Stanley Crick

The Australian Photo-Play Company was established in June 1911 under the management of Stanley Crick. The company had arisen out of the Crick and Finlay partnership, which had produced four films by John Gavin earlier in the year. Crick's new company was an ambitious undertaking, with capital of £20,000, offices in Sydney and Melbourne, and two studios planned for construction in Sydney. By November 1911 Crick claimed to be employing about forty staff, with a camera department in the charge of Herbert Finlay, a laboratory managed by A. O. Segerberg, and an acting troupe under the direction of Alfred Rolfe. The staff was young (only one of the principal members was over 30 and their work often displayed an ingenuity that set them far ahead of their local contemporaries, many of whom still regarded film as an adjunct to stage productions.
The company did not survive long, but it was prolific, making a score of films in less than a year. Crick had hoped for government support in the form of a protective tariff to limit the number of imported films, but as many later film-makers found, governments were reluctant to act. Because of the inadequacy of theatre outlets, especially after the merging of the main competition forces in the combine of Australasian Films and Union Theatres, the company never became financially stable. In March 1912 the marketing of the films was assigned to Gaumont, but with no evident improvement, and production ground to a halt in mid-1912. Pike & Cooper: 21.

Moora Neya (Alfred Rolfe, 1911) aka The Message of the Spear Australian Photo-Play Company; Ethel Phillips, Stanley Walpole, Charles Villiers

Lady Outlaw, The (Alfred Rolfe, 1911) Australian Photo-Play Company; Charles Villiers

In the Nick Of Time (Alfred Rolfe, 1911) Australian Photo-Play Company

Mates Of The Murrumbidgee (Alfred Rolfe, 1911) Australian Photo-Play Company; 28 min.

Way Outback (Alfred Rolfe, 1911) Australian Photo-Play Company; Charles Villiers

What Women Suffer (Alfred Rolfe, 1911) Australian Photo-Play Company; Alfred Rolfe, Ethel Phillips, Stanley Walpole, Charles Villiers

Cup Winner, The (Alfred Rolfe, 1911) Australian Photo-Play Company; Charles Villiers

Caloola (Alfred Rolfe, 1911) aka The Adventures Of A Jackeroo, Australian Photo-Play Company; Charles Villiers; settler daughter captured by Aboriginals

Miner's Curse, The (Alfred Rolfe, 1911) Australian Photo-Play Company

King Of The Coiners (Alfred Rolfe, 1912) Australian Photo-Play Company

Do Men Love Women? (Alfred Rolfe, 1912 Australian Photo-Play Company

Sin Of A Woman, The (Alfred Rolfe, 1912) Australian Photo-Play Company

Crime And The Criminal, The (Alfred Rolfe, 1912) Australian Photo-Play Company

Coo-ee And The Echo (Alfred Rolfe, 1912) Australian Photo-Play Company, dp A. O. Segerberg; happy ending is only reached when a 'faithful' Aboriginal boy (played by Charles Woods in blackface) arrives in time to rescue the hero

Love Tyrant, The (Alfred Rolfe, 1912) aka Love, The Tyrant, Australian Photo-Play Company; Charles Villiers

Cheat, The (Alfred Rolfe, 1912) Australian Photo-Play Company; Ethel Phillips, Stanley Walpole, Charles Villiers

Won On The Post (Alfred Rolfe, 1912) Australian Photo-Play Company

Whose Was The Hand (Alfred Rolfe, 1912) Australian Photo-Play Company, dp A. O. Segerberg; Charles Villiers, Stanley Walpole

Moira (Alfred Rolfe, 1912) aka The Mystery Of The Bush, Australian Photo-Play Company

Garry Gillard | New: 17 November, 2013 | Now: 3 July, 2020