Film Arrives in Shoreham. In the early twentieth century Shoreham Beach was the home of the British feature film. Take the opportunity to discover more with a talk from Frank Gray, film historian and retired Director of Screen Archive South.
Event Date:
Sep 16 at 4:00 pm - 5:30 pm
Location:
Church of the Good Shepherd, Church Hall,
1 West Beach,
Shoreham-by-Sea
One hundred years ago, Shoreham had a film studio that was producing successful feature films that were exhibited throughout Britain. Featuring the young star Joan Morgan, the films championed British culture at a time when American films dominated the British market. How did this studio on the beach come to be?
Dr Frank Gray, early film historian and now retired Director of Screen Archive South East, answers this question by tracing the early history of film from the first steps taken by the inventors to the beginnings of the first studios in Sussex (as founded by Smith and Williamson in Hove) and to the arrival of the first purpose-built cinemas. It’s the gradual rise of this new industry over a twenty-year period that prepared the way for movie-making to come to Shoreham.
Frank is the author of The Brighton School and the Birth of British Film, Palgrave (2019) and co-author of Cinema West Sussex, Philimore (1996).
Free, but pre-booking is required. Booking opens on 20 August 2023 at www.ticketsource.co.uk/shoreham-society
A Heritage Open Days 2023 event organised by the Shoreham Society.
