BRITISH FILMS

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LV, Issue 17146, 31 December 1929, Page 11

BRITISH FILMS

AID IN AUSTRALIA MELBOURNE, Dvr. -20. "We feel i,hii,t U\o time is ripe f "-' British productions t" reach British people.'' said Mr. W. A. Watt, (hairman of the directors of P.ritish Dominion jfilms, Ltd.. at a dinner given last night bv"the company at Menzie's Hotel, to mark the launching oi a campaign on liphalf of British films. "We thought at first " he added, "that the introduction Ot the talking pictures would dislocate the British 'moving picture [industry, but now it seems as if it was a dis> cuised blessing. . "Even 12 months ago the phrase British films for the world' would have been almost laughable,", said Mr. Stuart F. Dovle, managing-director of Union Theatres, Ltd. "To-day it is a challenge and a prophecy. Before the next 12 months have elapsed, it will, 1 bopc and bplieve, be a statement of fact. ,ln tho early days, British films literally were made for the world. Then they suffered an eclipse, from winch ]U,St before the' war, they were slowly cmerguig. For 10 years British .films have staggered under the handicap of the war years. To-day, very slowly a.nd surely, thev are churning attention again, .thankV.to .the introduction of the talking picture. "Talkie .have put new life into the British film' production and oxhlbating industries. -With .this new force, those who know .their mother tongue, who realise its fluidity .and clarity, who love music, Who ilefll t'" 1 - ,! M>wcr . " . Pf tr &! and who have, the dramatic instinct will come into their own. Lmglish may well become, through the screen, tho universal language. Tbe screen play will open its arms ,to the Kinglish-speakmg peoples, who have' a thousand-year-old history, .literature, and tradition and a mental background without f™ 1 - "Fro,,, close observation. 1 find that British producers have put .then; bucks into the task of making talking pictures. it'is only a question of time, in my opinion, before Rritish films succeed, not only in England and the Empire, but in all the markets of the world .«It is interesting to note here thai, the Empire's vast audience oI«Sp#»MQ potential picture-goers are catered Jw try some 70C0 theatres, of whicl total Australia boasts almost 1300 This IS the biggest, quota, in ratio to papulation, of any country in the world. Koughlv, there is one cinema foi > §OO6 Australians-* ratio just tl times greater than that in U.S.A.-,n< S'is a notable fact that ql lb. £25 OCO,COb invested in the exhibiting business in this country every penny J* British—sufficient evidence that ,the oicrepeated canard of the 'foreign domination' of the/Australian film business .is " "Union Theatres, Ltd., has entered into an arrangement with Mr. ™jp -Vnni'mil. manafiiiE director of the in-tish-Dominion Films, Ltd., whereby the productions of his organisation will be released right through Union Theatres circuit in every State, of the Commonwealth, and it is the intention ol Union Theatres to get behind the British Dominion Films, Ltd.'s productions and endeavor to place them in all piehire theatres in the Commonwealth. British Dominions Films Ltd., distributes the ; whole of the productions of Britain s ; largest studios." i Mr Dbvle added that negotiations had 1 commenced with the object of imlueinc run of the leading .producers of Great ! Britain to come to Australia to produce ; Australian talking pictures, not onlv for |screening in Australia, hut also in Great : Britain and the United States.