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Topic: The Green Girdle

Maurice Leakey
Film God

Posts: 5895
From: Bristol. United Kingdom
Registered: Oct 2007

posted November 19, 2013 04:10 AM

"The Green Girdle" is not an item from Dorothy Perkins, it's an IB Technicolor film I recently bought. A 400' short made in 1941 by Ralph Keene for The British Council extolling the beauties of green land around London and more afar for the enjoyment of the great British public, and hoping that these areas of land would be kept like it forever.

So the name which we use so much these days Green Belt (land) has had a name-change over the years. It does sound better than its original name, after all, who's now heard of a girdle?

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Maurice

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Paul Mason
Jedi Master Film Handler

Posts: 540
From: Aldershot, Hampshire, UK
Registered: Nov 2013

posted November 19, 2013 08:00 AM

The term "Green Belt or Girdle" seems to have originated with the London County Council in 1935 but "Girdle" seems to have disappeared after 1947 when Green Belts were introduced around London and other cities.

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Paul.

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Maurice Leakey
Film God

Posts: 5895
From: Bristol. United Kingdom
Registered: Oct 2007

posted November 21, 2013 09:45 AM

This the BFI data-base reference:-
http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/15338?view=synopsis

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Maurice

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Paul Mason
Jedi Master Film Handler

Posts: 540
From: Aldershot, Hampshire, UK
Registered: Nov 2013

posted November 25, 2013 04:01 AM

A Technicolor documentary is indeed unusual for 1941. The photography is credited by the BFI to Jack Cardiff, famed for his later work for Michael Powell. I only know one other British colour wartime documentary "Western Approaches". Of course William Wyler and John Ford made "Memphis Belle" and "Battle of Midway" using 16mm Kodachrome.

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Paul.

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Maurice Leakey
Film God

Posts: 5895
From: Bristol. United Kingdom
Registered: Oct 2007

posted November 25, 2013 05:15 AM

"Steel" (1945) is another IB Technicolor documentary I have which was photographed by Jack Cardiff.
http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/21362

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Maurice

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Robert Crewdson
Phenomenal Film Handler

Posts: 1031
From: UK
Registered: Jun 2013

posted November 25, 2013 06:10 AM

Why not simply post the link to the film so that members can watch it themselves. One picture is worth a thousand words so the saying goes.

http://timeimage.wikispaces.com/Green+Girdle

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Paul Mason
Jedi Master Film Handler

Posts: 540
From: Aldershot, Hampshire, UK
Registered: Nov 2013

posted November 25, 2013 07:34 AM

Excellent link Robert. I notice from this that the British Council sponsored several Technicolor shorts during the war photographed by Jack Cardiff and Geoffrey Unsworth.

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Paul.

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Robert Crewdson
Phenomenal Film Handler

Posts: 1031
From: UK
Registered: Jun 2013

posted November 25, 2013 09:01 AM

I was surprised Paul, such a lot of big names involved in a 10 minute production.

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Paul Mason
Jedi Master Film Handler

Posts: 540
From: Aldershot, Hampshire, UK
Registered: Nov 2013

posted November 26, 2013 03:26 AM

Robert, Indeed. I believe Jack Cardiff started his career with the British subsidiary of Technicolor in the late 30s and there were only four Technicolor cameras in Britain during the war. I assume you hired both camera and their expert when using Technicolor.

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Paul.

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Robert Crewdson
Phenomenal Film Handler

Posts: 1031
From: UK
Registered: Jun 2013

posted November 26, 2013 06:34 AM

There has been an excellent documentary about Jack Cardiff on one of the Freesat channels, you might have seen it, or it might come around again.

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