Astra Films was a British

film production Filmmaking (film production) is the process by which a motion picture is produced. Filmmaking involves a number of complex and discrete stages, starting with an initial story, idea, or commission. It then continues through screenwriting, casti ...

and

distribution Distribution may refer to: Mathematics *Distribution (mathematics), generalized functions used to formulate solutions of partial differential equations * Probability distribution, the probability of a particular value or value range of a vari ...

company of the

silent era A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) or key lines of dialogue may, wh ...

. It was set up in

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by populati ...

following the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

by the

film director A film director controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfilment of that vision. The director has a key role in choosing the cast members, p ...

Herbert Wilcox Herbert Sydney Wilcox Order of the British Empire, CBE (19 April 1890 – 15 May 1977) was a British film producer and film director, director. He was one of the most successful British filmmakers from the 1920s to the 1950s. He is best know ...

, his younger brother Charles Wilcox and

H.W. Thompson HW or Hw may refer to: Transportation * Haridwar Railway Station, Haridwar, India, station code * Hello (airline), IATA airline designator * North-Wright Airways, IATA airline designator Other uses * George H. W. Bush (1924–2018), 41st Presid ...

, a leading figure in film distribution in the

North of England Northern England, also known as the North of England, the North Country, or simply the North, is the northern area of England. It broadly corresponds to the former borders of Angle Northumbria, the Anglo-Scandinavian Kingdom of Jorvik, and the ...

.Low p.132-33 After the company's initial success, Wilcox left the firm to set up on his own and rose to become one of the most successful

independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independ ...

producer-directors in the world. After a merger the company released films under the name Astra-National. While smaller than the leading British studios

Ideal Films The Ideal Film Company (often known as Ideal Films or simply Ideal) was a British film production and distribution company that operated between 1911 and 1934. The company, based in Soho, London, was started by the two Jewish brothers Harry Mos ...

and

Stoll Pictures Stoll Pictures was a British film production and distribution company of the silent era, founded in April 1918. Background During the early to mid-1920s it was the largest film company in Britain and one of the biggest in Europe. Its major domes ...

, it was an important producer of films before the

Slump of 1924 Slump may refer to: *Slump (economics), better known as a recession * Slump (food), a variety of cobbler *Slump (geology), a form of mass wasting event * "Slump" (song), by South Korean boy band Stray Kids *Slump (sports), a period in which a play ...

. As was common during the era, many of the same writers, directors and a stock company of actors worked on various different films for the company. After Herbert Wilcox left the company, the majority of films were directed by

Kenelm Foss Kenelm Foss (13 December 1885 – 28 November 1963) was a British actor, theatre director, author, screenwriter and film director. Early life and education He was born in Croydon, Surrey and studied art at the Wellesley School of Art and in Par ...

and featured stars such as

Mary Odette Marie Odette Goimbault (10 August 1901 – 26 March 1987), known professionally as Mary Odette, was a French-born film actress. Odette starred in a number of films made by Astra Films. After the slump of 1924 dramatically reduced the number o ...

Lionelle Howard Lionelle Howard (1886 – 13 September 1930) was a British actor of the silent era who was born as Francis Nathan Coxin in Cirencester, Gloucestershire and died in Uxbridge, Middlesex. He appeared in a number of productions made by Astra Films in ...

and

Roy Travers Roy Travers (born 1883 in London) was a British actor. Travers appeared in a number of films (mostly directed by Kenelm Foss) made by Astra Films. He died in 1941. Selected filmography * '' East Lynne'' (1913) * ''Sixty Years a Queen'' (1913) * ...

Selected filmography

* ''

The Breed of the Treshams ''The Breed of the Treshams'' is a 1920 British silent adventure film directed by Kenelm Foss and starring Mary Odette, Hayford Hobbs and A. B. Imeson.Low p. During the English Civil War, the Royalists uncover a Roundhead spy. Cast * Mary ...

'' (1920) * '' Cherry Ripe'' (1921) * '' The Street of Adventure'' (1921) * '' The Double Event'' (1921) * '' The Wonderful Story'' (1922) * '' Paddy the Next Best Thing'' (1923) * ''

Southern Love ''Southern Love'' is a 1924 British drama film directed by Herbert Wilcox and starring Betty Blythe, Herbert Langley and Randle Ayrton. It is based on the verse drama ''The Spanish Student'' by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. It is known by the alte ...

'' (1924) * ''

Decameron Nights ''Decameron Nights'' is a 1953 anthology Technicolor film based on three tales from ''The Decameron'' by Giovanni Boccaccio, specifically the ninth and tenth tales of the second day and the ninth tale of the third. It stars Joan Fontaine and, a ...

(1924) * '' The Flag Lieutenant'' (1926)

References

Bibliography

* Low, Rachael. ''The History of the British Film, 1918-1929''. George Allen & Unwin, 1971. British film studios Film production companies of the United Kingdom Film distributors of the United Kingdom {{UK-film-company-stub