This film is part of Rentals
One Family
A schoolboy, a Christmas pudding and a bizarre portrait of the British Empire.
Director: Walter Creighton
Overview
The 'family' in question is the British Empire, from several corners of which, in a dream, a schoolboy gathers ingredients for the King's Christmas pudding. This whimsical storyline strings together several mini-documentaries on life and work in the UK's home nations and countries like South Africa and Canada. The film can also boast of being the first ever to be shot in Buckingham Palace.
This was one of the first two films released by the Empire Marketing Board - the other, John Grierson's Drifters, became a cultural landmark. One Family aimed for prestige, with Rudyard Kipling involved in the project, but was an instant disaster, and has gone virtually unwatched since. It's as weird as it sounds (disjointed surviving prints don't help), but compelling precisely because its version of Britishness was dated even when it was made.
Related
Stephen Stephen
Drama-documentary 2023 78 mins Director: Melanie Manchot
Artist Melanie Manchot’s debut feature is a visually striking film-within-a-film, exploring mental health and addiction.
Four Daughters Four Daughters
Drama-documentary 2023 103 mins Director: Kaouther Ben Hania
The mother-daughter relationship is explored to cathartic effect in this complex and poignant hybrid documentary about a woman and her missing daughters.
Independent Miss Craigie Independent Miss Craigie
Drama-documentary 2021 92 mins Director: Lizzie Thynne
Filmmaker Lizzie Thynne tells the story of director Jill Craigie's (1911-99) remarkable career, drawing on her own words and extensive clips from her work.
The Filmmaker's House The Filmmaker's House
Drama-documentary 2020 75 mins Director: Marc Isaacs
Blending documentary with fiction, and a wry humour with emotional intensity, acclaimed filmmaker Marc Isaacs unfolds a story which asks pertinent questions about the nature of filmmaking itself.
Krabi, 2562 Krabi, 2562
Drama-documentary 2020 90 mins Director: Ben Rivers and Anocha Suwichakornpong
Observing locals and visitors creates a highly original portrait of the Thai tourist town of Krabi in this collaboration between award-winning directors Anocha Suwichakornpong and Ben Rivers.
On the Road On the Road
Drama-documentary 2017 121 mins Director: Michael Winterbottom
Michael Winterbottom’s sexy and idiosyncratic tour film follows 2018 Mercury Prize winners Wolf Alice, merging thrilling live footage with a fictional backstage romance.
Dust & Metal Dust & Metal
Documentary 2022 82 mins Director: Esther Johnson
Discover unfamiliar histories of Vietnam through Esther Johnson’s poetic documentary on the country’s love affair with the motorbike.
Mogwai: If the Stars Had a Sound Mogwai: If the Stars Had a Sound
Documentary 2024 91 mins Director: Antony Crook
Celestial sonic odyssey charting the cult Scottish band’s expansive career from the mid-90s to their tenth studio album written during lockdown.
Flow Flow
Animation & Artists Moving Image 2024 85 mins Director: Gints Zilbalodis
Oscar-winning animated adventure about an unlikely group of animals who must work together to survive a natural disaster.
Invasion Invasion
Science Fiction 1966 79 mins Director: Alan Bridges
An alien fugitive, injured in a road accident, pitches up at a rural hospital. But when two intergallactic pursuers arrive, things start to heat up...
Twiggy Twiggy
Documentary 2024 94 mins Director: Sadie Frost
International supermodel, actor, singer and one of the most iconic British figures – this is the real story of Twiggy.
Ernest Cole: Lost and Found Ernest Cole: Lost and Found
Documentary 2024 107 mins Director: Raoul Peck
Raoul Peck’s sorrowful portrait of Ernest Cole, the first photographer to expose the horrors of apartheid to the world.