"Family footage shot in the garden of a house situated on The Beeches in West Didsbury; April 1925. Includes various scenes of a baby and child, sitting in a pram and playing with their nanny" (NWFA Online Database).
"Children playing in the Behrens family garden. Includes shots of two little girls sitting on a small wooden horse and a toddler wearing a knotted handkerchief on its head" (NWFA Online Database).
"Children Grow Up, photographed by Charles J. Carbonaro, ACL, and produced by The Religious Motion Picture Foundation, is one of the best examples of effectively handling amateur actors in a story telling film yet made. This three reel film was avowedly produced to point a moral in parent and child relationships and, as such, may be classed as social propaganda, a function in which it succeeds admirably. Yet the story it tells seems genuine and is of general audience interest. The film is carefully cut so that the action is logical and smoothly paced. Mr. Carbonaro is particularly to be congratulated for his handling of the difficult technique of parallel action, which occurs as the development of the children of two separate families takes place. Both streams of interest merge into one in a well planned, dramatic climax. The story is told entirely with the aid of amateur actors. Interior shots are in the majority and, for these, no special sets were built, the furnishings of the ordinary home being used. The lighting and exposure under these conditions are excellent throughout." Movie Makers, Dec. 1935, 534.
A documentary film demonstrating how learning and education in the classroom can be supported by an engagement with the local community and natural history.
"Documentary: Depicts lives of children in the Belgian Congo and French Cameroon." National Archives.
"Excellent documentary of the care and treatment of (cerebral palsy) spastic children. The very thought of the subject may bring us sharply to the realization of our good fortune. The picture handles the subject with fine touches of human interest and may cause us to feel thankful that there are those who will devote their time and energies to this work. It must be tremendously rewarding to see the children learn to walk and do things under their own power and control. A truly enlightening picture" PSA Journal, Nov. 1959, 48.
"During the 1940s, Mrs. Gertrude McGill ran the Children's Garden Library in the garden of her home at 1170 Tattersall Drive in Victoria. Open to children aged 4 to 12, this program aimed to improve reading habits and instill citizenship. It is seen as the beginning of cooperative preschools on Vancouver Island.
"Amateur film. Part 1 shows a day's activities at the Children's Garden Library, including games, calisthenics, playground equipment, dancing, and reading and storytelling at the "Book House". Part 2 shows the children participating in May 24 celebrations at Beacon Hill Park, which includes a May Queen pageant, maypole dancing, and activities honouring the "Queen of Health", the "Queen of Music", the "Queen of Drama", the "Queen of Race Friendship" and the "Queen of Art". A mothers' study group, and the toymakers' group, are also shown." (BC Archives)
"Two small boys are camping out (in their backyard) and are about to bed down for the night. Father tells them a couple of stories of prospecting and bad men and battles of swords and guns. The boys dream of re-enactment of the stories with surprising realism. The children are asleep and Father has another story to tell" PSA Journal, Nov. 1959, 48.
"Combines ancestral memory with reincarnation when the main character falls asleep, sees nymphs dancing in the same landscape hundreds of years in the past, and confronts his previous incarnation herding sheep and wearing fur." UC Berkeley Library.
"In China's Gifts to the West, we have what may be termed a tour de force of cinematic cutting. The most interesting part of the film is made up of a series of beautifully composed and photographed "stills," but the duration of each of these shots is so carefully timed that the entire sequence is fused into a relationship which conveys a distinct impression of cinematic motion — perhaps not "motion" in the ordinary sense of physical activity, but rather the deeper and more fundamental activity of the mind as it contemplates, one after the other, the various ideas which make up the unity of a conception. This has been accomplished by Mr. Space in his excellent choice of illustrations, which are projected into the mind in exactly the right order and appearance. Beside this purely cinematic achievement, the maker of the film is to be congratulated on his excellent taste in selecting and displaying objects of art to the best advantage. The photographic technique employed in producing closeups and ultra closeups of fabrics, china and other materials is undeniably pretty close to perfection." Movie Makers, Dec. 1936, 551-552.
"A Chinese and an American boy find China's products in the latter's home." The Educational Screen, Jan. 1946, 23.
Total Pages: 203
Amateur Cinema