Stoll Pictures 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 ...

, 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 domestic rival was the

Ideal Film Company 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 ...

. Stoll's films were primarily made at its

Cricklewood Studios Cricklewood Studios, also known as the Stoll Film Studios, were British film studios located in Cricklewood, London which operated from 1920 to 1938. Run by Sir Oswald Stoll as the principal base for his newly formed Stoll Pictures, which also ...

, although the smaller Surbiton Studios were also used during the early years of the company's existence. The company takes its name from its founder Sir

Oswald Stoll Sir Oswald Stoll (20 January 1866 – 9 January 1942) was an Australian-born British theatre manager and the co-founder of the Stoll Moss Group theatre company. He also owned Cricklewood Studios and film production company Stoll Pictures, wh ...

, better known today as a

theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perform ...

owner. Stoll produced a series of expensive films during the early 1920s such as ''

The Four Feathers ''The Four Feathers'' is a 1902 adventure novel by British writer A. E. W. Mason that has inspired many films of the same title. In December 1901, ''Cornhill Magazine'' announced the title as one of two new serial stories to be published in t ...

'' and '' The Prodigal Son'' at a cost of £37,000 was at the time the most expensive British production ever. The film's original release length of 18,454 feet made it the longest commercially made British film.Robertson p.35 The studio was a major victim of 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 ...

and cut back production, relying on several co-productions with European firms. The company became particularly known for its

film series A film series or movie series (also referred to as a film franchise or movie franchise) is a collection of related films in succession that share the same fictional universe, or are marketed as a series. This article explains what film series are ...

such as

Fu Manchu Dr. Fu Manchu () is a supervillain who was introduced in a series of novels by the English author Sax Rohmer beginning shortly before World War I and continuing for another forty years. The character featured in cinema, television, radio, comic ...

and

Sherlock Holmes Sherlock Holmes () is a fictional detective created by British author Arthur Conan Doyle. Referring to himself as a " consulting detective" in the stories, Holmes is known for his proficiency with observation, deduction, forensic science and ...

. The company ran its own magazine '' Stoll's Editorial News''.

References

Bibliography

* Low, Rachael. ''The History of the British Film, 1918-1929''. George Allen & Unwin, 1971. * Murphy, Robert. ''The British Cinema Book, Second Edition''. British Film Institute, 2003. British film studios Film production companies of the United Kingdom Film distributors of the United Kingdom {{UK-film-company-stub

Background

See also

References

Bibliography