A COLOUR BOX
Len Lye
Scen.: Len Lye; Mu.: “La Belle Creole”, eseguita Don Baretto and his Cuban Orchestra; Sound editor: Jack Ellitt; Prod.: John Grierson, per GPO Film Unit; 35mm. D.: 5’ a 24 f/s. Col.
info_outline
T. it.: Italian title. T. int.: International title. T. alt.: Alternative title. Sog.: Story. Scen.: Screenplay. F.: Cinematography. M.: Editing. Scgf.: Set Design. Mus.: Music. Int.: Cast. Prod.: Production Company. L.: Length. D.: Running Time. f/s: Frames per second. Bn.: Black e White. Col.: Color. Da: Print source
Film Notes
Len Lye’s first film Tusalava was made by conventional animation methods over two years, using some 4000 drawings. A Colour Box was made by painting the celluloid directly, a process that took about about five days. Speed and motion is the film’s essence: lines and waves pulsate to a jazzy Caribbean tune. To justify its release through the film unit of Britain’s postal services, Lye added a message about Britain’s parcel rates. The NFTVA’s print is based on Lye’s hand-painted original.
Geoff Brown