Factory with women sewing; rubble; family poses for camera
Creator(s)
- Robert J. Gessner (Camera Operator)
- Mr. Peter Gessner
Biographical History
Robert Gessner was born on October 21, 1907 in Escanaba, MI. He obtained a B.A. from the University of Michigan in 1929 and a M.A. from Columbia University in 1930. He started teaching at New York University in 1930. He married Doris Lindeman on May 27, 1938 and had two children, Peter and Stephen. Mr. Gessner was a screen playwright and the author of several books, including "Massacre" (1931); "Broken Arrow" (1933); "Some of My Best Friends are Jews" (1936); "Treason" (1944); "Youth is the Time" (1945). He was a pioneer educator in motion pictures as an art form. Gessner founded the Motion Picture Department (now Cinema Studies) at NYU in 1941, the first four-year film curriculum leading to a B.A. degree in motion picture studies in the United States. He finished his book "The Moving Image, A Guide to Cinematic Literacy" before he died in June 1968.
Scope and Content
INT women sewing seated at a table. Men working with sewing machines too. EXT two men standing on a street, looking at the camera. Camera tilts down towards their feet. They stand and talk. A woman talks to one of the men. The other man walks away, looking at the camera while eating something. INT men shovel at rubble inside of what appears to be a church. Women help with the rubble as well. EXT man shoveling dirt into wagon. A man walks with a horse rotating a wheel. Dark shot of a man wearing a hat, and clouds in the back above a dark horizon line. INT of a home. Two men, two women, and one young boy stand outside of a house. Chickens run in the background. Man stands in front of a large boulder. Very dark shot of a man standing in front of a rising hill in the back. A mother, father, and two children smile for the camera. Two man stand chatting and looking back at the camera. A man stares at the camera. Then a woman holding a small child and a young boy standing next to them. A woman and a large pig walk outside. An older man attempts to corral the pig. Three women and a younger girl walk away from the camera. A car drives past. Then a man in a horse drawn carriage.
Note(s)
Robert Gessner published a book in 1936 about his overseas travels called "Some of my Best Friends Are Jews"
Subjects
- STREETS
- FAMILIES
- FARMERS/FARMING
- FACTORIES
- WOMEN
- RUBBLE
- EATING
- AUTOMOBILES
Genre
- Amateur.
- Film