List of Welsh films

This is a chronological list of films produced in Wales. It is divided among those that are in the English language, Welsh language, and no language (silent films).

Silent films

1890s

  • 1898: Conway Castle
  • 1898: Blackburn Rovers v West Bromwich Albion, is the world's oldest extant soccer film, by Arthur Cheetham.

1900s

  • 1907: Wales, England: Land of Castles and Waterfalls

1910s

  • 1913: The Foreman's Treachery, by Charles Brabin.
  • 1915: A Welsh Singer was adapted from a novel by Allen Raine and starred Florence Turner.
  • 1918: The Life Story of David Lloyd George

Welsh-language films

1930s

  • 1935: Y Chwarelwr (The Quarryman), was the first Welsh language sound film, directed by Ifan ab Owen Edwards.

1940s

  • 1949: Yr Etifeddiaeth (The Heritage) is a documentary by journalist John Robert Williams.

1980s

  • 1981: O'r Ddaear Hen was directed by Wil Aaron and scripted by Gwyn Thomas.
  • 1986: Milwr Bychan (Boy Soldier), directed by Karl Francis.
  • 1986: Rhosyn a Rhith (Coming Up Roses), directed by Stephen Bayly.

1990s

  • 1991: Un Nos Ola Leuad, directed by Endaf Emlyn.
  • 1992: Hedd Wyn was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film in 1992. It won a BAFTA Award for Best Film in the year of its release. It was directed by Paul Turner.
  • 1993: Cwm Hyfryd (My Pretty Valley), also directed by Paul Turner, concerns itself with a critique of Thatcherism, particularly as it relates to the closing of mines in Wales.
  • 1993: Gadael Lenin (Leaving Lenin), about a group of Welsh students and teachers who take a trip to Russia, was directed by Endaf Emlyn.
  • 1993:Tân ar y Comin, based on the novel by T. Llew Jones, about a young Romani who lives an idyllic life with his grandfather. Also released under the English title "A Christmas Reunion" (1994).
  • 1994: Ymadawiad Arthur (Arthur's Departure), was directed by Marc Evans and starred Llyr Ifans.
  • 1995: Y Mapiwr, directed by Endaf Emlyn.
  • 1997: Tylluan Wen (A White Owl), directed by Alun Ffred Jones.
  • 1998: Y Mynydd Grug (The Heather Mountain), directed by Angela Barbara Roberts.
  • 1998: Pum Cynnig i Gymro (Bride of War) was directed by Peter Edwards. It was also released in English, German and Polish.
  • 1999: Solomon & Gaenor starred Ioan Gruffudd. An English-language version was also filmed at the same time. It was directed by Paul Morrison.

2000s

  • 2002: Eldra, directed by Timothy Lyn, is about a Romani family living in North Wales.
  • 2003: Y Mabinogi, also featuring Ioan Gruffudd, is a combined live-action and animated version of Welsh collection of tales known as the Mabinogion, directed by Derek W. Hayes.
  • 2005: Y Lleill, directed by Emyr Glyn Williams.
  • 2006: Calon Gaeth (Small Country), directed by Ashley Way.
  • 2008: Cwcw written and directed by Delyth Jones.

2010s

  • 2010: Patagonia, directed by Marc Evans, filmed in Welsh, English and Spanish.
  • 2013: Y Syrcas (The Circus), directed by Kevin Allen, filmed in Welsh.
  • 2015: Under Milk Wood, directed by Kevin Allen; another version simultaneously filmed in English.
  • 2015: Yr Ymadawiad (The Passing), directed by Gareth Bryn and starring Mark Lewis Jones.
  • 2016: Y Llyfrgell (aka The Library Suicides), directed by Euros Lyn and written by Fflur Dafydd; set in The National Library of Wales

2020s

  • 2021: Gwledd (The Feast), a fantasy horror film set in Wales; directed by Lee Haven Jones
  • 2023: Y Sŵn, directed by Lee Haven Jones[1]

