When Dinosaurs Ruled the Earth

As a portion of the Sun breaks away to form the Moon, creating a fiery ball which causes violent upheavals on earth, Sanna, a beautiful young maiden of the primitive Rock Tribe, escapes the sacrifice for which she has been prepared and is swept out to sea by tremendous winds. She is eventually rescued by Tara, a fisherman of the Sand tribe, but her troubles are only just beginning. For Tara’s woman, Ayak, jealously provokes her people against Sanna, who flees into the wilderness and finds shelter in the egg of a dinosaur…..

Production Details

A Hammer Film production released by Warner Brothers
Copyright MCMLXIX Hammer Film Productions ltd. – All rights reserved
MPAA Approved Certificate

The characters and incidents portrayed and the names used herein are fictitious and any similarity to the name, character, or history of any person is entirely accidental and unintentional

RCA Sound Recording
Made at Shepperton Studios Limited, Shepperton, Middlesex, England and on location in the Canary Islands
Technicolor 100 mins

Filming Began: 12th September 1968
UK Release: 25th October 1970

Studio:
Bray Studios, Down Place, Oakley Green, Berkshire
Shepperton Studios, Shepperton, Surrey

Location:
Fuerteventura, Canary Islands, Spain
Maspalomas, Gran Canaria, Canary Islands, Spain
Fortaleza de Ansite, Santa Lucía de Tirajana, Las Palmas, Gran Canaria, Canary Islands, Spain
Caldera de Tejeda, Gran Canaria, Canary Islands, Spain
Amurga, Gran Canaria, Canary Islands, Spain

Stills from film

Click an image for enlarged slideshow

Cast & Crew

Red = Uncredited


Crew	Name	Age at Release	Birth	Hidden	Death	Age	Hammer Credited	Hammer Uncredited	Total Hammer
2nd Unit Cameraman	Johnny Cabrera	45	14 Jan 1925		18 Apr 2014	89	1		1
2nd Unit Continuity	Susanna Merry						1		1
Art Director	John Blezard	43	1 Jan 1927		1 Jan 2018	91	1		1
Assistant Director	John Stoneman	31	01 Jan 1939	01.01.1939		85	1		1
Camera Operator	Ronnie Fox-Rogers	38	1 Jan 1932		30 Jan 2008	76		2	2
Clapper / Loader	Jerry Sandler	23	01 Dec 1946	01.12.1946		77		3	3
Co-First Assistant Director: Spain	Miguel Gil							1	1
Construction Manager	Albert Blackshaw	44	5 Oct 1926		13 Jul 2016	89	1		1
Continuity	Josephine Knowles	39	1 Jan 1931		7 Apr 1989	58	1		1
Costume Designer	Carl Toms	43	29 May 1927		4 Aug 1999	72	7		7
Director	Val Guest	58	11 Dec 1911		10 May 2006	94	29		29
Director of Photography	Dick Bush BSc	38	2 Dec 1931		4 Aug 1997	65	3		3
Dubbing Editor	Frank Goulding				1991		4		4
Editor	Peter Curran	46	29 Sep 1924		1 Jun 1999	74	1		1
Effects Camerman	Jim Danforth	30	13 Jul 1940	13.07.1940		83	1	1	2
First Assistant Director: Second Unit	Carlos Gil	22	12 May 1948	12.05.1948		75		1	1
Focus Puller	Ray Andrew	30	01 Jan 1940	01.01.1940		84		3	3
Hairdressing Supervisor	Joyce James						2		2
Location Manager	Ariel Levy	26	12 Mar 1944	12.03.1944		80	2	2	4
Make-up Supervisor	Richard Mills						3	4	7
Matte Artist	Doug Ferris	39	01 Jan 1931	01.01.1931		93		2	2
Matte Artist	Les Bowie	56	10 Nov 1913		27 Jan 1979	65	32	11	43
Matte Artist	Peter Melrose	40	01 Jan 1930	01.01.1930		94	1	4	5
Matte Artist	Ray Caple	32	5 Jan 1938		1 Jan 1993	54		6	6
Music and Special Musical Effects Composer	Mario Nascimbene	56	28 Nov 1913		6 Jan 2002	88	4		4
Musical Supervisor	Philip Martell	63	6 Oct 1907		11 Aug 1993	85	104	1	105
Producer	Aida Young	50	11 Aug 1920		12 Aug 2007	87	8	6	14
Production Manager	Christopher Sutton	39	01 Sep 1931	01.09.1931		92	7		7
Sound Camera Operator	Patrick Heigham	27	2 Dec 1942	2.12.1942		81		1	1
Sound Re-Recordist	Ted Karnon	58	23 Jan 1912		1 Jan 1991	78		1	1
Sound Recordist	Kevin Sutton						3		3
Sound Supervisor	A.W. Watkins	74	1 Dec 1895		1 Feb 1970	74		1	1
Special Effects	Brian Humphrey							1	1
Special Effects	Garth Inns	27	12 Apr 1943		30 Jan 2021	77		1	1
Special Effects	Martin Gutteridge	31	01 Apr 1939	01.04.1939		85		1	1
Special Effects	Allan Bryce	42	21 Dec 1927		24 Dec 2000	73	2		2
Special Effects	Brian Johnson	31	29 Jun 1939	29.06.1939		84	3	7	10
Special Effects	Roger Dicken	31	01 Jan 1939	01.01.1939		85	2		2
Special Visual Effects	Jim Danforth	30	13 Jul 1940	13.07.1940		83	1	1	2
Stand-in: Sean Caffrey	Alan Harris	32	28 May 1938		25 Jan 2020	81		1	1
Stunts	Peter Pocock	36	1 Jan 1934		5 May 2007	73		2	2
Stunts	Steve Emerson	35	31 Oct 1934	31.10.1934		89		2	2
Treatment	J.B. Ballard	39	15 Nov 1930		19 Apr 2009	78	1		1
Wardrobe Master	Brian Owen-Smith						3		3
Writer	Val Guest	58	11 Dec 1911		10 May 2006	94	29		29

