Dreams of Toyland
About Dreams of Toyland
A boy falls asleep and dreams that his toys come to life. Live action frames the dream. In the dream, stop-motion dolls and toy vehicles move, collide, and strike one another.
Cast & crew
More about Dreams of Toyland
Arthur Melbourne-Cooper produced and directed the puppet film for Alpha Trading Company. Walturdaw distributed it in February 1908 as a split reel. The BFI holds it as 35mm, black and white, silent, 329 feet. Bryony Dixon notes that he worked on an outdoor stage: the shadows jump when the dolls are moved.
Themes
Look
Melbourne-Cooper shot the toys on an outdoor stage, one pose at a time, so the sunlight shadows shift between frames.
Technique
Stop-motion of dolls and toy vehicles sits inside a live-action story.
Preservation
The BFI holds a 35mm print of 329 feet. BFI Screenonline shows a complete copy running 7 minutes 12 seconds.
Notes
- The live-action opening and close around a stop-motion dream is the same device W. R. Booth used in Dreamland Adventures (1907).
- Melbourne-Cooper made several other films in this form.
- It is also known as In the Land of Nod.
Scenes
- Toys on the outdoor stage march, crash, and hit one another while the boy sleeps.
Influenced by
- Dreamland Adventures (1907)
Also available
- BFI Screenonline