Ministry Of Information Films

[whywaite]

Can anyone help with a general query about the films produced by the Ministry Of Information during WWII, were these films produced by established film studios or in house government film departments or both?

Thanks

[Hugo]

The answer is both. At the beginning of the war the Ministry of Information took over the General Post Office Film Unit and renamed it the Crown Film Unit which went on to produce such influential documentaries as TARGET FOR TONIGHT (1941), WESTERN APPROACHES (1944), and LONDON CAN TAKE IT (1940) etc. It also experimented with a full length fictional feature 49TH PARALLEL (1941) but after that it stuck to documentaries but worked with commercial film producers in laying down guidelines for propaganda films.

[DB7]

They often used established studios for theatrical films and occasionally directors like Reed, Powell and Hitchcock. Some studios were also requisitioned by the MoD to be used as stores, or an art department might have been assigned the task of creating replica planes, guns etc.

[Steve Crook]

You can get the full list of MoI films known to the IMDb. There are probably plenty more that aren't listed on the IMDb (or not attributed to the MoI)



Most are documentaries and/or shorts.



After their experience with Powell & Pressburger on 49th Parallel the MoI were reluctant to do any more features. The result was wonderful but it did go a little bit over budget. And it did win Emeric Pressburger the only Oscar either of them won.

[whywaite]

Thanks for all your replies