About

Known credits:
44
Birthday:
1907-08-19
Place of birth:
Walberswick, United Kingdom
Website:
N/A

Humphrey Jennings

Overview

Frank Humphrey Sinkler Jennings (19 August 1907 – 24 September 1950) was an English documentary filmmaker, celebrated for his poetic and visually striking portrayals of British life during World War II. A co-founder of the Mass Observation social research organization, Jennings blended avant-garde techniques with a deep sense of national identity, creating films that captured the resilience and spirit of the British people. His most acclaimed works, including Listen to Britain (1942), Fires Were Started (1943), and A Diary for Timothy (1945), showcase his unique ability to fuse documentary realism with lyrical storytelling. Film critic and director Lindsay Anderson described him as "the only real poet that British cinema has yet produced."

Known for

Acting
2000 Humphrey Jennings: The Man Who Listened to Britain Actor Self (archive footage) 59
Average
1935 BBC: The Voice of Britain Actor N/A
N/A
1934 The Glorious Sixth of June Actor Albert Goodbody N/A
N/A
1934 Pett and Pott: A Fairy Story of the Suburbs Actor Grocer (uncredited) 58
Average

Directing
1950 Family Portrait Directing Director 58
Average
1949 The Dim Little Island Directing Director N/A
N/A
1948 The Cumberland Story Directing Director N/A
N/A
1946 A Defeated People Directing Director 58
Average
1945 A Diary for Timothy Directing Director 59
Average
1945 Myra Hess Directing Director 59
Average
1944 V. 1 Directing Director 59
Average
1944 The Eighty Days Directing Director N/A
N/A
1944 The True Story of Lili Marlene Directing Director 58
Average
1943 The Silent Village Directing Director 59
Average
1943 Fires Were Started Directing Director 59
Average
1942 Listen to Britain Directing Director 59
Average
1941 The Heart of Britain Directing Director 59
Average
1941 Words for Battle Directing Director 59
Average
1941 This Is England Directing Director 59
Average
1940 London Can Take It! Directing Director 59
Average
1940 Spring Offensive Directing Director 59
Average
1940 Welfare of the Workers Directing Director 58
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1939 Cargoes Directing Director 59
Average
1939 S.S. Ionian Directing Director 59
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1939 Spare Time Directing Director 59
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1939 The First Days Directing Director 59
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1938 English Harvest Directing Director 59
Average
1938 Speaking from America Directing Director 59
Average
1938 The Farm Directing Director 59
Average
1938 Penny Journey Directing Director 59
Average
1938 Making Fashion Directing Director 59
Average
1937 Farewell Topsails Directing Director 59
Average
1934 Post-Haste Directing Director 58
Average
1934 Locomotives Directing Director 59
Average
1934 The Story of the Wheel Directing Director 59
Average

Writing
1950 Family Portrait Writing Writer 58
Average
1944 The True Story of Lili Marlene Writing Writer 58
Average
1943 Fires Were Started Writing Writer 59
Average
1942 Listen to Britain Writing Writer 59
Average

Production
1949 The Dim Little Island Production Producer N/A
N/A
1943 The Silent Village Production Producer 59
Average

Camera
1935 Coal Face Camera Additional Photography 58
Average

Editing
1942 Listen to Britain Editing Editor 59
Average

Visual Effects
1936 The Birth of the Robot Visual Effects Color Designer 59
Average