John Charles Elder

John Elder was born in Scotland, and worked as a producer, director, and cameraman. He supplied Scottish footage for Pathe, his first credit being for ‘NEW STEM FOR HMS RENOWN’ in Super Sound Gazette No.35/20 of March 1935. Elder was also in the Pathe camera teams that filmed ‘THE CORONATION OF THEIR MAJESTIES KING GEORGE VI AND QUEEN ELIZABETH’ for No.37/38 in May 1937, and ‘EMPIRE EXHIBITION’ in No.38/36 of May 1938. Elder formed Elder-Dalrymple Productions Ltd around 1936, with J. Blake Dalrymple, and they ‘made several series of educational, propaganda and interest travel films in Britain, Germany, Poland and Portugal.' Elder also founded the Scottish Educational Film Movement. Elder’s last prewar credit is for ‘BRITISH OPEN AMATEUR GOLF AT TROON’ in Pathe Super Sound Gazette No.38/42 of May 1938, and after the outbreak of war in September 1939 he joined the Royal Navy. After the war Elder and Dalrymple re-formed the company under the name Elder Film Productions and provided some Scottish footage for Movietone. Their first credit being for ‘FUNERAL OF WILL FYFFE’ in British Movietone News No.968 of December 1947. His credits appeared as ‘John Elder, Dalrymple’. Elder seems to have taken over this work from Harper Films, under Campbell Harper [qv]. By August 1949, when they provided ‘MRS MORROW-TAIT HOME’ for British Movietone News No.1055A, the credit appears as ‘Elder Films.' The last credit of this sort is ‘THE RETURN OF THE ‘GIRL JEAN’' in No.1076A from January 1950, and by the following month it was given as ‘Elders.'

By January 1951, when Elder provided ‘LAUNCH OF &'CLAN SUTHERLAND’' for the Scottish edition of British Movietone News No.1126A, the credit had reverted to ‘John Elder.' By this time he was working on his own under the name Elder Films which he managed with his wife Isabel. Elder was now Movietone’s Scottish representative, and provided a steady supply of material for the regional and national editions. He was listed in the Movietone staff list for October 1951, based in Glasgow. However, ‘Elder’ also provided footage from Scotland for ‘FORESTRY DISASTER: GALE DESTROYS TWO YEARS’ SUPPLY’ in British Paramount News No.2294 of February 1953. Elder was credited in the Movietone camera team that filmed ‘THE CORONATION’ for No.1252A in June 1953, filming from the Victoria Embankment. He also filmed ‘ROYAL SCOTTISH VISIT’ for No.1256 later that month, and was credited as providing a short piece of film of the same event for ‘SCOTLAND WELCOMES THE QUEEN’ in Pathe News No.53/48. The Elders were also credited for ‘SPORTING BRITONS’ in Pathe News No.54/54 of July 1954. John Elder also provided material for ‘DUKE AT THE HELM’ in British Paramount News No.2645 of July 1956. Elder’s last credit is for ‘IDEAL HOME’ in British Movietone News No.1639 of October 1960, after which Elder Films was replaced as Movietone’s Scottish representative by Templar Films, run by Robert Riddell-Black [qv].

Sources

BUFVC, British Paramount News files, Issue Number 2294 (Elder dopesheet on Paramount paper, February 1953), Number 2645 (John Elder dopesheet, July 1956), dope sheet BPN 2494 : P. Noble (ed) ‘British Film and Television Year Book 1956/57’ (London, 1957), p.106, ‘John Charles Elder, FEIS, FRGS’. ‘Biography of Elder Dalrymple Productions/Elder Films’, Researcher: Scottish Screen Archive, Scottish Screen website, http://ssa.nls.uk/biography.cfm?bid=10036 (accessed 1/8/2011)