This film is part of Free
Waves Break on Bow of a Ship
A vicarious ocean-going experience
Overview
You’ll need your sea legs to watch this film, which was apparently filmed from a perilous position on the ship’s mast - in rough seas. This is a nautical example of a 'phantom ride' - in which a camera is mounted on a moving vehicle - a popular genre among early filmgoers for the still-novel sensation of travel it offered. Thanks to the swelling waves, the effect when projected on a screen is rather queasier than the comparatively gentle train or tram journeys that were more typical phantom ride subjects.
Waves on Bow of a Ship was made by Warwick Trading Company, a leading British film production and distribution company between 1898-1915.
Related
Rough Sea at Roker (1901) Rough Sea at Roker (1901)
Non-Fiction 1901 2 mins Silent Location: Roker
Mesmerising film of sea waves on the north east coast of England.
Incoming Tide Incoming Tide
Non-Fiction 1898 1 mins Silent Location: Worthing
Worthing waves at us in this mesmerising early film
Rough Sea at Dover Rough Sea at Dover
Non-Fiction 1895 0 mins Silent
Waves crash onto a jetty on the Kentish shoreline in one of Britain's earliest surviving films
Rough Sea Rough Sea
Non-Fiction 1900 1 mins Silent
Dover’s Admiralty Pier could be the setting for these Victorian shots of waves breaking.
Rough Sea Rough Sea
Non-Fiction 1900 1 mins Silent
Breaking waves at an unidentified coastal location
Waves Breaking on a Pier Waves Breaking on a Pier
Non-Fiction 1896 1 mins Silent
Intrepid tourists brave the great waves breaking on the marina wall at Brighton
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.