Snow (1963 film)

Snow is a short documentary film made by Geoffrey Jones for British Transport Films in 1962–1963. The 8-minute-long film shows the efforts of British Railways staff in coping with the 1963 United Kingdom cold wave. An example of "pure cinema", it was nominated for an Academy Award in 1965.[1][2][3]

Snow
Titlescreen
Directed by	Geoffrey Jones
Produced by	Edgar Anstey
Music by	Sandy Nelson Johnny Hawksworth Daphne Oram
Cinematography	Wolfgang Suschitzky
Distributed by	British Transport Films
Release date	1963 (1963)
Running time	8 minutes
Country	United Kingdom

The film had its origins in primary research for a documentary about the British Railways Board. Jones' test research coincided with one of the coldest winters on record, and Jones approached BTF producer Edgar Anstey with the idea to contrast the comfort of the passengers with the efforts of the railway workmen in keeping trains going in the frozen conditions. Work began on the documentary straight after gaining approval, and Jones and cameraman Wolfgang Suschitzky travelled around the country filming scenes for the rest of the winter.[1]

The film was edited to a re-recorded version of Sandy Nelson's "Teen Beat" by Johnny Hawksworth, expanded to twice its original length by accelerating the tempo over the duration of the film. BBC Radiophonic Workshop composer Daphne Oram then added various effects to the soundtrack.[1][2]