The Film-makers

As well as a keen film-maker, Mitchell Georgeson was a well established businessman in Shetland. He was part-owner of ‘Georgeson and Moore’ (Scalloway) and also owned a bakery and shop in Clairmont Place, Lerwick trading under ‘M and R Georgeson.’

The films in his collection offer a fascinating insight into 1950s life in Shetland, including brief shots of Prince Philip visiting in 1953 and a rare aerial view of the islands!

John was a teacher at Forrester High School in Edinburgh, ran football teams, wrote Biology by Inquiry (a school textbook) and did a myriad of other good works. In his teacher role he took parties of schoolkids ‘home’ to Shetland on outdoor education trips every summer. As most of the children were from deprived inner city areas, the Shetland trips introduced them to a very different way of life and had a very positive impact.

Most of the films by John Irvine document these outdoor education trips - including travels around Shetland and visits to local businesses. There are also some additional films by John’s brother Derek, which include the Queen and Prince Philip visiting Shetland in 1960.

Greg developed a passion for film-making from a young age, while making short films with friends. After studying film and media at Stirling University he was able to use his film-making skills while working at Shetland College UHI, traveling on the SIC’s Global Classroom Learning School programme and producing video / radio content for Promote Shetland.

In 2014 he was one of the local film-makers commissioned for the Shetland Moving Image Archive’s Ebb Tide project, and he has had short films and animations shown at various national and international festivals.

Greg has been on the archive committee since 2013 and has held the post of chair since 2014. In 2018 he took up the role of Media Manager at STV in Glasgow.

Gilbert James (Bertie) Mowat was a technical teacher for Junior High Schools in the North Mainland. He studied civil engineering at Heriott Watt and worked for the roads department before WW2. At that point he took up the role as an airplane fitter for the RAF.

Photography ran in the Mowat family - Bertie and his brother Bobby learned from their father, who was possibly self taught. Some of his glass plate negatives still survive in the Shetland Museum and Archives.

Bertie filmed a wide range of community events across Shetland, including various sailing regattas and fire festivals. There are also some interesting views of everyday life on a Shetland croft.

Jim Smith MBE was one of Shetland’s leading citizens with a diverse legacy of accomplishments. He was known for his innovative inventions, including the first fish gutting machine for which he received an MBE for services to the fishing industry. He also built and flew two airplanes at the Berry farm in Scalloway.

Much of the films by Jim Smith showcase the pony breeding undertaken at the Berry farm by Jim and his sister Eva. One of their films may document the first (and possibly only) airlift of ponies from Shetland to Norway. Several films were taken on their regular trips to horse shows in Norway.