The Land Beyond the Sunset

Art combines with messaging in cinema's first nonprofit promotional film, October 1912's "The Land Beyond Sunset." The short movie, sponsored by the still active non-profit organization The Fresh Air Fund, encourages poor city children to make an effort to visit the outdoors. The ending is absolutely stunning.

Edison Studios took on the task of creating a story--script written by Dorothy Shore--of convincing people, especially children, to escape the confining tenements of the big cities and journey into the countryside. An abused boy constantly being beaten by his drunken grandmother, takes up the offer to go on a children's trip to a countryside lake. The excursion proves to be such an eyeopener and refreshing that he's hesitant to return to his nightmarish home environment.

This first ever promotional movie was eventful and convincing to those in the audience. Yet the film, directed by Harold Shaw, is so beautifully done that it set the template of how to produce a persuasive message on film by an organization who wants to improve the lives of those in destitute.