The London Film Company was a British

film production Filmmaking or film production is the process by which a Film, motion picture is produced. Filmmaking involves a number of complex and discrete stages, beginning with an initial story, idea, or commission. Production then continues through screen ...

company active during the

silent era A silent film is a film without synchronized recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) or key lines of dialogue may, wh ...

. Founded in 1913, the company emerged as one of the dominant forces in production during 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 ...

. With strong financial backing the company constructed the

Twickenham Studios Twickenham ( ) is a suburban district of London, England, on the River Thames southwest of Charing Cross. Historic counties of England, Historically in Middlesex, since 1965 it has formed part of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, who ...

, then the largest in Britain, and began production of

features Feature may refer to: Computing * Feature recognition, could be a hole, pocket, or notch * Feature (computer vision), could be an edge, corner or blob * Feature (machine learning), in statistics: individual measurable properties of the phenome ...

, which were then displacing

short film A short film is a film with a low running time. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of not more than 40 minutes including all credits". Other film o ...

s as the dominant form. Two of the company's key early directors were Americans: Harold Shaw and

George Loane Tucker George Loane Tucker (June 12, 1872 – June 20, 1921) was an Americans, American actor, silent film director, screenwriter, Film producer, producer, and Film editor, editor. Career Tucker was born George S. Loane in Chicago to George Loane ...

. Later, British director

Maurice Elvey Maurice Elvey (11 November 1887 – 28 August 1967) was one of the most prolific film directors in British history. He directed nearly 200 films between 1913 and 1957. During the silent film era he directed as many as twenty films per year. He a ...

made a number of films for the studio. By 1915, a number of ambitious productions such as ''

The Prisoner of Zenda ''The Prisoner of Zenda'' is an 1894 adventure novel by Anthony Hope, in which the King of Ruritania is drugged on the eve of his coronation and thus is unable to attend the ceremony. Political forces within the realm are such that, in o ...

'' and its sequel ''

Rupert of Hentzau ''Rupert of Hentzau'' is a sequel by Anthony Hope to '' The Prisoner of Zenda'', written in 1895 but not published in book form until 1898. The novel was serialized in ''The Pall Mall Magazine'' and '' McClure's Magazine'' from December 1897 ...

'' were attempted. However, that same year the studio had 130 employees whose wage bill was estimated to be £750 a week and it suffered heavy financial losses. The following year was more promising, with the release of '' The Manxman'' enjoying success in Britain and America. Tucker and Shaw both departed to work in other countries and production ground to a halt. For the remainder of the war, the Twickenham Studios were rented out for other companies to shoot there.Low p.78 The company briefly revived after end of the war, and in 1920 it released nine films. This was the final year of operation before London Film withdrew from production completely and Twickenham was sold off.

Filmography

* ''

The House of Temperley ''The House of Temperley'' is a 1913 British silent drama film directed by Harold M. Shaw and starring Charles Maude, Ben Webster and Lillian Logan. It is based on the 1896 novel '' Rodney Stone'' by Arthur Conan Doyle and is sometimes known ...

'' (1913) * '' Beauty and the Barge'' (1914, short) * '' Lawyer Quince'' (1914, short) * '' The Bosun's Mate'' (1914, short) * ''

A Christmas Carol ''A Christmas Carol. In Prose. Being a Ghost Story of Christmas'', commonly known as ''A Christmas Carol'', is a novella by Charles Dickens, first published in London by Chapman & Hall in 1843 and illustrated by John Leech. It recounts the ...

'' (1914) * '' The Ring and the Rajah'' (1914) * '' The Black Spot'' (1914) * '' England's Menace'' (1914) * '' The King's Minister'' (1914) * '' The Third String'' (1914) * '' The Difficult Way'' (1914) * ''

England Expects "England expects that every man will do his duty" was a signal sent by Vice-Admiral of the Royal Navy Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson, from his flagship as the Battle of Trafalgar was about to commence on 21 October 1805. During the battl ...

'' (1914) * '' Bootle's Baby'' (1914) * ''

She Stoops to Conquer ''She Stoops to Conquer'' is a comedy by Irish writer Oliver Goldsmith, first performed in London in 1773. The play is a favourite for study by English literature and theatre classes in the English-speaking world. It is one of the few plays ...

'' (1914) * ''

Trilby A trilby is a narrow-brimmed type of hat. The trilby was once viewed as the rich man's favored hat; it is sometimes called the "brown trilby" in UK, BritainBernhard Roetzel, Roetzel, Bernhard (1999). ''Gentleman's Guide to Grooming and Style''. B ...

