Secrets of Nature: Pioneering Natural History Films
Filming a cuckoo laying in another bird's nest, or a barn owl swooping on some mice, or filming a wild bittern would be challenging enough today. Filming them all 80-90 years ago was a major achievement. To put it in context, some of these films are so old, there is no sound, but information cards, like an early Buster Keaton film, keep you updated with what is going on. Where sound is available, it is usually the charming clipped tones of a Mr Cholmendley-Warner sound alike. These charming films were at the cutting edge of natural history research, as it was often only by filming some of these events that we could actually see what was happening, and understand them.
This is the first time that most of these films have been released on DVD, and all have been digitally remastered by the BFI.
There are 4 different sections covered by the DVD.
- The techniques: Fathoms Deep Beneath the Sea (1922), The Plants of the Pantry (1927), Magic Myxies (1931), The World in a Wine-glass (1931), Romance in a Pond (1932), Brewster's Magic (1933).
- The birds: The Cuckoo's Secret (1922), The White Owl (1922), The Bittern (1931), The Nightingale (1932)
- The insects: Skilled Insect Artisans (1922), The Battle of the Ants (1922), Busy Bees (1926), The Aphis (1930)
- The plants: Floral Co-operative Societies (1927), Peas and Cues (1930), Scarlet Runner & Co (1930), The Strangler (1930), Gathering Moss (1933)
RR Price: £19.99 - Available from Amazon from around £10, click Secrets Of Nature [DVD] [1922]
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