Re: British Transport Films Collection
Posted: Fri Jan 23, 2009 8:10 am
I may be completely misremembering this, but I think the original plan was to include the first eight volumes plus a bonus disc, but the bonus disc grew into the double-disc volume 9, which was released separately as well.J Wilson wrote:Correct me if I'm wrong, but wasn't there talk of a bonus disc being released with the BTF box set? The set, as far as I can tell, didn't come with one. And does anyone know if any further BTF releases are coming?
Lovely idea in theory, but it seems to be based on a "pull the tape off the shelf and slap it on YouTube" model at little cost other than operator time.colinr0380 wrote:Could there be plans to release them in another medium, say on the BFI YouTube channel or something like that, just to make them available somehow?
That's the Oscar-nominated Snow by the great Geoffrey Jones, who actually has a BFI DVD to himself, containing virtually his entire output.Matt wrote:Then I saw this one. Wow. That's an editing master class right there. Perhaps this film is also not necessarily characteristic of what's on the BRT DVDs, but I'm glad I stumbled upon it.
British Transport Films Volume 10 - London on the Move
Following the nationalisation of transport in 1948, the British Transport Commission set up its own in-house film production unit. Launched on 1st May 1949, and led for 25 years by Edgar Anstey a founding father of the British documentary movement it became one of the largest industrial film units in Britain.
British Transport Films Volume 10 London on the Move, marks a most welcome return for the BFI's celebrated and best-selling DVD series, and marks a shift in focus onto travel in the nation's capital.
Bringing together a number of fascinating and informative films themed around London Transport, this extensive 2-DVD set explores travel on the trams, buses and tube trains which have carried millions of visitors and residents alike around London every year.
Disc one
All that Mighty Heart (1951)
Our Canteens (1951)
One for One (1964)
Cine Gazette No.14: Do You Remember? (1955)
The Nine Road (1975)
London on the Move (1970)
Disc Two
Under Nights Streets (1958)
Power Signal Lineman (1953)
Omnibus 150 (1979)
Cine Gazette No. 10 (1951)
Moving London (1983)
AFC: Automatic Fare Collection and You (1969)
Overhaul (1957)
Special features
Moving Millions (1947, 15 mins): A Central Office of Information film made by the Crown Film Unit in 1947 illustrating the scope of London Transport activities at their most extensive including bus, underground, trams and trollybuses.
Fully illustrated booklet
UK / 1947-1983 / black & white, and colour / 223 minutes / Ratio 1.33:1
The British Transport Films Collection Volume Ten
London on the Move
On 17 September 2012 a new volume will be added to the BFI's best-selling series of transport and travel films, The British Transport Films Collection. London on the Move, the tenth in the series of double-DVD sets, focuses on the films that the BTF Film Unit produced for London Transport in the post-war period - films that explore the workings of the capital's bus and underground train networks.
Spanning nearly 40 years from 1947-1983, the films will not only appeal to transport enthusiasts, but can be relished and enjoyed by anyone with an interest in British social history or documentary filmmaking.
Following the nationalisation of transport in 1948, the British Transport Commission set up its own in-house film production unit. Launched on 1st May 1949, and led for 25 years by Edgar Anstey - a founding father of the British documentary movement - it became one of the largest industrial film units in Britain.
Highlights of Volume Ten include the classics All That Mighty Heart, Under Night Streets and Overhaul, as well as rare gems like Power Signal Lineman and Our Canteens. This selection has been digitally remastered for this release and is accompanied by a booklet of film notes.
Disc One
• All That Mighty Heart (1963): a day-in-the-life of London's arterial transport networks, filmed across London and its suburbs between 1953 and 1963;
• Our Canteens (1951): a fascinating and informative staff instructional film which was shown to all new canteen service recruits as a training aid;
• One for One (1964): a detailed record of the full mechanical and electrical overhaul that London's buses received after every 200,000 miles of service;
• Cine Gazette No.14: Do You Remember? (1955): London-born actor John Slater narrates this 1955 film which demonstrates London Transport's system for retrieving and returning the lost property of its passengers;
• The Nine Road (1975): this film shows all the aspects of running the "Nine Road", one of London's oldest and most used bus routes that runs right across town;
• London on the Move (1970): with its 250 miles of track and 5,000 miles of bus routes, the daily running of London Transport was enormously complex, as this film shows.
Disc Two
• Under Night Streets (1958): a glimpse into the world of the 1,100 strong labour force which sets to work on London's underground lines every night, after the last train has departed;
• Power Signal Lineman (1953): this film formed part of LT's training course for the Underground's Power Signal Linemen;
• Omnibus 150 (1979): this film, which was produced to mark the 150th anniversary of the first London Omnibus, charts the evolution of public transport by bus in London;
• Cine Gazette No.10 (1951): a newsreel-style production relaying information about London Transport's bus and underground services;
• Moving London (1983): an ex-LT employee describes how the London Transport network has modernised and expanded during the 50 years since it was created;
• AFC: Automatic Fare Collection and You (1969): an amusing short made to coincide with the opening of the new Victoria Line;
• Overhaul: this film takes a look at the operation at Aldenham, where London's buses are made to look new again after serving four years' service on the road.
Special Features
• Moving Millions (1947): a Central Office of Information film made by the Crown Film Unit in 1947 illustrating the scope of London Transport's activities;
• Comprehensive booklet with new essays and film notes by Patrick Russell (BFI) and Stephen Edwards.
Product Details
RRP: £19.99 / cat.no. BFIVD894 / E
UK / 1947-1983 / black and white, and colour / 223 mins / Ratio 1.33:1
Perhaps the most revealing and fascinating short of them all leads disc two: "Under Night Streets," a 1958 peek at the inner workings on the tube lines after the trains have closed for the evening. You get to see the workers toiling away repairing the tracks, going deep in the tunnels, cleaning out all the human-caused debris, and testing out the workings from every possible angle. It's all visually striking, too, and would actually make a terrific short film before watching Quatermass and the Pit or Raw Meat (aka Death Line).
Even more off-topic, but at least it's BFI-related: I think that shot of the 'fluffers' (and maybe some of the other footage as well) comes from Molly Dineen's wonderful 'Heart of the Angel'. At the very least, that film establishes that not all of the surrealism of that report was invented: there really are teams of nocturnal workers wandering through the tunnels picking wads of human hair off the tracks!colinr0380 wrote:It reminds me a little of this Day Today report!