and Cinesound decided to follow it with another adaptation of a play written by Bailey, The Squatter's Daughter (1933). It was a melodrama set in the Australian bush, and starred a discovery of Hall's, Jocelyn Howarth, who later had a Hollywood career as "Constance Worth". It was successful at the box office. During this time he made a short documentary Ghosts of Port Arthur (1933). Hall's third feature was The Silence of Dean Maitland (1934), another melodrama based on a play (which had been based on a novel). It starred English stage star John Longden. The film encountered censorship issues but was highly popular. Dean Maitland was released on a double bill with Cinesound Varieties (1934), a short film directed by Hall featuring several musical acts. Hall's fourth feature, Strike Me Lucky (1934), was a vehicle for stage comedian Roy "Mo" Rene, one of the most popular performers in Australia. It was Hall's first feature that was a film original, and not based on other material. However the film was not well received and Hall later said it was the only one of his movies not to go into profit. Middle career: 1935–1937 Needing a sure-fire hit, Hall then persuaded Bert Bailey to reprise his role as Dad Rudd in Grandad Rudd (1935), based on a play co-written by Bailey. It was popular, although not as big a hit as On Our Selection. Hall intended to follow this movie with a version of Robbery Under Arms but decided not to proceed because of uncertainty arising from a ban the NSW government had on films about bushrangers. Cinesound ceased production for several months in 1935 to enable Hall to travel to Hollywood and research production methods. Hall returned to Australia with new filmmaking equipment and an American screenwriter Edmond Seward, who was to take over Cinesound's story department. Seward wrote Thoroughbred (1936), a horse racing drama based on the life of Phar Lap. It starred imported Hollywood actor Helen Twelvetrees and was a success. Seward also wrote Hall's next film, Orphan of the Wilderness (1936), the story of a boxing kangaroo. It was meant to be a 50-minute movie in the vein of Cinesound Varieties but Hall decided to expand it to feature length. Hall returned to comedy with It Isn't Done (1937), based on an idea by its star, Cecil Kellaway. It was the first movie Hall made from a