Reel 1: Lieutenant-General Sir Oliver Leese, Commander-in-Chief Allied Land Forces South East Asia speaking with a senior officer wearing the 'Ace of Spades' patch of 25th Indian Division, and another officer. Wide shot showing a supply dump amongst low hills. Men amongst stacks of supplies and mules drinking from a pool. African troops (or porters?) carrying boxes. A jeep and trailer passes. A supply bundle is put aboard a Dakota transport aircraft. American (?) Dakota aircrew pose by the aircraft. A British lieutenant wearing a Royal West African Frontier Force (RWAFF) epaulette. Bundles are transferred from a lorry to the aircraft (camera shooting from the door of the aircraft, looking into the lorry). Inside the aircraft fuselage the bundles are arranged. Close-up of a RWAFF epaulette with two lieutenant's pips. View through the Dakota's windscreen during take-off, the runway is broad and paved and suggests a permanent base. A sign reads 'WVS [Women's Voluntary Service] Free tea and cigarette [an 's' after cigarette appears to have been blotted out] Bring your mug' . British and African troops wait for tea from two large urns attended by a young Indian man (a 'char wallah') and a middle-aged British civilian woman. A bare-chested African soldier receives a mug of tea from the British woman. British soldier with tea. Interior Dakota in flight; the despatchers joke and point to the open door. Supplies are kicked out. View through windscreen with parachutes on the ground; terrain is flat or gently undulating.View of another Dakota flying right-to-left, with parachutes descending; smoke can be seen (a signal fire?). View of the dropzone. A group of African soldiers walking to the local bazaar. A soldier buys bananas or similar. A group of soldiers buy some unclear sort of fruit or leaf foodstuff. A soldier haggles over an item of clothing. They leave town. Close-up profile of an African soldier in torn battledress in fighting order firing his rifle (the weapon does not appear to recoil and so may be firing dry for the camera). Soldiers hurdling over a coil of barbed wire. Soldiers negotiate a simple rope crossing (two ropes one above the other; one to be stood on and the other to hold on to). Soldier crosses a gap by hanging beneath a rope and working his way across. Soldiers crawl under barbed wire; one appears to get his Bren gun tangled in the wire. Panning shot; troops run up a low embankment before climbing a wooden wall which is at least ten feet high. They jump down the other side. Soldiers negotiate a wooden frame obstacle and jump down.

Reel 2: Two African soldiers with rifles, webbing and packs carry a simple wood and cloth coracle. It is put into the water of a small lake and paddled away through reed-strewn water by two soldiers. Series of shots with close-ups of the assembly of a coracle. A senior officer inspects troops, with medium close-ups of them. African troops marching in single file with small arms and packs. Wide shot of troops fallen in (for a parade?). Group of officers. Medium close-up profile of an African soldier. Series of shots showing African gunners mounting a 3.7-inch heavy anti-aircraft gun. Shot of a map of Africa and India. A shadow of an African profile is cast over the map of Africa, facing west. Map of west Africa. Shadow of an African man passing eastwards over India; this shot is striking but perhaps a bit more sinister than the cameraman intended. African troops swimming in a lake with a swimming race and men jumping into the water. An older African soldier with a white beard (a Regimental Sergeant Major?). More inspection footage. View of a large house. Closer shot showing a royal (?) coat of arms above the entrance. Three people at the entrance; an officer, and a civilian man and woman. Another shot of the inspection with the senior officer departing. A group of officers at an airfield. An American P-51 Mustang passes overhead. Officers talking with Dakotas behind. Officers with 3.7-inch anti-aircraft gun behind. British corporal with a megaphone and the gun behind. Gun traversed. Detachment at the gun. Officer talking to soldier with sloped rifle. Guns in middle distance as seen from a moving vehicle.Views of a distant town through trees. A parked jeep with driver. Medium close-up of the driver at the wheel. A senior officer watches as another officer (a company commander?) gives instructions. Wide shot showing African soldiers sitting in small groups and facing outwards (some sort of slow-time tactical rehearsal?). Kneeling soldier wearing a chin beard. Troops filing off. The senior officer meets an African dignitary (?). A Dakota passing overhead with its landing gear down. A well-taken shot showing three aircraft (North American Mitchells?) passing overhead in formation; in the foreground the barrel of the 3.7-inch gun traverses to follow them and the cameraman does well to mostly keep both barrel and aircraft in shot. A RWAFF gunner traversing his gun. Shadow of the gunner as he vigorously turns the handle. Gun traversing past camera. Adjusting the gun's elevation. Close-up of the gun's elevating gear moving. Shadow of a gun layer. A battalion is paraded for the presentation of a medal. A soldier marches out, escorted by an officer, and is presented with a medal; the medal itself cannot be seen but a glimpse of the ribbon suggests a Military Medal (MM). A sign reads 'Are you Fit?'. A line of RWAFF soldiers in fighting order. View along the line. Close-ups of soldiers. Soldiers at a local bazaar; they take an interest in some sort of fluffy object on a stick. They talk to the stall holder; one soldier has an unsheathed kukri, apparently good-naturedly. Apparently repeated footage of soldiers arriving at the bazaar and of the soldier buying bananas.

Two-reel film showing African troops of the Royal West African Frontier Force, of either 81st or 82nd West African Division, somewhere in Bengal, India or the Arakan (Burma), carrying out parachute supply drops, visiting the local bazaar, undergoing battle training, being inspected by a senior officer, and manning a 3.7-inch anti-aircraft gun.

Notes

No documentation survives for this film, so details of all kinds are unclear.

Though unfortunately undermined as a source by its lack of contemporary documentation, this film remains useful as a rare record of West African activities in Burma.