Graham Cutts' career in the film industry began in 1909, when he became
a film exhibitor. It wasn't long before he got involved in the
production end of the business, and became a director in 1922. He was a
co-founder of the prestigious studio Gainsborough Films, and while at
Gainsborough guided the career of matinée idol
Ivor Novello, who was considered by many to
be the British
Rudolph Valentino.
Cutts was a power at Gainsborough and became one of the most respected
directors in the industry, working with filmmakers who eventually rose
to the top ranks of the British film industry, such as
Victor Saville,
Herbert Wilcox and
Michael Balcon (one of Cutts' assistants
was Alfred Hitchcock). He
helped to rejuvenate the career of American actress
Mae Marsh with such films as
Flames of Passion (1922) and
Die Ratte von Paris (1925) (with Novello).
Unfortunately, Cutts was not able to sustain the level of his career
once sound came in. After leaving Gainsborough his career rapidly
deteriorated, and in the '30s he was reduced to making "quota
quickies". It probably also didn't help that Cutts was not particularly
well-liked by his colleagues and while at Gainsborough was known to
have treated some of them, such as Hitchcock and future director
Adrian Brunel, quite shabbily, which they
did not forget when their stars began to eclipse his.
He finished out his career making short documentaries, his last one
being
Rationing in Britain (1945).
He died in London, England, in 1958.