English-language films set in Wales

1930s

1940s

1950s

1960s

1970s

1980s

  • 1980: The Mouse and the Woman was filmed at Lampeter House, directed by Karl Francis.
  • 1982: Giro City, by Karl Francis.
  • 1982: Who Dares Wins outdoor training scenes were filmed in Snowdonia, starring Lewis Collins and directed by Ian Sharp.
  • 1983: House of the Long Shadows was directed by Pete Walker. It comments on the nationalism of the Welsh, especially the older generation, who hate the English; the American jokes that he should wear a leek to show he's a friend. Vincent Price, who has a Welsh surname, plays a character who describes Wales as his ancestral homeland. His character's family appears to be English, however.
  • 1985: Ms Rhymney Valley, by Karl Francis
  • 1987: Girls' Night Out is an S4C film by Joanna Quinn.
  • 1987: A Child's Christmas in Wales is a TV-movie based on Dylan Thomas's work of the same name, starring Denholm Elliott and directed by Don McBrearty.
  • 1987: On the Black Hill is about Welsh identical twins, and was directed by Andrew Grieve.

1990s

2000s

2010s

  • 2010: Devil's Bridge was filmed in Cardiff and Pembrokeshire; directed by Chris Crow.
  • 2010: Submarine is set in Swansea; starring Welsh actor Craig Roberts.
  • 2010: Risen is a biopic of Welsh champion boxer Howard Winstone.
  • 2011: Resistance is a film based in an alternative reality in which Nazi Germany invades the United Kingdom during the Second World War; based on the novel by Owen Sheers.
  • 2013: A Field in England, a psychedelic horror film set in 17th century Monmouthshire (a county of contemporary Wales, but which was not clearly labeled as part of Wales at the time).
  • 2013: One Chance is a British-American biographical film about opera singer and Britain's Got Talent winner Paul Potts
  • 2014: Set Fire to the Stars is a film about Welsh poet Dylan Thomas.
  • 2014: Pride was filmed in Banwen, Onllwyn and is based on a true story about the gay activists work to help the miners; directed by Matthew Warchus.
  • 2015: Just Jim, the directorial debut of Craig Roberts, is set and filmed in the actor's home village of Maesycwmmer.
  • 2015: Dark Horse was based on a true story filmed in Blackwood and Chepstow, directed by Louise Osmond.
  • 2018: Say My Name was set on a Welsh island but filmed around Cardiff, directed by Deborah Frances-White.
  • 2018: Last Summer, four boys roam free through a neglected rural paradise in Wales, until a tragedy strikes, directed by Jon Jones.[3][better source needed]
  • 2019: Gwen is a folk tale set and filmed in Snowdonia during the industrial revolution. Directed by William McGregor.

2020s

Other Welsh-related films

Films with Welsh characters (but not set in Wales)

