WHAT THEY LIKE

Otago Daily Times, Issue 22985, 14 September 1936, Page 13

WHAT THEY LIKE

CHILDREN AND FILMS A BRITISH INQUIRY What do children want from the films? This question was discussed by a conference of about a dozen societies in London during July and is reported in To-day’s Cinema. A number of tributes were paid to the kinema industry in the course of the speeches. A representative of the National Vigilance Association stated that he had been told by a police chief that after 20 years’ experience the police took off their hat to the kinemas for having halved their troubles in connection with drink and immorality. A representative of the Mothers’ Union said they had abundant evidence that films had been of great social benefit to the country. Dame Maria Ogilvie Gordon, the chairman, said that under present systems it was possible for children to sit through the whole programme and see “A” films as well as “U” (universal). That morning they had been guests at a programme of a type a company was prepared to supply as a children’s programme. As a gesture they all welcomed it. They did not share in the risks and expenses of the trade, and they would definitely have to combine with the trade in organising the movement. It was a public responsibility. Mr W. Farr, the assistant general manager of the British Film, Institute, said there was no antithesis between what children needed and what they desired; he believed children needed what they liked. The same difficulty arose in making dogmatic statements about what the general-public wanted. Neither the film trade nor the general public knew what the public wanted. The public did not like sensationalism, they liked sensations; they did not like sentimentality, they liked sentiment; they did not like sex in the way it was normally charged against them, but they had a normal interest in it. Their institute had found on inquiry that children placed “G”-men films at the top of the list; but one needed to get down beneath particular films to find out what the elements were the children liked. The institute had carried on an inquiry among 3000 children by means of questionnaire and essay. Comparing the questionnaire with other inquiries, they found they had no new information. “G ” men films came out top; three years ago, air films were top, and before mat, war films. The underlying thing beneath all these was the children’s natural need of sensation, suspense, and excitement. The three types of films always on top were adventure films, thrillers, and cowboy films. First among the films disliked by children were horrific films. It was clear that while children like to be excited, they did not like to be, and should not be terrified. NOBODY QUITE LIKE THEM The committee had noted frightening sequences in many cartoons. Children did not like too much fighting, close-up views of realistic killings, or sudden hard noises. They expressed a decided preference of films of “ real life ” (not necessarily life as they knew it)—but life as they could conceive it, even if they had not experienced it. It was thought their unanimous disapproval of Mae West and Greta Garbo was because they had never met anybody quite like them.— (Laughter.) Dialogue did not appeal because, being sensible kinema-goers, children went to see things and not so much to hear them. Children did not like love stories in films. The stories must be logically developed. It was for this reason that musicals came almost bottom of their list of “ likes.” They had concluded that a film for children should contain plenty of action, the element of suspense, and the chase, and that the development of the story should be logically portrayed. Desire for that type should be satisfied freely and without any apprehension of harmful effects. Thrillers could be prescribed in a different and more wholesome setting. The difference was seen in comparing a film like “ Sanders of the River ” with any of the gangster films. Modern fairy tales were liked and needed. But ordinary “ fairy tales ” were never mentioned in the sort of films they wanted. One could get all the elements of the fairy tale in the modern setting. LESSONS OF HOBBIES “Look at the books and hobbies of children,” he said—“ aeroplanes, the Empire, and foreign countries are the things with which they spend their time.” It was mentioned time and time again that they did not like distortions of the facts of history, as they knew them, and of the original stories as they knew them, and of the original stories as they had read-them. Children could read books like “Treasure Island” and not visualise some of the horrific parts of such a book, but an efficiently-made film made for adults of such a story might be too horrific for them. Mr G. Kirkham Jones spoke on the Battersea Experiment. Although, he said, they had been going for many years, they really did not know what children wanted. The experiment was carried on by a sub-committee of the Public Amenities Committee, which combined all shades of opinion. No cost of this had to fall on the rates. Starting in the year 1920, some of the original activities had faded out. Two had persisted—music (they had set the fashion of giving concerts in school life), and also film shows, with one little break had persisted. They charged 2d and 4d for the children’s houses and 3d to 6d for the adults’ house. The programme lasted two hours with a leaven of “education,” not “ instruction.” The best way to improve films was to provide something good and not preach about the bad. They had to have the best possible film, the best possible projection, and a competent operator. Otherwise they were building in sand.