The Yorkshire Film Archive collects, preserves, and shows film made in, or about Yorkshire. Our collections are non-fiction, dating from the 1890s to the present day, and providing a rich and visually compelling record of all aspects of lives, cultures, landscape, industries, major events and everyday activities, many of which are available to watch, free of charge, on our website.
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The Shooting of Emily Jane
An intriguing film of an amateur filming a documentary about Emily BrontΓ« on location, up on the Yorkshire moors, and editing it in his home.
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Overview
A rare example of one amateur filmmaker filming another at work. In this case Gordon Riley films his fellow member of Leeds Movie Makers, Jack Eley, making his highly accomplished 1980 documentary about Emily Bronte. The behind-the-scenes footage shows Jack filming on Top Withens, the possible location of Wuthering Heights, writing the script, making the credits and editing the film.
Gordon Riley made a significant collection of films during the 1960s and β70s, especially local railway films. Jack Eleyβs film was unusual for an amateur film in being made with outside support, in this case of the BrontΓ« Society and the Yorkshire Arts Association. This wasnβt the first time that Gordon Riley and Jack Eley may have been involved in filming the making of a film: they were both associated with Leeds Mercury Movie Makers, which made a film βCrash Spectacularβ, showing the behind the scenes filming of Alan Sidiβs βDevil Godβ (1974), also made with the help of the Yorkshire Arts Association.
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