'' (1914) * ''

On His Majesty's Service ''On His Majesty's Service'' or ''On Her Majesty's Service'' (depending on the gender of the reigning monarch), is an official franking commonly seen on correspondence from government departments in the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and ...

'' (1914) * '' Called Back'' (1914) * '' The Incomparable Bellairs'' (1914) * ''

Liberty Hall Liberty Hall (), in Dublin, Ireland, is the headquarters of the Services, Industrial, Professional, and Technical Union (SIPTU). Designed by Desmond Rea O'Kelly, it was completed in 1965. It was for a time the tallest building in the countr ...

'' (1914) * ''

1914 This year saw the beginning of what became known as the First World War, after Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, heir to the Austrian throne was Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, assassinated by Serbian nationalist Gavrilo Princip ...

'' (1915) * ''

The Middleman ''The Middleman'' is a comic book series written by Javier Grillo-Marxuach with art by Les McClaine and published by Viper Comics. The series was initially intended to be a television pilot that went on to be published as a comic, before being ...

'' (1915) * '' The Sons of Satan'' (1915) * '' The Shulamite'' (1915) * '' The Heart of a Child'' (1915) * '' The Derby Winner'' (1915) * '' A Man of His Word'' (1915) * '' Mr. Lyndon at Liberty'' (1915) * '' The Christian'' (1915) * '' Whoso Diggeth a Pit'' (1915) * '' The Third Generation'' (1915) * '' Brother Officers'' (1915) * '' The King's Outcast'' (1915) * ''

The Firm of Girdlestone ''The Firm of Girdlestone'' is a novel by British author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. It was first published in 1890 by Chatto and Windus in London, England. In 1915 a silent film adaptation '' The Firm of Girdlestone'' was made. A 1958 BBC televis ...

'' (1915) * ''

The Heart of Sister Ann ''The Heart of Sister Ann'' is a 1915 British silent drama film directed by Harold M. Shaw and starring Edna Flugrath, Hayford Hobbs and Guy Newall. Its plot involves an orphaned dancer who repays the sister brought her up her by marrying th ...

'' (1915) * '' Love in a Wood'' (1915) * '' The Two Roads'' (1915) * '' The Man in the Attic'' (1915) * ''

'' (1915) * ''

'' (1915) * '' The Game of Liberty'' (1916) * '' His Daughter's Dilemma'' (1916) * '' The Hypocrites'' (1916) * '' Me and Me Moke'' (1916) * '' Partners at Last'' (1916) * '' The Man in Motley'' (1916) * '' Altar Chains'' (1916) * '' Mother Love'' (1916) * '' The King's Daughter'' (1916) * '' The Princess of Happy Chance'' (1916) * '' The Man Without a Soul'' (1916) * '' The Greater Need'' (1916) * '' When Knights Were Bold'' (1916) * ''

Arsène Lupin Arsène Lupin () is a fictional gentleman thief and master of disguise created in 1905 by French writer Maurice Leblanc. The character was first introduced in a series of short stories serialized in the magazine '' Je sais tout''. The first ...

'' (1916) * ''

The Mother of Dartmoor ''The Mother of Dartmoor'' is a 1916 British silent drama film directed by George Loane Tucker and starring Elisabeth Risdon, Bertram Burleigh and Enid Bell.Goble p.875 Plot summary A mother testifies against her own poacher son and he is se ...

'' (1916) * '' Vice Versa'' (1916) * '' The Manxman'' (1916) * ''

Smith Smith may refer to: People and fictional characters * Metalsmith, or simply smith, a craftsman fashioning tools or works of art out of various metals * Smith (given name) * Smith (surname), a family name originating in England ** List of people ...

'' (1917) * '' The Duchess of Seven Dials'' (1920) * '' London Pride'' (1920) * '' The Pursuit of Pamela'' (1920) * '' True Tilda'' (1920) * '' Lady Tetley's Decree'' (1920) * '' The Little Welsh Girl'' (1920) * '' Enchantment'' (1920) * '' Judge Not'' (1920) * '' The House on the Marsh'' (1920)

References

Bibliography

* Low, Rachael. ''The History of the British Film: 1906-1914''. Allen & Unwin, 1973. {{Cinema of the United Kingdom British film studios Film production companies of the United Kingdom Film distributors of the United Kingdom