
120 short documentary films made by the British Council during the 1940s - camtarn
http://film.britishcouncil.org/british-council-film-collection
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camtarn
"The British Council Film Collection is an archive of 120 short documentary
films made by the British Council during the 1940s designed to show the world
how Britain lived, worked and played. Preserved by the BFI National Film
Archive and digitised by means of a generous donation by Google, the films are
now yours to view, to download and to play with for the first time.

"The British Council is the UK’s cultural relations organisation working to
create international opportunities for the people of the UK and other
countries and building trust between them. During the 1940s, British Council
was a very different organisation operating in a very different political and
social climate. As part of its programme then it was concerned to promote an
idea of ‘Britain and Britishness’ – and did so by becoming an enthusiastic
commissioner of documentary films. Over 120 films were produced as 'cultural
propaganda' to counteract anything the Nazis might throw out and to refute the
idea that ours was a country stuck in the past. These films were designed to
showcase Britain to the rest of the world, at a time when Britain itself was
under attack.

"Seen by millions of people in over 100 countries worldwide from the 1940's to
1960's, they present an historic snapshot of Britain, portraying its industry,
its landscapes, and its people. The Collection is fantastically varied,
covering anything from how a bicycle is made, to how the British spend their
Saturdays. They provide us with a unique insight - not necessarily into how
Britain actually was, but more into how Britain once wanted to be perceived by
the rest of the world."

