Throughout October we will be screening two short films by The Barnes Brothers; Gem of the Cornish Riviera 1936 and Cornish Nets 1938. These 16mm black and white silent films depict aspects of the fishing industry in St Ives and around the Cornish coast. On their release they were commended by the Board of the Amateur Cine World.
John Barnes (1920–2008) and William ‘Bill’ Barnes (1920–2019) were twin brothers who began film making as teenagers. From a young age they showed an interest in life around them in the coastal and rural communities in Cornwall and Kent.
With kind thanks to St Ives Archive for image permission and research and Screen Archive South East who hold the original films and key aspects of the John and William Barnes Collection.