Fashion on the field, 1912
“To-day is Taranaki Cup day – the sportsman’s day in Taranaki – and from near and far worshippers at the shrine of Pegasus will do pilgrimage to the local racecourse to lay their offerings on the altar of sport.” (Taranaki Daily News, 14 February 1912)
By 1912 signs of militarism in New Zealand - like compulsory military training, and the commissioning of the battleship HMS New Zealand - were increasing. In the rural province of Taranaki, however, the threat of war seemed a million miles away as crowds assembled for the Taranaki Cup horse race. They are seen here dressed in their finest, parading on the lawn, meeting and greeting, seeing and being seen. These scenes were quickly processed and screened at the local Empire Picture Palace, “the home of intellectual refinement”, the very next day.
Fashion on the field, 1912
“To-day is Taranaki Cup day – the sportsman’s day in Taranaki – and from near and far worshippers at the shrine of Pegasus will do pilgrimage to the local racecourse to lay their offerings on the altar of sport.” (Taranaki Daily News, 14 February 1912)
By 1912 signs of militarism in New Zealand - like compulsory military training, and the commissioning of the battleship HMS New Zealand - were increasing. In the rural province of Taranaki, however, the threat of war seemed a million miles away as crowds assembled for the Taranaki Cup horse race. They are seen here dressed in their finest, parading on the lawn, meeting and greeting, seeing and being seen. These scenes were quickly processed and screened at the local Empire Picture Palace, “the home of intellectual refinement”, the very next day.
Year: 1912
Length: 01:25
Production Company: Empire Theatre Film
Credits: Camera: Brandon Haughton, Producer: Garnett Saunders
Source: Ngā Taonga Sound & Vision
Catalogue Reference: F1465 Taranaki Jockey Club's Annual Meeting
Location: New Plymouth, New Zealand
This short newsreel, showing highlights of the 1912 Taranaki Cup, is typical of the ‘local topical’ films shot at that time. Images of the crowd were especially important as they guaranteed a full house at the cinema, since the entire community turned out in the hope of seeing themselves on screen.
The film was made by Empire Pictures, whose producer was the Australian-born businessman Garnet Saunders. He came to New Zealand in 1902 and settled in New Plymouth, Taranaki’s largest town. He established Taranaki Amusements which ran theatres in New Plymouth and the smaller towns of Inglewood, Waitara and Stratford.
The coloured sections of the film were made by applying a chemical colouring to the surface of the processed black-and-white film stock. Read about tinting and toning on the NFSA website