Vernon Sewell (1903 - )

Date of Birth: 1903
Place of Birth: London, England, UK
Date of Death: 2001
Place of Death:
Also Known As: Vernon Campbell Sewell

Sewell began his film career doing foreground modeling work which attracted the attention of Michael Powell. Under Powell's auspices, Sewell directed the short The Medium (1934), based on a play Sewell found. Powell also contributed to Sewell getting his first full length directorial assignment. Powell had been offered a film about the Dutch Navy to follow One of Our Aircraft is Missing (1942) and he passed the assignment, The Silver Fleet (1943), to Sewell. After the war Sewell, turned down a contract with Rank to sign for Louis H Jackson's British National Studio at Elstree where he made some successful features before moving to independent features including an early Hammer film, The Dark Light (1951) and a few for Merton Park. In the late fifties he made a few features for Eros before signing for Julian Wintle and Leslie Parkyn's Independent Artists. The short mystery and supernatural thrillers are probably his best work and rank amongst the best films of this type. In the late sixties he made a couple of fun horror's for Tigon but his final film was recut without his help and a new score added. A keen yachtsman he retired from the film industry. Always modest about his achievements he passed away in 2001.
DAVID HANKS

* = television

1934
The Medium (director)

1946
Latin Quarter (script, director)
L'amante della morte - Italian title
Frenzy
Quartier Latinin hullu - Finnish title

1947
The Ghosts of Berkeley Square (director)

1952
The Crimson Pirate (2nd unit director)
Le corsaire rouge – French Belgian television title
Il corsaro dell'isola verde - Italian title
Karmiininpunainen merirosvo - Finnish title
Den knaldrøde pirat – Danish title
Ha-Pirat Ha-Adom – Hebrew Israeli title
El pirata hidalgo – Chilean title
O Pirata Vermelho- Portugese title
Le pirate rouge – French title
Röde piraten - Swedish title
Der Rote Korsar – Austrian / West German title
El temible burlón – Spanish title

Ghost Ship (script, director)

1960
The Man in the Back Seat (director)

1961
House of Mystery (script, director)

1968
Curse of the Crimson Altar (director)
Black horror: le messe nere - Italian title
The Crimson Altar
The Crimson Cult - US title
Curse of the Crimson Cult
Die Hexe des Grafen Dracula - West Germany television title
La maison ensorcelée - French title
Monstret i skräckens hus - Swedish title
The Reincarnation
Schwarze Messe auf blutrotem Altar - West German title
Spirit of the Dead
Witch House

The Blood Beast Terror (director)
Den blodtörstiga vampyren - Swedish title
Blood Beast from Hell
Das Blutbiest - West German title
The Deathshead Vampire
El deseo y la bestia - Spanish title
Il mostro di sangue - Italian title
Le vampire a soif - French title
The Vampire-Beast Craves Blood - US title

1969
The Avengers: Homicide and Old Lace (additional direction – uncredited) *

1971
Burke and Hare (director)
Horrors of Burke and Hare – US title

1930
Kissing Cup's Race (camera assistant)

1933
Morgenrot (director)
Dawn - US title
L'inferno dei mari - Italian title

1935
Facts and Figures (director)

Men Against the Sea (director)

1937
A Test for Love (director)

1938
Breakers Ahead (director)
As We Forgive

The Edge of the World (production assistant, performer (skipper of supply ship))
Ai confini del mondo - Italian title

1939
The Lion Has Wings (director)

The Spy in Black (director - uncredited)

What Men Live By (script, director)

1943
The Silver Fleet (script, director)
La flotta d'argento - Italian title
Miehenikö kavaltaja? - Finnish title
Silverflottan - Swedish title

1944
The World Owes Me a Living (script, director)

1948
Uneasy Terms (director)
Bigamie...? – Austrian / West German title

1949
The Jack of Diamonds (producer, director, performer (engineer))

1950
Trek to Mashomba (director)

1951
The Black Widow (director)
Musta leski - Finnish title

The Dark Light (script, director)

1952
The Floating Dutchman (script, director)

1953
Counterspy (director)
Undercover Agent - US title

1954
Radio Cab Murder (script, director)

Terror Ship (director)
Dangerous Voyage

1956
Home and Away (script, director)

Rogue's Yarn (script, director, performer)

Where There's a Will (director)

Soho Incident (director)
Senza respiro - Italian title
Spin a Dark Web - US title

1958
The Battle of the V.1 (director)
La battaglia del V1 - Italian title
Missile from Hell - US title
Salainen ase V.1 - Finnish title
Unseen Heroes

1959
Wrong Number (director)

1960
Edgar Wallace Mysteries: Urge to Kill (director)

1961
The Wind of Change (director)

1962
Strongroom (director)
La camera blindata - Italian title
Im Safe wartet der Tod – Austrian title

1963
The Human Jungle: episode unknown (director) *

A Matter of Choice (script, director)

Strictly for the Birds (director)

1967
Some May Live (director) *
In Saigon, Some May Live

MAGAZINES

Kinolehti no.2 (March 1972) p.21 (Finland)
filmography

Sight and Sound August 1958 p.302 (UK)
biography, filmography

Sight and Sound Summer 1962 p.140 (UK)
article (Film Clips by Arkadin)