John Halas Movies

An animated, dark satire of America's automobile-obsessed, consumerist culture. An anonymous, brilliant scientist toils tirelessly in his ivory tower...

An illustrated version of Twa Corbies made as the BFI’s contribution to the Festival of Britain. Enlivened by the distinctive voice of John...

The cartoon is one of the Marshall Plan's most popular films. A clash between a shoemaker and a hat maker illustrates the contrasts between...

In this film Charley demystifies the new state-funded National Health Service, detailing the benefits a free-at-point-of-delivery health service will...

If you haven’t already been diverted by the history of John Gilpin, or would like to venture that way again, you couldn’t find a better...

Instructional cartoon for the Admiralty.

The film is designed to encourage recycling - which was a key part of the war effort.

No man is an island, but Charley represents his nation in this economical cartoon tale of Britain’s economics.

A humorously semi-factual account of the history of cinema.

T'was the night before Christmas and all through the house not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse.

Hamilton the elephant loves playing music with his trunk. When he is fired from the circus he does odd jobs till he gets his big break.

Set to Gilbert and Sullivan tunes, a musical cartoon attempts to describe the character of the British nation, with occasional interruptions by...

An animated visual interpretation of the song "Autobahn," by German electronic pioneers Kraftwerk. A fast-paced experimental film which proved to be...

For centuries, the Murgatroyd family, the Baronets of Ruddigore, have been under a witch's curse — commit a crime every day, or die in agony....

Examines in detail Pieter Bruegel the Elder’s painting, 'Netherlandish Proverbs', which illustrates over 100 proverbs and allegorises a whole...

A particularly vicious Father Time with a hit-list in his Book of Doom seeks to wipe out characters brought to life from fabric patterns. This neat...

First Line of Defence is a short cartoon recruitment film for the RAF created in 1949 by animation duo Halas and Batchelor. The story follows a...

Cartoon tennis match, with players based on Bjorn Borg and John McEnroe.