Cast	Name	Age at Release	Birth	Hidden	Death	Age	Hammer Credited	Hammer Uncredited	Total Hammer
Ammon	Patrick Holt	58	31 Jan 1912		12 Oct 1993	81	3	1	4
Ayak	Imogen Hassall	28	25 Aug 1942		16 Nov 1980	38	1		1
Caveman	Charles Price				9 May 2004			2	2
Caveman	Dido Plumb	65	23 Jun 1905		4 Mar 1991	85		10	10
Cavewoman	Ann Barrass	40	9 Jul 1930		1 Nov 2017	87		2	2
Fisherman	Jimmy Lodge						1		1
Hunter	Billy Cornelius	36	18 Aug 1934	18.08.1934		89	1		1
Hunter	Ray Ford						1		1
Kano	Sean Caffrey	30	15 Apr 1940		25 Apr 2013	73	2		2
Khaku	Drewe Henley	30	1 Jan 1940		14 Feb 2016	76	1		1
Kingsor	Patrick Allen	43	17 Mar 1927		28 Jul 2006	79	4	2	6
Minor Role	Polly Dillon							1	1
Omah	Maria O'Brien	22	11 Apr 1948		13 Jan 2013	64	1		1
Rock Girl	Jan Rossini						1		1
Rock Mother	Maggie Lynton						1		1
Sand Mother	Connie Tilton	42	1 Jan 1928		27 Mar 2017	89	1		1
Sanna	Victoria Vetri	26	26 Sep 1944	26.09.1944		79	1		1
Tara	Robin Hawdon	31	28 Mar 1939	28.03.1939		85	1		1
Ulido	Magda Konopka	27	15 Mar 1943	15.03.1943		81	1		1
With	Jacquelene Pullen							1	1
With	John Levene	28	24 Dec 1941	24.12.1941		82		1	1
Yani	Carol-Anne Hawkins	21	31 Jan 1949	31.01.1949		75	1		1

Original Poster

Click to enlarge

Footnotes

The special effects for this film earned Hammer their one and only Academy Award nomination.

Victoria Vetri was another of those curvaceous young beauties whom Hammer appeared to be grooming for stardom. Again, though, like so many others she seems to have disappeared without trace after this film.

Actor Patrick Allen was well known to TV audiences for his role in the ITV drama series “Crane”. His films include the Planet Films sci-fi thriller “Night of the Big Heat” (1967, directed by Terence Fisher and starring Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee).