Still image from Her Second Birthday via EAFA.
United Kingdom
English
00:05:32
16mm
B&W
Silent
"A record of the second birthday of June Thubron. The spontaneous actions of a little girl on finding her birthday presents. A record of her actions without any adult direction. The little girl plays with her birthday presents on the lawn and also waters flowers in the garden before falling asleep. In a stop-frame animated sequence subtitled 'Dreamland' towards the end of the film, her new toys come alive." East Anglian Film Archive.
The film won "Best Family Interest Film" in the Institute of Amateur Cinematographers' contest of 1933 (American Cinematographer, Jan. 1934, 370).
According to East Anglian Film Archive, this film was produced by the Thubrons, whose granddaughter, June Thubron, starred in the film. June would later go on to have a successful career as an actress under the name June Thorburn.
Agnes K. Thubron wrote an article titled "How I Made It: Her Second Birthday" in IAC Bulletin, Jan. 1934, 12-14.
This film is a part of the Institute of Amateur Cinematographers Collection held by the East Anglian Film Archive.
Institute of Amateur Cinematographers Collection, East Anglian Film Archive
"Shots include: Logo: Thubrons [top of title card] Limited [bottom of title card] with head of puppy poking through hole cut into middle of card. Shots of the back garden of the Thubron’s house, an unidentified man stands on the patio (possibly June Thubron’s grand-father Mr J Thubron or perhaps her father); June Thubron walks off patio area onto lawn, holding a stuffed toy (possibly a dog), she drops it on the ground and picks up one of her new birthday presents, a larger stuffed toy (dog), she carries the large stuffed dog toy towards camera; June Thubron walks across lawn to possibly another of her birthday presents, a cot, and possibly either her grand-mother (Mrs K Thubron) or her mother is seated on the lawn, the little girl plays with the cot while the woman watches, she places her large stuffed dog toy in the cot; June Thubron runs towards camera with her large stuffed dog toy, places her toy on the tricycle; June Thubron then pushes a chair on wheels vigorously across the lawn; June Thubron runs away from the cot containing her large stuffed dog toy, and then moves the cot; June Thubron shows a stuffed toy penguin to an unidentified individual off-screen; June Thubron moves the cot to a shadier area of lawn; June Thubron with a small watering can waters flowers in garden, and a tree in tub, she looks off-screen; June Thubron plays with the chair on wheels; June Thubron sucks her thumb, drops her large toy dog to floor, then places it on a rug, she lays a cushion on ground, lies down on the cushion, and sucks her thumb, before getting up; June Thubron strokes her large stuffed dog toy; she lays on the cushion with the large stuffed dog toy beside her. Intertitle: Dreamland. Shots after the intertitle include: an animated sequence in which June Thubron’s toys/ birthday presents, including the large stuffed dog toy, a doll, Mickey Mouse and a stuffed toy horse, fall from cot; the dog and mouse stand, the dog listens to the mouse, both toys walk towards the horse and tricycle; the mouse tethers the horse to the tricycle; the dog climbs on the tricycle; the mouse rides the horse as the horse pulls the tricycle across lawn; the toys stop and the dog and mouse disembark; the mouse climbs on back of the dog; the dog walks across the lawn to a toy rabbit; the dog sits and the mouse falls off its back; the mouse, dog and rabbit stand; June Thubron opens her eyes; her toys disappear from the lawn; June Thubron looks directly into the camera lens." Via East Anglian Film Archive.
Amateur Cinema