Royal Air Force Film Production Unit

Royal Air Force Film Production Unit (typically abbreviated to the acronym RAFFPU) produced propaganda films depicting RAF personnel and aircraft both on the ground and in aerial action during World War II from 1941 to 1945.

The film director and WAAF continuity girl discuss the set-up of a shot in a scene at a railway station from "Journey Together" at No. 1 RAFFPU at RAF Stanmore Park, Middlesex
Hamburg in ruins, eyewitness photograph by a Royal Air Force official photographer

History

The RAFFPU was formed in 1941 after it was recognised that captured film footage was being processed by civilian companies before it could be securely classified. Additionally, many civilian cameramen were not able to be taken on bombing raids, so service personnel were trained to be able to perform these tasks.[1] The RAFFPU had two main tasks; to document the RAF's work and to produce propaganda films involving the Royal Air Force.[2]

One of its early successful propaganda films was Target for Tonight. The aim of the film was to show the public how Bomber Command operated, especially with a varied crew drawn from Britain, Australia and Canada. The film followed a Wellington crew (F for Freddie) bombing railway infrastructure over Germany. The film was a big success with the British public and its investment of £6,000 was regained 12 times over as it took £73,000 at the cinemas. The film's director, Harry Watt, later regretted that most of the allied aircrew who starred in the film, did not survive the war.[3]

The RAFFPU mainly worked at Pinewood studios which is where Richard Attenborough was seconded. He starred in one of their films, Journey Together, which was directed by Flight lieutenant John Boulting. After the war, Attenborough went on to be directed by Boulting in the film Brighton Rock because of his connection with the RAFFPU.[4] Personnel from the film unit were present on many notable raids, such as Operation Jericho, the Amiens prison raid, which was flown to free members of the French Resistance under threat of execution.[5] The director, Lewis Gilbert, also served in the unit during the Second World War.[6]

The unit had access to Beaufort, Anson, Hudson, Havoc and Auster aircraft based at RAF Benson and RAF Langley. Whilst production stopped in 1945, the unit was officially stood down at RAF Stanmore Park in March 1947 when it became the Film Production Unit Library.[7]

Personnel

FPU personnel included early commander Flight Lieutenant John Boulting as well as later director Richard Attenborough who flew camera missions over Europe. Noted dramatist Terence Rattigan, then a Royal Air Force Flight Lieutenant, was posted in 1943 to the RAF Film Production Unit to work on The Way to the Stars and Journey Together.[8]

Films

These were some of the films produced by the RAFFPU.[9]

See also

References
  1. Buckman, Keith (1997). "The Royal Air Force Film Production Unit, 1941-1945". Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television. 17 (2): 219. doi:10.1080/01439689700260701. ISSN 1465-3451.
  2. Browne, Stephen (2013). The Encyclopedia of British Film (4th ed.). Manchester: Manchester University Press. pp. 663–664. ISBN 978-0-7190-9139-1.
  3. Connelly, Mark (2001). "3: Committing Britain to a Bomber War February 1941 – Spring 1942". Reaching for the Stars a New History of Bomber Command in World War II. London: I. B. Tauris. pp. 59–62. ISBN 978-1-86064-591-4.
  4. "The Richard Attenborough Stage opens for business at Pinewood Studios". www.pinewoodgroup.com. Retrieved 24 July 2017.
  5. Darlow, Steve (2008). "7: Gaolbusters - the Amiens Prison Raid". Special OP: Bomber: Daring Missions that Changed the Shape of WWII. Newton Abbot: David & Charles. p. 171. ISBN 978-0-7153-2782-1.
  6. "Lewis Gilbert Obituary". The Times. No. 72740. 28 February 2018. p. 55. ISSN 0140-0460.
  7. Lake, Alan (1999). Flying units of the RAF: The Ancestry, Formation and Disbandment of all fFying Units from 1912 (1st ed.). Shrewsbury: Airlife. p. 175. ISBN 978-1-84037-086-7.
  8. "Looking for Flying Officer Rattigan, Group Captain Clive Montellier RAF, 2013" (PDF). The Terence Rattigan Society. Retrieved 3 November 2021.
  9. "Royal Air Force Film Production Unit". BFI. Archived from the original on 22 September 2020. Retrieved 24 July 2017.

Further reading
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