Alfred Hitchcock directed a handful of segments in the musical revue "Elstree Calling," released in February 1930 and filmed inside the Elstree Film Studios in Borehamwood, Hertfordshire, England. Adrian Brunel, the primary director, was assisted by Hitchcock to handle the comedic and dramatic dialogue scenes. "Elstree Calling" is known for showing one of the first television sets seen in film. The entertainment portions are bridged by reoccurring skits of an aspiring Shakespearean actor. Also, the movie cuts to a man who is frustrated by his efforts to get the TV station's reception to see the revue on his new television. His neighbor, however, is watching the same program on his TV screen crystal clear. John Baird had been demonstrating his version of a primitive television in London since 1925, and by 1930 the public was aware of the invention. It would be another six years before BBC, the United Kingdom's broadcasting network, delivered over-the-air images to the public.
"Elstree Calling" contains a who's who of those in the British radio, film and stage performers during that era, including American actress Anna May Wong, in Europe to seek out meatier parts in movies. Included are four sequences using the Pathecolor process, a stencil-based film tinting process to create somewhat realistic colors. This was the final movie, besides the 1954 Mexican movie 'Robinson Crusoe,' to use Panthecolor.
"Elstree Calling" contains a who's who of those in the British radio, film and stage performers during that era, including American actress Anna May Wong, in Europe to seek out meatier parts in movies. Included are four sequences using the Pathecolor process, a stencil-based film tinting process to create somewhat realistic colors. This was the final movie, besides the 1954 Mexican movie 'Robinson Crusoe,' to use Panthecolor.