This film is part of Free
Southward on the "Quest"
Potent record of the 1921 Shackleton-Rowett Antarctic expedition, marked by the death of Sir Ernest Shackleton.
Overview
Sir Ernest Shackleton’s fourth and final voyage to Antarctica marked the end of the “Heroic Age” of Antarctic exploration. Restless after the War, the great explorer originally intended to go north to the Arctic, but instead planned a circumnavigation of the Antarctic continent to map around 2000 miles of uncharted coastline and take soundings to investigate the possibility of an underwater continental connection between Africa and America. Although most of this film was shot after Shackleton’s death, the first shot shows the great man bathing and “Query”, the expedition’s dog, on board the Quest. Some views of Grytviken, South Georgia, were taken before Shackleton’s sudden death there, of a coronary thrombosis.
The ship, under Frank Wild, sailed to Montevideo, from where they intended to send the body back to England, but Lady Shackleton requested that they bury him on South Georgia. On the ship’s return members of the expedition and crew were filmed visiting Shackleton’s grave and erecting a memorial cairn. We know very little about the film: JC Bee-Mason, having filmmaking and expedition experience, was appointed as cinematographer, but succumbed to seasickness and was forced to quit the ship at Madeira. Hubert Wilkins, who had been his cabin mate in the ship’s darkroom, undertook the rest of the filming.
Related
Shackleton South Georgia Birds Shackleton South Georgia Birds
1920 13 mins Silent
Wildlife in the remote South Atlantic, captured during the ill-fated Shackleton-Rowett Expedition
Jenny's Dog Team Journey Jenny's Dog Team Journey
Documentary 1975 25 mins
Travels with my camera: inspirational seventy-something Scottish film-maker Jenny Gilbertson travels through Northern Canada by dog sled, with four adults and a baby.
The Conquest of Everest The Conquest of Everest
Documentary 1953 78 mins
Colour film (narrated by Meredith Edwards) telling the story of the ‘Mount Everest Expedition 1953’, which saw the first successful ascent of the mountain.
Preparing for an Expedition Preparing for an Expedition
Travelogue 1959 8 mins Silent
Scenes from a documentary or educational programme filmed in South America on the subject of how to prepare for an expedition.
Under Sail in the Frozen North Under Sail in the Frozen North
1926 40 mins
Compelling travel feature edited from footage of the 1925-26 Worsley Algarsson Arctic expedition.
Cape to Cairo Cape to Cairo
Travelogue 1926 1 mins
The Court Treatt expedition arrives in Luxor in this fragment from the film record of their journey across Africa.
Frederick Wiseman's High School - a discussion Frederick Wiseman's High School - a discussion
Short documentary 2026 22 mins
Filmmaker Andrea Luka Zimmerman and curator Matthew Barrington discuss Frederick Wiseman’s High School with Sandra Hebron.
A Last Resort A Last Resort
Comedy 2022 17 mins
Rose is desperate to celebrate her 60th birthday in style, but her daughter Genevieve is struggling to ignore some recent tragic news about her mum.
Hard, Cracked the Wind Hard, Cracked the Wind
Horror 2019 17 mins
A haunting with words is the lure between life and death for a young Cornish poet.
The Walk The Walk
Drama 2023 12 mins
Adeel Akhtar portrays a man on a weekly trek to his nearest JobCentre, entering a state of purgatory through barriers put in place by the system.
Seagull Seagull
Horror 2022 6 mins
Seagull is a recovering drug addict who is about to have a very strange night on The English Riviera.
Octopus Octopus
2021 13 mins
Upon returning to her home town for a funeral, a young woman reconnects with the friends she left behind.