Film Comment:
Lanterna Magicka: Bill Douglas and the Secret History of Cinema
Bill Douglas was an avid collector of everything from the pre-cinema era that could create moving pictures and LANTERNA MAGICKA presents the entire historic range of pre-cinematic memorabilia that obsessed him. Douglas was passionate about cinema and he loved making his own movies more than anything else. He wasn't a cool and calculating careerist, nor did public recognition of his work concern him.
The actors and crew talk about the making of Douglas's magnum opus, “Comrades”, in which Douglas tells the story of his characters from the viewpoint of the 'Lanternist', a figure who surprises us with an amazing variety of optical picture and story-telling machines like the Diorama, the magic lantern, the chromatrope, the zograscope, the peepshow, and the camera obscura.
Credits
Original Title: Lanterna Magicka: Bill Douglas and the Secret History of Cinema
Language:
English original version
Country of Origin: Great Britain
Year : 2009
Duration: 61 Min.
Color
Director: Sean Martin, Louise Milne
Camera: Sean Martin
Editing: Louise Milne, Nick Soldan
Sound: Nick Soldan
Starring/Featuring: Mick Audsley, Ian Christie, Joanna Davis, Bill Douglas, Stephen Herbert, Peter Jewell, Saxon Logan, Alex Norton, Charles Rees, Simon Relph, Ian Sellar, Mike Simkin, Robin Soans, Imelda Staunton
Production: Sean Martin, Louise Milne
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About the Film
He might not
He might not have broken any box office records, but among film buffs, the Scottish filmmaker Bill Douglas has a name. His autobiographical “Trilogy” is held in especially high regard.The first part, (“My Childhood”, 1972), which was funded by the British Film Institute, is the strikingly told story of a young Scottish boy growing up in poverty. The second part, “My Ain Folk”, was made in 1973. It was followed by “My Way Home” in 1978. In 1987, Douglas brought his forth and final film, “Comrades” to the theaters. Set in the year 1834, the film is a three hour epic about exploited farm workers in South England, who are jailed, deported to Australia and sentenced to forced labor. Comrades is moving drama with majestic imagery.
Thanks to the British Film Institute, Bill Douglas's four great films have been reissued on DVD.
Actor Alex Norton with laterna magica in Bill Douglas' period drama 'Comrades'
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