Snow is a short documentary

Documentary

A documentary is a creative work of non-fiction, including:* Documentary film, including television* Radio documentary* Documentary photographyRelated terms include:...

 film made by Geoffrey Jones

Geoffrey Jones

Geoffrey Jones was a British documentary film director and editor, noted for his contributions to the genre of the industrial film, and in particular British Transport Films.-British Transport Films:...

 for British Transport Films

British Transport Films

British Transport Films was an organisation set up in 1949 to make documentary films on the general subject of British transport. Its work included internal training films, travelogues , and "industrial films" promoting the progress of Britain's railway...

 in 1962-1963. The 8-minute long film shows the efforts of British Railways staff in coping with the 1963 United Kingdom cold wave

1963 United Kingdom cold wave

The winter of 1962–1963 was one of the coldest winters on record in the United Kingdom. Temperatures plummeted and lakes and rivers began to freeze over...

.
An example of "pure cinema

Pure cinema

Pure Cinema is the film theory and practice whereby movie makers create a more emotionally intense experience using autonomous film techniques, as opposed to using stories, characters, or actors....

", it was nominated for an Academy Award in 1965.

The film had its origins in primary research for a documentary about the British Railways Board

British Railways Board

The British Railways Board was a nationalised industry in the United Kingdom that existed from 1962 to 2001. From its foundation until 1997, it was responsible for most railway services in Great Britain, trading under the brand names British Railways and, from 1965, British Rail...

. Jones' test research coincided with one of the coldest winters on record

1963 United Kingdom cold wave

The winter of 1962–1963 was one of the coldest winters on record in the United Kingdom. Temperatures plummeted and lakes and rivers began to freeze over...

, and Jones approached BTF producer Edgar Anstey

Edgar Anstey

Edgar Anstey OBE, , was a leading British documentary film-maker....

 with the idea to contrast the comfort of the passengers with the efforts of the railway workmen in keeping trains going in the frozen conditions. Work began on the documentary straight after gaining approval, and Jones and cameraman Wolfgang Suschitzky

Wolfgang Suschitzky

Wolf Suschitzky BSC , is a cinematographer and photographer.Suschitzky was born above his family’s socialist bookshop. In an interview at the age of 95 in September 2007, he recalled boyhood memories of the excitement that greeted the Russian Revolution in 1917...

 travelled around the country filming scenes for the rest of the winter.

The film was edited to a re-recorded version of Sandy Nelson

Sandy Nelson

Sandy Nelson is an American drummer. Nelson, one of the best-known rock drummers of the early 1960s, had several solo instrumental Top 40 hits and was a session drummer on many other well-known hits, and released over 30 albums.-Career:His first recording, with a band called The Renegades Sandy...

's "Teen Beat" by Johnny Hawksworth

Johnny Hawksworth

Johnny Hawksworth is a British musician and composer who has lived and worked in Australia since 1984.Hawksworth initially trained as a pianist, but also played double bass for Britain's leading big band the Ted Heath Orchestra during the early 1950s and through the 1960s...

, expanded to twice its original length by accelerating the tempo over the duration of the film. BBC Radiophonic Workshop

BBC Radiophonic Workshop

The BBC Radiophonic Workshop, one of the sound effects units of the BBC, was created in 1958 to produce effects and new music for radio, and was closed in March 1998, although much of its traditional work had already been outsourced by 1995. It was based in the BBC's Maida Vale Studios in Delaware...

 composer Daphne Oram

Daphne Oram

Daphne Oram was a British composer and electronic musician. She was the creator of the "Oramics" technique for creating electronic sounds....

then added various effects to the soundtrack.