COACH TO CHILD ACTORS

Press, Volume XC, Issue 27427, 13 August 1954, Page 2

COACH TO CHILD ACTORS

N.Z. Woman’s Job In Britain A New Zealander, Miss Margaret Thomson, who was formerly a script writer and director for the National Film Unit, is now working on children’s films in Britain. She left New Zealand in 1935. A daughter of Dr. Allan Thompon, at one time director of the Dominion Museum, and a grand-daughter of Mr G. M. Thomson, a pioneer in natural history in New Zealand, Miss Thomson was a student at Victoria University College and Canterbury University College before she worked on several documentary films and on a number of short items for the National Film Unit’s “Weekly Review.” Her first position in Britain was as a script writer for the Crown Film Unit.

Recently Miss Thomson has coached the children acting in the British production “The Kidnappers,” a film of Neil Paterson’s short story, “Scottish Settlement,” which is shortly* to be screened in Christchurch. For the film she “discovered” Vincent Winter, aged five, the Aberdeenborn son of a merchant seaman. The child is described by one critic as a “wonderful natural actor.” Miss Thomson and others interviewed 3000 children in Scotland’s nursery schools before they found Winter to play “Davy” in the film. Also coached by Miss Thomson was Jon Whiteley, aged eight, who plays an important role in the film. As well as her asignment for “The Kidnappers,” Miss Thomson has recently finished work on a Group Three production called “Child’s Flay,” based on a newspaper headline, “Children Discover Atom Secret,” on a report which proved to be a hoax.