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This 1931 remake of the earlier, silent Secrets of Nature film An Aquarium in
a Wine Glass (1926) uses close-up photography, dark ground microcinematography
and animation to introduce the viewer to the class of protozoa popularly known
as infusoria: tiny animals that grow when organic matter is infused in water.
The World in a Wineglass, like all the Secrets made from footage supplied by
Percy Smith, was a product of the vibrant world of amateur natural history, more
observational than analytical. The commentary steers away from latinate or even
technical terms - the word 'protozoa', for example, is nowhere used, even though
it was well established in scientific use at this point. Instead, the commentary
uses homely names such as 'purse', 'bell' and 'slipper'. The appeal of amateur
science is directly suggested in the film's opening words, which sound like an
invitation to the audience member to join the ranks of spare time microscopists:
"if you suddenly think you would like to have an aquarium, the cheapest way
to get one is to fill a glass with water, and then put in a wisp of hay. In a
few days, if you look through a microscope, you will find your aquarium in full
swing."
The commentary describes the infusoria as 'mysteriously appearing', implying
spontaneous generation, although the tone of the film is descriptive of
biological processes rather than implying any magical causation.
Unlike other Secrets released at this time, the soundtrack features no music,
only commentary, in the 'light firm baritone' that Mary Field favoured for these
films. The tone is somewhere between didactic and whimsical, a balancing act
which was doubtless part of the producers' aim to ensure the films the widest
possible audience.
Timothy Boon
Dr Timothy Boon is Senior Curator of the Science Museum
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1. Creating the aquarium (2:10)
