Picture Paper

About the film

An amusing look at the production of a picture magazine, following the journalist 'Jim' as he investigates a town planning story in the north of England.

Download this film

Details

• Release year - 1946
• Director - Erik Cripps
• Production company - Horizon Film Unit
• Cinematographers - A. T. Dinsdale, Raymond Elton
• Composer - Francis Chagrin
• Narration - Leslie Bradley
• Editor - Ernest Hilton
• Musical director - Francis Chagrin
• Performers - Leslie Bradley (Jim the Journalist), Sir Thomas Hopkinson (Tom the Editor), Bert 'George' Hardy (Paper Staff), Kurt Hutton (Paper Staff), Albert Lancaster Lloyd (Paper Staff), Tom Wintringham (Paper Staff)
• Unknown - Phillip Lindsay, Maxwell Munden, Albert Rayner
• Running time (minutes) - 18 mins 33 secs

Original description

The production of an illustrated paper

'A film showing the honesty and integrity of those who produce British picture magazines, describing the choosing of the subjects and the telling of a detailed story. The film has a subsidiary town-planning interest.'

(Films of Britain - British Council Film Department Catalogue - 1947-50)

Did you know?

• The specific roles of most of the individuals listed in the title credits is not clear, as the credits merely state 'Made by', followed by a list of names. The roles listed above have been assigned based on the other works of the individuals in question.
• The editor of the paper, though uncredited, is not an actor but the real editor of the 'Picture Post' paper at the time - Sir Thomas Hopkinson. Other individuals seen at the editorial meeting are actual Picture Post journalists and staff. Photographer Haywood Magee, though not seen, is mentioned in the meeting.
• The town of 'Ironborough' featured in Picture Paper is, in fact, Middlesbrough - the nickname referring to the town’s industrial heritage. A number of the streets seen in the film - such as Unthank Street - were indeed knocked down and built over as part of the town's redevelopment. Signs can also be seen for nearby Yarm and Stockton-on-Tees.
• The magazine shown in Picture Paper seems to comprise of a collection of articles drawn from several genuine issues of Picture Post. Whilst the story 'How to Plan Your Town' shown in the film is fictional, a story of the same title was run in Picture Post in October 1944, and featured some of the same photographs.

All films are subject to the Creative Commons licence guidelines.

Learn more about how to use to the film archive.