Begun in 1931, the W.F.P.L. would become a well-organized and highly competent section of the Workers International Relief. Along with showing and discussing films the League provided many of the Daily Worker photos and produced now priceless newsreels of the era’s demonstrations and strikes. David Platt reports on the 1934 Chicago conference.

‘National Film and Photo League Conference’ by David Platt from New Theatre. Vol. 1 No. 10. November, 1934.

THE revolutionary film movement marches onward! At the historic first national film conference of the Film and Photo Leagues of the U.S. held last month in Chicago, delegates from Los Angeles, Chicago, Detroit, Boston and New York pledged to devote themselves tirelessly to building and strengthening the workers film movement in America. The National Film and Photo League was set up as an instrument for consolidating the work of the various leagues and for conciliating and uniting the many outside film and photo groups throughout the country on a minimum program of activity.

Nearly forty reels of documental film produced during the past year by the various groups were brought to the conference by the delegates for exhibition and discussion. The presence of so much vivid evidence of the reality of the revolutionary film movement in America almost alone sufficed to keep the discussions at the conference on a high level. At the close of the meetings many of the films were put on view before a critical audience.

The conference dealt with practically every problem that can confront amateur and professional film and photo workers. Problems of production, processing and developing, distribution, organization, agitation, politics, theory, were thoroughly covered and conclusions reached. Resolutions were passed in support of NEW THEATRE magazine, central organ of the National Film and Photo League; the National Bureau was empowered to work out plans for increasing the space allotted for film and photo activity in the magazine, to include centerspread photo montages in every issue and wider representation of articles on film and photo production.

It was brought out at the conference that some Leagues were divided on the question of newsreel or enacted film production. It was pointed out that the history of the film, unlike the other arts, dates back a mere quarter century; that the early beginnings of all the arts and crafts were devoted, like the present-day newsreel, to the things seen and interpreted in clay, paint, song, dance, from which point they had thousands of years to develop to their present imperishable forms. But the film, although only in its twenty-fifth year, has already been so heavily overloaded with the trappings of previous arts, that, excluding the Soviet film, it can no longer be considered film at all, but bad theatre, literature, whatever you wish. The Soviet film began with the Kino-Eye and grew organically from there on. The Film and Photo Leagues rooted in the intellectual and social basis of the Soviet film begin also with the simple newsreel document, photographing events as they appear to the lens, true to the nature of the revolutionary medium they exploit in a revolutionary way. Aside from the tremendous historical and social value of the reels thus photographed, they are also true beginnings of film art.

The reels exhibited at the conference with all their weaknesses of lighting, photography, direction, are the only films in America that breathe a spirit of life and art. They are beginnings on the right track.

The mandate of the conference was that the major task before the Film and Photo Leagues of America in this coming period must be the continuous and widespread production of newsreels and documents of the class struggle in action principally, and secondly, whenever and wherever the occasion calls, semi- or wholly enacted film production logically developed out of the firm newsreel base. The tremendous growth of the working-class movement coupled with the increase of strikes and class warfare makes it imperative for the Film and Photo Leagues to concentrate its best film and photo forces on the field of battle, adequately to record the vital events of our time. A resolution was passed therefore calling upon every League to institute a shock production troupe of the most talented cameramen in the organization, whose main function will be the production of newsreels and documents. At the same time each group must establish a training school to develop potential members of the newsreel troupe, to provide a constant influx of new members for this important work. The conference adopted a resolution to be sent to the newly elected National Committee of the John Reed Club asking their cooperation in the preparation of scenarios, and to the League of Workers Theatres to assist with actors, equipment, etc. in the event they are called upon to help on enacted or documentary film production. The National League was authorized to go ahead and make plans for the production of four 35mm documents on coal, steel, the farm question, the South. It was decided that 16mm should be the basic stock used locally by the Leagues for the coming period; on a National scale 35mm is to be used and later reduced to 16mm for man distribution.

A NATIONAL Film Exchange was set up to insure wide national circulation of all films produced by the various Leagues. This to avoid a recurrence of a situation where Los Angeles, for instance, produced over twenty reels of film, but most of which were not exhibited outside California. The central apparatus in New York is to function as a clearing house and whenever possible hold negatives from which prints can be quickly struck for distribution.

A Photo Exchange Department was also established to facilitate the publication of photos coming in from various parts of the country in the working-class and other press and periodicals in New York and elsewhere. In addition the Photo Exchange Department was given power to plan a National Photo Exhibition and assist the Leagues as much as possible in photomontage work.

Plans for carrying on more effective agitational work against anti-working-class films were thoroughly discussed. The conference agreed that the Leagues must attempt to draw more liberal pacifist anti-war, anti-fascist organizations into the fight against reactionary films and not as in the past, carelessly dissipate time and energy in conducting huge mass campaigns against films like S.A. Mann-Brand and No Greater Glory, single-handedly. The Film and Photo Leagues must of course take the initiative in exposing such films, but the campaigns must be con- ducted only in conjunction with other organizations, never alone. The Los Angeles Film and Photo League, particularly, was urged to wedge its way more sharply into the film industry as a vital means of fighting reaction while it is still in embryo, also to make lasting contacts within the Motion Picture Workers Industrial Union of Hollywood.

A RESOLUTION was adopted for the publication of a monthly National Film Bulletin of organization and agitation under the direction of the National Educational Chairman.

Resolutions were passed affiliating the National Film and Photo League to the national Workers International Relief, the local Film and Photo Leagues to affiliate to the local W.I.R. if or when established.

A National Executive Committee consisting of a National Secretary, a resident National Bureau, and the Executive Secretaries of the various Leagues supplemented by endorsers and advisers was established. David Platt was elected the first National Secretary of the Film and Photo League. Other officers of the National Bureau elected for one year are: Tom Brandon, Frank Ward, John Masek, M. Green.

The delegates voted unanimously to hold a convention of all existing film and photo groups next October in Hollywood, California.

The New Theatre continued Workers Theater. Workers Theater began in New York City in 1931 as the publication of The Workers Laboratory Theater collective, an agitprop group associated with Workers International Relief, becoming the League of Workers Theaters, section of the International Union of Revolutionary Theater of the Comintern. The rough production values of the first years were replaced by a color magazine as it became primarily associated with the New Theater. It contains a wealth of left cultural history and ideas. Published roughly monthly were Workers Theater from April 1931-July/Aug 1933, New Theater from Sept/Oct 1933-November 1937, New Theater and Film from April and March of 1937, (only two issues).

PDF of full issue: https://www.marxists.org/history/usa/pubs/workers-theatre/v1n10-nov-1934-New-Theatre-NYPL-mfilm.pdf