This film is part of Free

Trouble in Toytown
An immensely charming toy story in which a distracted pupil becomes an attentive teacher and explains road safety to dolls
Overview
Young Tom may be a daydreamer at school, but some lessons clearly stick better than others. When he is put in charge of sorting out road safety in Toytown (a world glimpsed through a hole in his skirting board) he certainly knows what to do. Pixar’s Toy Story is the most famous example of a long cinema tradition of bringing toys to life. Though not as technically accomplished, this film is certainly as charming.
Dudley Shaw Ashton was not a professional filmmaker, and large parts of this film appear to have been shot in and around his modernist home in Poole. He would go on to make a number of art documentaries for the BFI Experimental Film Fund and the Arts Council, including portraits of Barbera Hepworth and Henry Moore.
Related

Short Tribute From Blues To You Short Tribute From Blues To You
Amateur film 1989 2 mins Silent Location: Chorlton-cum-Hardy
Model music men - an unusual appreciation of some legendary figures of rock.

Damaged Goods Damaged Goods
Animation & Artists Moving Image 2008 9 mins
A tragic story is played out by porcelain figurines residing in a bric-a-brac shop.

Ersatz Ersatz
Animation & Artists Moving Image 1978 14 mins Silent
An affectionate stop-motion tribute to Hollywood and cinema going, by an animator at Cosgrove-Hall Productions

Superted Superted
Animation & Artists Moving Image 1975 9 mins
Don’t tell the Spotty man but Superted has a new friend. A stop motion predecessor of the superhero teddy idea

Animated Putty Animated Putty
Animation & Artists Moving Image 1911 4 mins Silent
Long, long before Wallace met Gromit filmmakers performed malleable magic to bring clay to life

South Sea Sweethearts South Sea Sweethearts
Advert 1938 6 mins
Say aloha to a Technicolor cinema ad for Horlicks from the master of the Puppetoon, George Pal

Winter Tour Winter Tour
Documentary 1949 10 mins Silent Location: Barnes Common
A grand coach tour makes its way to Hampshire, Dorset and Devon, leaving London far behind

On Falling - Exclusive Q&A On Falling - Exclusive Q&A
Inside Film 2025 30 mins
Writer-director Laura Carreira talks to Nia Childs about her debut feature, On Falling.

Layla - Exclusive Q&A Layla - Exclusive Q&A
Short interview 2025 27 mins
Writer, director and performer Amrou Al-Kadhi talks to Rico Johnson-Sinclair about their debut feature.

All We Imagine As Light - Exclusive Q&A All We Imagine As Light - Exclusive Q&A
Short interview 2025 28 mins
Payal Kapadia discusses her Cannes prize-winning and Bafta-nominated drama with Ashanti Omkar.

Khichdi Khichdi
Animation & Artists Moving Image 2023 16 mins
The interwoven stories of four best friends who reunite in the UK, thirty-five years after training together as nurses during their teens in Ferozepur, Punjab.

Dr XYZ: A Medical Drag Transthology Dr XYZ: A Medical Drag Transthology
Documentary 2023 15 mins
A satirical take on the healthcare service announcements of the 1960s and 70s.

Every Moment Counts Every Moment Counts
Animation & Artists Moving Image 2023 9 mins
A short animation that offers a window into the world of children’s palliative care.