Edwardian Insects on Film

Edwardian Insects on Film

59 mins | Documentary | March 19, 2013

In 1908, amateur naturalist and pioneering filmmaker Percy Smith stunned early cinema goers with his footage of the juggling fly. Hailed as the father of Natural History film, Smith was a hugely influential visual pioneer, inventing many techniques that are still used today. Being both a genius and an eccentric, we follow his life from his earliest films, to the collapse of his house from his mould experiment to his ultimate suicide. We also meet Natural History icon Sir David Attenborough, who was so amazed by Smith’s films in the 1930s that they inspired him to get into natural history.

Edwardian Insects on Film

59 mins | Documentary | March 19, 2013

Edwardian Insects on Film
In 1908, amateur naturalist and pioneering filmmaker Percy Smith stunned early cinema goers with his footage of the juggling fly. Hailed as the father of Natural History film, Smith was a hugely influential visual pioneer, inventing many techniques that are still used today. Being both a genius and an eccentric, we follow his life from his earliest films, to the collapse of his house from his mould experiment to his ultimate suicide. We also meet Natural History icon Sir David Attenborough, who was so amazed by Smith’s films in the 1930s that they inspired him to get into natural history.
Producers BBC, Mentorn Media, BFI National Archive, National Media Museum
Original title Edwardian Insects on Film
Directors John Holdsworth
Writers

Cast

Charlie Hamilton-James

as Self - Presenter

Dr Tim Boon

as Self - Science Museum, London

David Cleveland

as Self - Film Archivist

Tim Cockerill

as Self - Entomologist

Bryony Dixon

as Self - Curator, Silent Film, BFI

Jenny Hammerton

as Self - Film Archivist

Michael Harvey

as Self - National Media Museum

Percy Smith

as Self - archive footage

John Winder

as Self - Scientist & Collector