Film Record: To the Ships of Sydney

Video capture from To the Ships of Sydney.

Identifier:

• 50757 (Source: National Film and Sound Archive)

Date produced: 1936

Filmmaker(s):

James A. Sherlock

Languages:

English

Duration:

00:15:00

Format:

16mm

Colour:

Kodachrome

Sound Notes:

Silent

Awards/Recognition:

American Cinematographer Amateur Movie Makers Contest, 1937 - Grand Prize
American Cinematographer Amateur Movie Makers Contest, 1937 - Equipment Prize, Bell & Howell
International Amateur Movie Show, 1938

Description:

"Semi-professional documentary made in a romantic style as a tribute to Sydney Harbour and the different types of vessels that cruise on it." NFSA.

"JAMES A. SHERLOCK, S.A.C, Sydney, Australia, with his "To the Ships of Sydney," is the winner of the grand prize of $200 in the American Cinematographer's 1937 International amateur competition for 8mm and 16mm films. Under the terms of the gift of $100 in merchandise by Bell and Howell, to go to the maker of the film which in the opinion of the judges was the best in photographic technique of those films made entirely with Bell and Howell cameras, the man Down Under automatically comes in for a second award." American Cinematographer, Jan. 1938, 26.

Resources:

Shot using a Bell & Howell Filmo camera, Kodak Kodachrome film, and a Weston Meter (American Cinematographer, Jan. 1938, 27).

Still images and sample titles from this film are shown in American Cinematographer, March 1938, 114.

The film's win in the American Cinematographer contest of 1937 is reported on in "Sydney Harbor Film Wins U.S. Prize" (The Northern Miner, Feb. 16, 1938, 1).

Accompanying musical compositions selected for a public screening of the film are listed in "Here's Complete Musical Scores for International Prize Winners" (American Cinematographer, Feb. 1938, 79-81).

This film is part of the James Sherlock collection held by the National Film and Sound Archive of Australia.

Locations:

• Balmain, Australia (Filming)
• Circular Quay, Australia (Filming)
• Darling Harbour, Australia (Filming)
• Glebe, Australia (Filming)
• Port Jackson, Australia (Filming)
• Pyrmont Bridge, Australia (Filming)
• Sydney Harbour, Sydney, Australia (Filming)

Genre:

• Travelogue

Repository:

National Film and Sound Archive of Australia

Screenings:

• Screened at the International Amateur Movie Show, April, 1938: Columbia University, New York, NY
• Screened by the Chicago Cinema Club in 1938: Chicago, IL
• Screened by the Los Angeles Cinema Club in 1938: Los Angeles, CA
• Screened by the Los Angeles 8mm. Club in 1938: Los Angeles, CA
• Screened by the Syracuse Movie Makers in 1946: Syracuse, N.Y.
• Reconstructing the 1938 International Amateur Movie Show, TIFF Lightbox, January 26, 2018: Toronto, Ontario

Viewing Notes:

"Semi-professional documentary made in a romantic style as a tribute to Sydney Harbour and the different types of vessels that cruise on it. Locations and landmarks include Port Jackson, Darling Harbour (dock workers unloading ship), Pyrmont Bridge, Circular Quay, Balmain, Glebe, Glebe Island Bridge and Sydney Harbour Bridge, Clarke Island, the Cockatoo Island Shipyards. Vessels include the "Mariposa" liner, the "Mornington" and "Longueville" ferries and many yachts." Via NFSA.

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