National Screen and Sound Archive of Wales preserves and celebrates the sound and moving image heritage of Wales, making it accessible to a wide range of users for enjoyment and learning. Its film collection reflects every aspect of the nation’s social, cultural and working life across the 20th century, giving a fascinating insight into Welsh filmmaking, both amateur and professional.
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Children Leaving the National Schools, Rhyl
School’s out, and gleeful pupils spill out onto Clwyd street, with much leapfrogging and larking about among passers by.
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Overview
School’s out, and delighted pupils of various ages spill onto sunny Clwyd Street - some more sedately than others, hand-holding and obeying teachers’ orders whilst bolder boys play leapfrog and generally lark about. All this among passing horses, carts and strolling residents – with one as eager as the kids to cavort for the camera. There’s a strong sense of the filmmaker’s urge to ‘look lively’.
Arthur Cheetham (1865-1937) was an entrepreneur, cinema proprietor and pioneer filmmaker - the first in Wales to film scenes and events for his own shows. 12 of his 47 films, shot mostly from 1898 to 1904, survive partly or wholly. In turn-of-century Rhyl, elementary education was denominational, with ‘British’ schools (Nonconformist religious education), ‘National’ schools (Anglican) as seen here (Boys, Girls and Infants), and Catholic schools. Advertised in The Rhyl Journal as ‘A Masterpiece in Animated Photography’.
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