Film Record: Moods of Nature

Date produced: 1934

Filmmaker(s):

Paul Burnford

Languages:

English

Duration:

00:09:00

Format:

16mm

Colour:

B&W

Sound Notes:

Silent

Awards/Recognition:

American Cinematographer Amateur Movie Makers Contest, 1935 - Documentary
American Cinematographer Amateur Movie Makers Contest, 1935 - Equipment Prize, B&H
IAC Film Collection, East Anglian Film Archive

Description:

"'Moods of Nature' by Paul Brunford, recently won a prize in the Institute of Amateur Cinematographers' contest in England. Not only does Brunford show a fine sense of rhythm, but a keen eye for composition and a splendid sense of cutting and dramatic values in nature. This picture merely deals with a storm arising and then subsiding. Brunford uses both water and earth to show this. The smashing waves, bending trees and waving wheatfields combine to create his drama. His photography however, is something for which he is to be especially congratulated." American Cinematographer, Jan. 1936, 24.

Resources:

Accompanying musical compositions chosen for a public screening of the film are listed in "Musical Scores for the Prize Pictures" (American Cinematographer, Feb. 1936, 68-69, 76).

This film is a part of the Institute of Amateur Cinematographers collection held by the East Anglian Film Archive.

Locations:

• England (Filming)

Subjects:

• Ethnology
•      Manners and Customs
•           Country life
• Nature
•      Plants
•           Trees
•      Water
•           Bodies of Water
• Seasons
• Europe
•      England

Genre:

• Documentary

Form:

• Short

Repository:

Institute of Amateur Cinematographers Collection, East Anglian Film Archive

Screenings:

• Screened by the Los Angeles Amateur Cine Club in 1936: Los Angeles, CA
• Screened by the 8-16 Movie Club of Philadelphia in 1943: Philadelphia, PA
• Screened by the Syracuse Movie Makers in 1946: Syracuse, N.Y.

Viewing Notes:

"It began with a long sequence showing nature in a tranquil aspect; then came the wind, whistling a screaming warning of an oncoming storm; next came the storm itself, portrayed especially by the thunderous-voiced surf; lastly, Nature's calm was again restored, but with a distinct note of the everlasting permanency of Nature's expressions." American Cinematographer, Feb. 1936, 68.

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