Ideal Film Company

Ideal Film Company

Company type	Private
Industry	Film production and distribution
Founded	1911
Founder	Harry Moses Rowson, Simon Rowson
Defunct	1934
Fate	Incorporated into Gaumont British group (1927), brand retained until 1934
Headquarters	Soho, London , United Kingdom
Area served	United Kingdom
Products	Films (production and distribution)

The Ideal Film Company—frequently referred to as Ideal Films or simply Ideal—was a British enterprise engaged in both film production and distribution from 1911 until 1934.

History

Headquartered in Soho, London, the firm was established by brothers Harry Moses (1875–1951) and Simon (1877–1950) Rowson, originally Rosenbaum, who hailed from Manchester. Their father, an immigrant butcher from Suwałki in Congress Poland, influenced their early background.

Initially functioning exclusively as a distribution outfit starting in 1911, Ideal broadened its operations to include film production by 1916. The company acquired the first of the Elstree Studios at Borehamwood in 1917, purchasing it from Neptune Film Company. Throughout the silent era, Ideal emerged as a prominent British production house, benefiting from the surge in film popularity following the First World War. The firm faced difficulties during the Slump of 1924, halting its production activities but continuing to distribute films. In 1927, Ideal was incorporated into the Gaumont British group, yet it retained its own brand for distribution purposes until 1934.

Over its 23-year span, Ideal was responsible for distributing close to 400 films and producing in excess of 80 titles. Although the majority of its produced works are now regarded as lost, a portion has survived. Its most renowned production remains The Life Story of David Lloyd George (1918), a biographical film about the British prime minister directed by Maurice Elvey.

Simon Rowson later provided governmental counsel on British cinema and became the inaugural president of the British Kinematograph Society from 1931 to 1938. His son, Leslie Rowson, gained recognition as a distinguished British cinematographer.

Selected list of films produced

• Lady Windermere's Fan (1916)
• Justice (1917)
• Tom Jones (1917)
• Red Pottage (1918)
• The Life Story of David Lloyd George (1918)
• Dombey and Son (1919)
• The Chinese Puzzle (1919)
• Bleak House (1920)
• Lady Audley's Secret (1920)
• Wuthering Heights (1920)
• Ernest Maltravers (1920)
• Shirley (1921)
• A Woman of No Importance (1921)
• Sybil (1921)
• Bentley's Conscience (1922)
• A Master of Craft (1922)
• The Card (1922)
• The Loves of Mary, Queen of Scots (1923)
• Hutch Stirs 'em Up (1923)
• Hurricane Hutch in Many Adventures (1924)
• Wedding Rehearsal (1932)

Bibliography

• Gledhill, Christine. Reframing British Cinema 1918-1928: Between Restraint and Passion. British Film Institute, 2003.
• Low, Rachael. The History of the British Film, 1918-1929. George Allen & Unwin, 1971.

External links

• Ideal Film Company listed at the British Film Institute