Tracking Shots
Close Ups on NZ Film History
Fighting the Good Fight
To the Salvation Army moving pictures were a godsend.
The Army had created the Limelight Brigade in the 1890s to spread the work with Magic Lanterns or Limelights.
In 1896 the latest Lumiere Cinematographe from Paris was added. From then on Limelight toured moving pictures nearly every year throughout New Zealand until 1908.
The Brigade also filmed local events, mostly well peopled street scenes, and it is estimated that before 1907 it produced 60 percent of everything shot in New Zealand.
The Limelight Brigade presented Soldiers of the Cross in June 1901, sometimes called the world’s first feature film, it was a multimedia extravaganza. Using 200 coloured glass slides, 990 metres of film, a choir and an orchestra, the film caused a sensation in New Zealand.
Sadly, of all the films shot here by the Brigade only fragments of one, the Royal Visit of the Duke and Duchess of Cornwall and York, are known to survive.
Please note: These videos are in the QuickTime format. You will need to have the QuickTime player installed in order to view these files.
