Stop-motion animation of a matchstick appeal, by Hertfordshire film pioneer Arthur Melbourne-Cooper.
Genre:
Animation; Promotional
A pair of matchstick man feature in this stop-motion animation by pioneering filmmaker Arthur Melbourne-Cooper, promoting an appeal by the Bryant and May match company for donations to allow the supply of matches to British soldiers serving overseas.
Perched atop a scaffold of matches, a matchstick man paints a message claiming that: "For one guinea, Messrs Bryant & May will forward a case containing sufficient to supply a box of matches to each man in a battalion: with name of the sender inside."
Background Information:
The year of production is disputed, with some records (including 'They Thought it was a Marvel', de Vries & Mul) suggesting the film was created in 1899 to support troops fighting in the Boer War, whilst others point to a production date as late as the First World War.
Notes:
Also known as MATCHES: AN APPEAL