Land Of Promise, Part One (1931-1939)

Featuring 40 films, Land of Promise is a major retrospective of the British documentary film movement during its period of greatest influence. These films, many of which are available here for the first time since their original release, capture the spirit and strength, concerns and resolve of Britain and its people before, during and after the Second World War. These diverse and compelling films are fascinating historical documents, bearing witness to the social and industrial transformations of the rapidly changing world. Yet they are also striking in their different approach to the form. Using poetry, dramatic reconstruction, modernist techniques and explicit propaganda, the filmmakers found fresh, new ways to get their message across.

The films in this section: Industrial Britain (Flaherty, 1931); Shipyard (Rotha, 1935); Workers and Jobs (Elton, 1935); Housing Problems (Elton/Anstey, 1935); Children at School (Wright, 1937); Farewell Topsails (Jennings, 1937); Today We Live (R. Grierson/Bond, 1937); Eastern Valley (Alexander, 1937); People of Britain (Rotha, 1936); If War Should Come (unknown, 1939).