  • 1952: Cosh Boy is a film in which the main character's mother is Welsh. It was directed by Lewis Gilbert.
  • 1956: In The Searchers, directed by John Ford, the character Martin Pawly claims that he is 1/8 Cherokee, and the rest is English and Welsh.
  • 1958: Look Back in Anger, starred Welsh actor Richard Burton and featuring the Welsh character, Cliff. It was directed by Tony Richardson.
  • 1958: The Vikings has Rhodri Mawr as a character, and his daughter Morgana (played by Janet Leigh).
  • 1959: I'm All Right, Jack starred Peter Sellers and featured a Welsh worker named Dai. It was directed by John Boulting.
  • 1959: Upstairs and Downstairs features a Welsh female character, and was directed by Ralph Thomas.
  • 1964: Zulu, starring Michael Caine, depicts the struggle of a detachment of a Welsh regiment against Zulu warriors. It was directed by Cy Endfield.
  • 1968: Candy, features Richard Burton as a Welsh alcoholic poet, MacPhisto.
  • 1970: The Molly Maguires, directed by Martin Ritt and starring Sean Connery, tells the story of the Irish labor troubles in the anthracite coal mines of Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania. Several characters, including the police chief Davies (played by Englishman Frank Finlay), and a miner Jenkins (played by Englishman John Alderson), are Welsh.
  • 1971: Two English Girls (Les Deux anglaises et le continent) was directed by François Truffaut. Despite the title, the titular "English girls" are actually both Welsh.
  • 1971: 10 Rillington Place, directed by Richard Fleischer, stars John Hurt as a Welshman living in London.
  • 1977: In A Bridge Too Far, one of the final scenes features a minor character nicknamed Taff.
  • 1978: The Hound of the Baskervilles features Dudley Moore portraying a Welsh Doctor Watson, reusing a version of his Welsh accent from the 1967 film Bedazzled.
  • 1979: The Life of Brian, a film by Monty Python, features a character named Judith (played by Sue Jones-Davies) who is referred to by Brian's mother as a "Welsh tart." Several other references to Welsh characters can be gleaned from the screenplay.[4]
  • 1980: The Falls, directed by Welsh-born filmmaker Peter Greenaway, references the Welsh-born character Tulse Luper.
  • 1983: Taking Tiger Mountain, references a Welsh Minister of Prostitution. It was directed by Tom Huckabee, based on a novella by William S. Burroughs.
  • 1991: Old Scores, set in New Zealand, is about a former Welsh rugby star. It was directed by Alan Clayton.
  • 1994: Au Pair was directed by Angelika Weber. The main character and her boyfriend are Welsh.
  • 1997: The Replacements,features Rhys Ifans as a Welsh soccer player who is recruited to play American football. When called a "Mick" by teammates, he asserts that he is Welsh, not Irish. It was directed by Howard Deutch.
  • 1999: Notting Hill, features Rhys Ifans as a Welsh character called Spike.
  • 2000: The Man Who Cried, about a Jewish girl who leaves the Soviet Union to be raised in England, utilises a Welsh music teacher to help aid in the girl's assimilation to English culture. As he was not allowed to speak Welsh but succeeded professionally after learning English, so will she succeed if she abandons her native tongue.
  • 2003 and following: The Tulse Luper Suitcases is a multimedia project by Welsh-born filmmaker Peter Greenaway concerning the Welsh-born character Tulse Luper.
  • 2004: Heights, starring Glenn Close, features Andrew Howard as the Welsh character, Ian. It was directed by Chris Terrio.
  • 2004: Patrick, a documentary about the Welsh St. Patrick who became the patron saint of Ireland, was directed by Pamela Mason Wagner.
  • 2011: The Rite features Anthony Hopkins as Father Lucas, a Welsh exorcist, living in Rome.
  • 2013: Evil Dead (2013 film), directed by Fede Álvarez; a character speaks in Welsh.
  • 2017: Finding Your Feet, directed by Richard Loncraine. John Sessions plays a Welsh character.
  • 2020: Dolittle (film), directed by Stephen Gaghan; Robert Downey Jr. plays the titular Welsh character.

Filmed on location in Wales, but set elsewhere

Miscellaneous

Welsh actors and directors

See also

Footnotes

  1. ^ "Watch: Exclusive first look at film documenting the battle to establish S4C". Nation.Cymru. 2023-01-31. Retrieved 2023-04-11.
  2. ^ David Berry Wales and Cinema: The First Hundred Years. Cardiff, 1994, page 161.
  3. ^ "Last Summer (2018)". IMDb. Retrieved 28 January 2021.
  4. ^ [1] Archived August 13, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
  5. ^ a b c d "Caerwent is scene for Captain America movie". South Wales Argus. 28 July 2011. Retrieved 21 November 2020.
  6. ^ "Watch: First trailer released for new Disney+ Willow series filmed in Wales". 27 May 2022.
  7. ^ Tom Moody (12 May 2019). "Hollywood stars filming in Gwent for the incredible true story of how a barmaid bred a Welsh National-winning racehorse". South Wales Argus. Retrieved 21 November 2020.

Scholarly resources

  • Wales on Screen, edited by Steve Blandford
  • Wales and Cinema: The First Hundred Years, by Dave Berry

External links

  • The National Screen and Sound Archive of Wales