From the Caribbean to West Africa: Edric Connor’s Travelogues

In 1959 filmmaking polymath Edric Connor returned to the Caribbean to direct, producing seven films in quick succession. A proud West Indian nationalist, Connor documents nation-building, focusing on flourishing commerce, reverently capturing the people and terrain.

These films were digitised by the BFI National Archive with funding from the National Lottery.

Total running time 93min

These short films will available to view for free on BFI Player between 6 to 17 October, and all will be available on BFI Player with an audio-description soundtrack for customers who are blind or partially-sighted, and will have closed captions for customers who are D/deaf or hard of hearing.

 

Jamaica – Third Test

   

  • Director-Producer

    Edric Connor

  • UK 1960. 29min
    Edric Connor Films

Connor’s coverage of the first-ever test won by England in the Caribbean, from an overcrowded Sabina Park, features authoritative narration by British-Guyanese commentator Ernest Eytle.

Caribbean Honeymoon No.1

   

  • Director-Producer

    Edric Connor

  • UK 1960. 17min
    Edric Connor Films

‘My People!’ Connor returns to his birthplace of Mayaro to celebrate his homeland’s natural beauty and manufacturing, capturing pre-independence Caribbean islands in all their glorious warmth.

Caribbean Honeymoon No.2

   

  • Director-Producer

    Edric Connor

  • UK 1960. 15min
    Edric Connor Films

Shown at the 1960 Edinburgh international Film Festival, this dazzling travelogue records Guyana’s idyllic flora and the industries that supplied raw materials for British homes.

Bound for Lagos

   

  • Director-Producer

    Edric Connor

  • UK 1960. 32min
    Edric Connor Films

Commissioned in 1960 to mark Nigeria’s independence, Connor directs and stars in this troubled production about shifting social relations in an emergent West African middle-class.

Programmed by Xavier Alexandre Pillai