On Film Inc. was an American industrial film production company in the 1950-60s known for its innovative and award-winning creative productions and advertisements and its roster of talented filmmakers and documentarians. Scholar Dr. Jocelyn Szczepaniak-Gillece described On Film Inc. as "making lightly surreal films with plays on surfaces, tints, and music . . . with a playful approach of color, light, and texture rather than narrative coherence."
Robert (Bob) Bell led the firm, along with his wife Virginia Bell (who also went by Tracy Ward) in operations and creative leadership roles. The film company was headquartered in Princeton, New Jersey and established in 1951. It soon started was producing motion pictures and slide films that were sponsored by local and federal government agency, industrial, medical, and commercial clients.
Another distinguishing feature of the company was that "On Film rarely promoted a single creator; instead, the production unit worked together as a team and was acknowledged as such, illustrating the left-leaning collectivist politics embraced by much of the company and the avant-garde artists they often hired." Noted filmmakers associated with the company include Bert Spielvogel, Stan Brakhage, Willard van Dyke, Len Lye, Stan Vanderbeek, Marcel Rebiere, Richard Miller, Richard Bagley, Hugh and Suzanne Johnston, and Weegee.
Its commercials, such as "Qualities of Aluminum," for the Aluminum Company Of America, were notable for its experimental style and striking visuals. Other ad clients and campaigns included Ivory soap, NBC ("Strangers into Customers"), Johnson & Johnson, American Airlines ("Alice in Wonderland," 1962), and Newsweek Magazine ("Communicative People," 1957).
Filmography
Sutures since Lister (1942), for Ethicon Suture Division of Johnson and Johnson
The Rh Factor (1954), for the ORTHO RESEARCH FOUNDATION, and supervised by Dr. Philip Levine, Lasker Award winner and discoverer of the Rh factor
Your Home As You Like It (1956), sponsored by Pittsburgh Plate Glass Co.
Color and Texture in Aluminum Finishes (1956), sponsored by the Aluminum Company of America
In the Suburbs
Radio Free Europe (1956), through the cooperation of the United Stales Department of Defense and sponsored by the Crusade for Freedom
Conversation Crossroads (1958), sponsored by Bell System
Tie Tie Go-Round (1959), sponsored by the Chicago Printed String Co, Chris certificate in 7th Annual Columbus (Ohio) Film Festival
Aluminum Is Not Only Aluminum (1959)
The New Girl (1960), distributed by the President's Committee on Government Contracts, top award Citizenship and Government films, American Film Festival
Pittsburgh (1959), commissioned by the Pittsburgh Bicentennial Association
The Kitchen Keyboard (1961), sponsored by R.T. French
Someone's in the Kitchen (1961), sponsored by General Foods, Award to a Motion Picture Reflecting the Corporate Image
↑"Tv commercials festival award winners: Top award to FSR for ALCOA's 'Qualities of Aluminim' series," Broadcasting, May 7, 1962, p.32.
↑"Inspiration in Visual Design: Alcoa's Fine Film on Color and Texture in Finishes Pays Silent Tribute to Audiences of Architects and Designers," Business Screen Magazine, 3(18), 1957, p.37
↑The National Union Catalog: A Cumulative Author List Representing
Library of Congress Printed Cards and Titles Reported by Other American Libraries, 1953-1957 VOLUME 28 MOTION PICTURES AND FILMSTRIPS Rowman and Littlefield, Inc.: Paterson, New Jersey 1961, p.807.
↑"Crusade for Freedom Film Exposes Red Film Propaganda," Business Screen Magazine 1(17), 1956, p.40.
↑The National Union Catalog: A Cumulative Author List Representing Library of Congress Printed Cards and Titles Reported by Other American Libraries, 1958-1962 VOLUME 53 MOTION PICTURES AND FILMSTRIPS PART ONE: TITLES ROWMAN AND LITTLEFIELD, INC: NEW YORK, NY. 1963, p. 146.
↑"Chris Awards Honors Business Films," Business Screen Magazine 2(20), 1959, p.27.
↑"'Something Extra' from ALCOA," Business Screen Magazine 4(20), 1959, p. 34.
↑"Blue Ribbon Awards to Sponsored Films," Business Screen Magazine 2(21),1960, p. 27.
↑"An Appetizing View of Seasoning's Role in Cookery: Housewives, Home ECGroups Learn Aboul Spices and Herbs from R. T. French," Business Screen Magazine 2(22), 1961, p. 32.
↑"The Eight Annual National Visual Presentation Awards," Business Screen Magazine 3(22), 1961, p.66.
↑"The Award-Winning Pictures of the Year," Business Screen Magazine 8(23), 1963, p.34.