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Title: HAPPY BEES

Reference number: 6228

Date: 1954

Director: d. Margaret Tait

Production company: Ancona Films

Sound: sound

Original format: 16mm

Colour: col

Fiction: fiction

Running time: 16.07 mins

Description: This film poem evokes childhood happiness on the island of Orkney. Footage includes wildflower meadows, toddlers playing in garden, friends fishing together and images of the sea.

See also Additional Information file at 11/1/455. Paper Archives 4/5/119, 4/11/651, 4/5/92.

The Tait papers are deposited in Orkney Archives. Currently being catalogued. For any enquiries please contact Principal Archivist.

The British Artist's Film and Video Study Collection at http://www.bftv.ac.uk/avantgarde based at Central St. Martin's College of Art and Design holds an artist's file on Margaret Tait.

The British Film Institute National Library http://www.bfi.org.uk holds many of the published articles on her and her work.

In 1979 Margaret Tait was the subject of a BBC Scotland 'Spectrum' arts programme.

Credits: by Margaret Tait
HAPPY BEES tunes played by Orkney Reel and Strathspey Society

Shotlist: [shotlisted from timecoded VHS dub]

opening credits and title (1.26) c/u flowers and insects among wildflower meadow (2.38) lady sitting in among field of lupins (3.03) horses in field, c/u horse lying down, another horse cantering across field (3.32) little boy walking up to garden fence on stony path, he is joined by another toddler. They play with toy truck, on a mattress in garden, crawl and roll on grass, laughing and playing together (6.19) two small girls join them and the group play with old metal stove (?) in garden, shot of small walking around edge of house, the group play at 'cooking', filling a tin kettle up with coal, using tin cans of 'syrup' to make 'pudding', using stones as 'cake mix', they play with toy cars (9.25) they play on makeshift see-saw (9.54) c/u water trickling in burn, gvs wildflowers in field (10.29) c/u making paper boats - could be flies for fishing (?), boat sailing, c/u man fishing over side (11.34) children fish for tiddlers over pier edge and then c/u as they hold their catch out for camera in their hands (12.03) waves lapping on shore, c/u rock pool, shot of rocky stac and huge waves crashing on beach [Margaret Tait voiceover 'The children are not far away, the children live here'] (14.37) seagull flying high in sky and looking down to sea swell below (15.56) ecs (16.07)