"doc. a fantasia"/avant-garde documentary
A film in the style of the city symphony.
"'Japan and Its People,' Dr. Roy Gerstenkorn's educational class winner, was a pictured visit to the homes and temples of Japan. Ignoring the cities in his search for the story of the Japan that is not known to the average visitor the doctor penetrated the towns and smaller communities. His picture was awarded a high rating on its photography as well as on his treatment of the subject. After the showing of this picture before the Los Angeles Motion Picture Forum last summer the local school authorities requested and received permission from the doctor to make a duplicate of it for school purposes." American Cinematographer, Jan. 1938, 27-28.
"Jericho is a little animated film concerning a couple of dogs which get into a fight and knock down the walls of Jericho. Kallenberg and his wife spent many hours searching for the exact plans and dimensions of the old Biblical town and built an exact replica for the film" PSA Journal, Sept. 1966, 35.
"In their adroitly handled John Doe, Citizen, Frances Christeson and Harry Merrick have produced a photoplay of politics in city government that can be compared to a theatrical picture in dramatic values and clarity of treatment. Designed to teach students the value of the vote, the danger of neglecting to understand the issues in city affairs and some of the methods by which machine politicians keep themselves in power, this picture also shows how well amateurs can handle a serious film in dramatic form. Particularly notable, from the movie maker's viewpoint, is how cleverly and effectively the producers have circumvented such apparently insurmountable problems as showing a crowded town meeting in a large auditorium, night airplane shots of rows of homes with lighted windows and the construction of a new sea wall on the city's waterfront. Needless to say, these sequences were not handled by means of large studio sets and hundreds of extras; but they are just as effective as if they had been, and therein lies the genius of these remarkable movie makers." Movie Makers, Dec. 1938, 597.
"A fictional account of an election as it might occur in a small city. Illustrates the indifference of the average citizen to public affairs and emphasizes that if the government is not run by the people the government will run them." Educational Film Guide, 1953, 367.
A Dufaycolor film documenting the Jubilee procession of King George V. The procession was filmed from a window in Parliament St., London, with views down Whitehall past the Cenotaph and across Parliament Square to Westminster Abbey. King George V and Queen Mary pass in an open carriage. Throughout the film various locations around London are documented, displaying the colourful decorations for the celebration. (EAFA Database)
"Kaneko also made a few films that explored the theme and style of the city symphony genre. In Kōkyōgaku (Symphony, 9.5mm, 1930), which is less than three minute long, Kaneko edited together shots of very short duration that captured objects such as trees, water, and rail tracks; Kaneko described this work as an attempt to create “the movement of objects in symphonic ways.”" - Noriko Morisue, "Filming the Everyday: History, Theory, and Aesthetics of Amateur Cinema in Interwar and Wartime Japan" (Yale University: PhD Dissertation, 2020): 110.
"The Lady Says Rain by Bernhard Krimphove of Bronx, N.Y. Bernhard has defied the old belief of keeping your camera indoors when it rains - he has produced a fine film of the wet moods of a city. This 6-minute 8mm film awarded an Honorable Mention" PSA Journal, Nov. 1970, 38.
"Lake Mohawk, Preferred, made by Leo J. Heffernan, is a picture of the attractions, residences, entertainments, dog shows, yachting regattas and water sports of Lake Mohawk in New Jersey. But Lake Mohawk, Preferred is also a film with a continuity idea utterly new to amateur movies, for the not unusual subject matter of the picture is held together with a "screwball" theme and "gags" that keep you wondering what is going to happen next and entertained in the meantime. A handsome couple have a movie camera. "Concentrate to make good movies," says their instruction book. This they do in a very pleasant way (see the frame enlargement on page 577), and the results are surprising. Their mental efforts transport them and the camera bodily about the lake, at just the right time and place to film whatever is going on. They have some astonishing experiences, too. Sometimes they can't seem to materialize, and they pick up odd characters in their voyages through ether. But their method works and they get beautiful and lively sequences of life at Lake Mohawk." Movie Maker, Dec. 1940, 603.
"An edited home movie by Arthur H. Smith of Smith's later years, living with his wife Blanche in Big Bear Lake, California, including a description of his filmmaking process." Archive.org
Total Pages: 6
Amateur Cinema