breakthrough effected by the GPO Film Unit at a time when working-class people were usually presented as merely comic characters in British feature films. Spare Time, 14 min, Jennings (1939) - Showing how workers in three industries (steel, cotton and coal) spend their spare time. Jennings differed from earlier British documentarists in stressing workers individuality instead of presenting them as symbols of the dignity of labour. The City, 20 min, Ralph Elton (1939) - An analysis of the growth and development of London. The film highlights problems in the late Thirties and shows Post Office helping to reduce road congestion and improve the movement of mail through the use of its own underground train system. < less

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