Northern Alliance - BFI

Appendix III A brief history of short film 65
The early history of cinema lay entirely in short films. Early producers made large
numbers of one and two reelers – films of usually less than ten minutes duration. The
first feature-length films were produced in 1912 in the UK and USA. 66 Longer-form
narratives slowly developed into the cultural and industry norm. Once the feature
film was firmly established at the heart of cinema programmes the short film could
emerge as something separate and special.
In the UK, short filmmaking has been strongly influenced by the intervention of the
public sector. Perhaps the most famous British short documentary film, Night Mail, 67
was produced by the GPO film unit. The Free Cinema screenings 68 (1956-59),
organised by Lindsay Anderson and Karel Reisz, were described in terms that may still
be recognised as valid:
"Most of [the films]… have been produced outside the framework of the film
industry, though not without the help of the industry. This has meant that their
directors have been able to express their own viewpoints, sometimes unusual,
without obligation to subscribe to the technical or social conventions imposed on
work under commercial conditions."
The BFI‟s involvement in short film production began in 1952 with the creation of the
Experimental Film Fund 69 which aimed “to launch new filmmakers”. The BFI produced
relatively low numbers of shorts, typically five to eight a year as one-off investments,
until the introduction of production strands. 70 The longest lasting strand, New
65 Unfortunately, there are few historical data available on short films in the UK. The shifts that
have happened in the organisational landscape have perhaps had a part to play in this. It is also worth
noting that the UK Film Council’s Statistical Yearbook has not referenced short films to date.
66 In the UK, With our King and Queen through India and Oliver Twist; and in the USA, From the
Manger to the Cross and Richard III.
67 Harry Watt and Basil Wright, 1936, featuring music by Benjamin Britten and poetry by WH
Auden.
68 These were not exclusively dedicated to short films.
69 Re-launched and restructured in 1966 as the BFI Production Board.
70 Its alumni included Ken Russell (Amelia and the Angel, 1958), Tony Richardson and Karel
Reisz (Momma Don’t Allow, 1956), Ridley Scott (Boy and Bicycle, 1965), Tony Scott (One of the
Missing, 1968 and Early One Morning, 1969), Peter Greenaway (a walk through h, 1978) and Nick
Broomfield (Who Cares, 1971). The BFI backed a wide range of genres, including animation and
documentary as well as narrative fiction, and worked with both British and international directors, such
as Franco-Swiss director Claude Goretta. The BFI also supported what claims to be the first (certainly it
is a very early) computer animated short, The Mathematician (1971).
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