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Talk about Work

Ken Loach makes Public Information Film shock!

Instructional film/TV programme 1971 15 mins

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Overview

Ken Loach makes Public Information Film shock! Talk About Work is a vocational guidance film produced through the Central Office Information (COI) for the youth employment service - who asked for Loach by name. Predictably, it ended in tears. The director’s cut was re-edited and he dissociated himself from it (Loach’s name isn’t on the credits). A cautionary tale, perhaps, for all modern communications professionals for whom ‘authenticity’ is elusive comms gold.

In any event, it’s an interesting case of a government body consciously going after a contemporary approach via a ‘name’ director). Loach was not then quite the national treasure he is today: still a TV director with a growing rep. Veteran production company Ronald H Riley & Associates was a long-standing COI supplier and a surprising place for Loach to fetch up. His emphasis on people speaking unscripted (hence the title) contrasts with traditional modes of sponsored filmmaking; so does the fluid, televisual directness of the visual style, owing much to now-legendary director of photography Chris Menges. Filming locations included Henderson’s department store, Liverpool and Ford’s works, Halewood. This government film is a public record, preserved and presented by the BFI National Archive on behalf of The National Archives, home to more than 1,000 years of British history.

Director
Ken Loach
Genres
Instructional film/TV programme
Released
1971
Country
United Kingdom
Location
LiverpoolHalewood
Language
English

Subjects

Teenagers Employment Factories Farming Department stores Motor cars Manufacturing processes Apprenticeships Textile industry Careers advice