''Lest We Forget'' (1935) was the first feature-length documentary film with sound to be made in Canada. Written, directed and edited by Frank Badgley, who was then the Director of the

Canadian Government Motion Picture Bureau The Canadian Government Motion Picture Bureau (CGMPB; ), founded as the Exhibits and Publicity Bureau, was the film production agency of the Government of Canada administered by the Department of Trade and Commerce, and intended to promote trade ...

, and W.W. Murray, with music by Edmund Sanborn and narrated by Rupert Caplan. A compilation, 10-reel film (using newsreel footage, graphics and staged sequences) recounting Canada’s role in the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, it is fast-paced and has a verbose narration but was well received by critics and audiences at the time. The Bureau was the precursor to the

National Film Board of Canada The National Film Board of Canada (NFB; ) is a Canadian public film and digital media producer and distributor. An agency of the Government of Canada, the NFB produces and distributes documentary films, animation, web documentaries, and altern ...

Production

In his 1974 history of the CGMPB published by the

Canadian Film Institute The Canadian Film Institute (CFI) () involves Canada in the film production, study, appreciation process of film/moving images for cultural and educational purposes. The Canadian Film Institute organizes ongoing public film programming and artist ...

, Charles Backhouse wrote that, "With enthusiasm the Bureau began the mammoth task of preparing its first major sound production, an epic 10-reel history of the Canadian armed forces in World War I. Entitled ''Lest We Forget'', the film was produced by the Bureau, but with considerable help in research and scripting from a committee appointed by the Ministry of National Defence. Sequences were taken from the material

Lord Beaverbrook William Maxwell Aitken, 1st Baron Beaverbrook (25 May 1879 – 9 June 1964), was a Canadian-British newspaper publisher and backstage politician who was an influential figure in British media and politics of the first half of the 20th century ...

had stored in the

Imperial War Museum The Imperial War Museum (IWM), currently branded "Imperial War Museums", is a British national museum. It is headquartered in London, with five branches in England. Founded as the Imperial War Museum in 1917, it was intended to record the civ ...

(in

London, England London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

), and purchases or loans of other wartime footage were negotiated with foreign governments, newsreel companies and film production houses throughout the world. A total of some two million reels of film was collected and finally reduced to 10 reels, with a running time of an hour-and-a-half. ''Lest We Forget'' was released in

Ottawa Ottawa is the capital city of Canada. It is located in the southern Ontario, southern portion of the province of Ontario, at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the cor ...

in 1935, and drew intense criticism despite its commercial success. Despite denouncement by influential papers including the

Ottawa Citizen The ''Ottawa Citizen'' is an English-language daily newspaper owned by Postmedia Network in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. History Established as the Bytown ''Packet'' in 1845 by William Harris (journalist), William Harris, it was renamed the ''Ci ...

, the film held a public run of over a year, earning $34,000, not adjusted for inflation. Sir George Perley, speaker of the House of Parliament, adjourned the body early in order that members might attend the gala showing. (''

Ottawa Journal The ''Ottawa Journal'' was a daily broadsheet newspaper published in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, from 1885 to 1980. It was founded in 1885 by A. Woodburn as the ''Ottawa Evening Journal''. Its first editor was John Wesley Dafoe who came from the ...

'', 5 March 1935)"

References

External links

* *, from

Library and Archives Canada Library and Archives Canada (LAC; ) is the federal institution tasked with acquiring, preserving, and providing accessibility to the documentary heritage of Canada. The national archive and library is the 16th largest library in the world. T ...

1935 documentary films 1935 films Canadian documentary films Documentary films about World War I Canadian black-and-white films Canadian World War I films 1935 war films 1930s Canadian films English-language Canadian films {{1930s-Canada-film-stub

Production

Further reading

References

External links