Secrets of Nature Pioneering Natural History Films, 1922 - 1933
- Synopsis
- A digitally remastered collection of 19 British films made between 1922 and 1933 that used groundbreaking techniques to share the secrets of the natural world with cinema audiences. The pioneering series explored animal, plant and insect life, making wondrous worlds and natural processes visible for the first time: sweet peas unfurl in the sunlight, white owls swoop on their prey, sea life lurks on the ocean floor and moths patiently spin their cocoons. These rarely-seen films were made by enterprising men and women such as Percy Smith and Mary Field, at the forefront of science and nature filmmaking, who developed groundbreaking techniques of time-lapse, microscopic and underwater cinematography.
Individual film titles by area are:
Techniques
Fathoms Deep Beneath the Sea (1922), The Plants of the Pantry (1927), Magic Myxies (1931, The World in a Wine-glass (1931), Romance in a Pond (1932), Brewster’s Magic (1933)
Birds
The Cuckoo’s Secret (1922), The White Owl (1922), The Bittern (1931), The Nightingale (1932)
Insects
Skilled Insect Artisans (1922), The Battle of the Ants (1922), Busy Bees (1926), The Aphis (1930)
Plants
Floral Co-operative Societies (1927), Peas and Cues (1930), Scarlet Runner & Co (1930), The Strangler (1930), Gathering Moss (1933)
DVD extras: PERCY SMITH WITH HERONS (1921), an extract from the Urban Movie Chats series: one of nature filmmaking’s pioneers in the role of adoptive father;
38-page illustrated booklet featuring newly commissioned essays by leading researchers and scholars including the Science Museum’s Tim Boon, film notes, photographs and illustrations - Language
- English
- Country
- Great Britain
- Year of release
- 2010
- Subjects
- Biology; Film studies
- Keywords
- archive films; birds; insects; natural history; plants; scientific cinematography
Credits
- Director
- Mary Field; Percy Smith
Distribution Formats
- Type
- DVD
- Format
- Region 2 PAL
- Price
- £19.99
- Availability
- Sale
- Duration/Size
- 200 minutes
- Year
- 2010
Distributor
- Name
BFI Video
- video.films@bfi.org.uk
- Web
- http://www.bfi.org.uk External site opens in new window
- Phone
- 020 7957 8957
- Fax
- 020 7957 8968
- Address
- 21 Stephen Street
London
W1T 1LN
Available from retail outlets
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