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Animated Films ‘Circus’ (1959) 11m, dir. Willis Simms. Fifty-nine junior high students
combined to paint figures, backgrounds, and animation for art teacher Simms,
with music by music teacher Robert Clark. A charming, wonderful film. 'High Blood Pressure: If Only It Hurt a Little' (1978) 25m, dir. Sid Milstein. Uses animation by Philip Stapp and two and mimes (Claude Kipnis & Rita Nachtman) to describe high blood pressure and tell how it can be treated. Neat history of study of blood and pressure, stethoscope, etc., with music by Oscar Brand. 'High Blood Pressure: What it Is, What it Can Do to You' (1979) 10m, dir. Sid Milstein. Wonderful animated sequences by Philip Stapp highlight this short film. 'High Blood Pressure: What you Can Do About It' (1978) 15m, dir. Sid Milstein. Almost the entire film consists of Philip Stapp's animation, with an exit piece by Dr. Harriet Dustan, MD, of the Cleveland Clinic. 'Hookworm' (1946) 10m. The Disney studios produced this animated gem for the U.S. Office of Inter-American Affairs. Here, we see nasty animated hookworms working away on country folks' intestines. They go to the clinic, begin to wear shoes, and build a nifty jungle latrine. A little-known classic. ‘Little Match Girl’ (1978) 17m, dir. Matsue Jinbo (?). Gakken puppet films are an acquired taste: The puppets themselves are rarely endearing (on extreme close-ups, some --- even though they’re supposed to look cute --- look like cadavers). What makes these films among the best puppet films ever done, however, are the meticulous sets, wonderful action sequences (the snowball fight and the walking dog are magical), and good story lines (this film is so "dark" that I doubt if it would pass school censors today). 'Trip to the Moon' (1958) 14m, dir. Karl Stanzl. Children of the late 1950s were fascinated by space travel. In 1956 or 1957, An international art contest was launched, open to children of six to fifteen from the United States, Austria, France, Germany, Japan, Great Britain and Russia. The subject? Space travel. This film showcases many of the winners, a fanciful, charming film illustrating what a trip to the moon entailed for a generation filled with optimism for the future.
'Basic Brown, Basic Blue' (1969) 10m, dir. Homer Groening. Ever wonder how Matt Groening of 'The Simpsons' got his quirky sense of humor? probably from his filmmaker dad, Homer Groening, who passed away in 1996. Although known for his documentaries, Homer Groening directed and narrated this film, ostensibly about color, but filled with an ongoing series of bikini-clad bathing beauties. The film is perhaps best viewed as a graphic artifact that will interest media historians seeking additional insight into the elements that influenced the cartoonist. ‘Color’ (EB,1954) 6m, dir. Paul Burnford. Blink, and this entirely too-short film goes away. But in the brief six minutes, magical things occur: broad swaths of abstract colors and shapes coat the screen, to an equally abstract soundtrack, dissonantly played by Werner Bracher moving an object across the piano strings to create an autoharp-like ambiance. It can be argued that films like this formed a strong foundation for the psychedelic era. ‘Creation: Artist at Work’ (1969) 15m, uncredited director. Shows prize - winning Hungarian glass designer Erzsébet Szabó creating a large glass vase from its conception on paper through many trials to the form that finally pleases her. Wonderful experimental musical score by an uncredited composer-musician. We become involved in the process of creation as she guides and encourages her two skilled assistants wh o blow and press the glass into shape. 'Gallery' (1971) 7m, dir.
Ken Rudolph. What would you say if someone told you they could show you history
of art in seven minutes? Rudolph can, and does. This film mosaic of 2000
rapid-fire images highlights of the best in Western art, with music by Wendy
Carlos. 'Village Potters of Onda' (1966) 27m, dir. Edith Sperry. Shows
the activities and ways of life of Japanese folk potters in Onda, a romote
village in the mountains of North Central Kyushu, Japan. Presents a detailed account of
traditional pottery - making techniques which have remained relatively unchanged
for more than250 years. 9 families in village make pottery, including Sakamoto, Yunase (sp?), Kokakuro (sp?). Techniques originated in Korea. Use a total of 7
glazes, kiln is fired every two months, uphill stoking of progressive kiln
chambers.
‘Coulomb's Law’ (1959) 25m, dir. Richard Leacock. Here, manic Princeton
professor Eric Rogers hosts, continually removing and replacing his eyeglasses,
ordering around lab assistants --- he forcefully breaks a glass test tube in the
hands of an assistant to demonstrate the inelasticity of water --- and furiously
pounds equations on a blackboard (Leacock says the scribblings must have lasted
45 minutes, in what must be one of the more necessary cuts in the history of
educational film.) Rogers finally conducts an experiment with a young girl,
placing her in a metal cage, which he then charges with electricity,
demonstrating through the inverse square law that his assistant (Leacock’s
trusting daughter Elspeth) is not harmed by the charge. ‘First Fifty: EBE's Golden Anniversary Retrospective’ (1978) 20m, prod. Don Hoffman. Frankly, Encyclopaedia Britannica made a lion’s share of the best academic films in the genre, and many of them are as timeless today as when they were made. This wonderful promotional film, we suspect, was used by EB salespeople as a gift for important customers, and also provides a good historical record of how EB saw itself as a contributor to the history of educational film. It’s narrated by Jim Brill, who narrated many of EB’s pre-1955 titles. Along the way, we’re treated to excerpts from some of EB’s best-selling titles, including some of its better films from the 1950s (nearly all of them by John Barnes). 'IBM 3650' (1974) 30m, dir. Phil Coulter). A marketing film produced for for IBM , the film shows the IBM 3650 Retail Store System, which was one of the first fully integrated, bar code based, sales and inventory systems. Several large components were part of the complete package, including tag printers, readers and mass storage. ‘Informers I’ (1970?) 30m, dir. Jonathan Lucas. This was one of three films made in a series that explored the common theme of using paid and unpaid informants to elicit information leading to the arrest of a suspect. Here, when bikini-clad buxom bombshell Joyce Mandel (known today by her pin-up name of Alexis Love, as was determined by your AFA research team) finds she’s been burgled, she jiggles --- I mean runs --- up the stairs to heavingly --- I mean breathlessly --- call Redondo Beach's finest for assistance. They’re there so fast that you’d swear they’ve got the address mammar --oops, I mean memorized. She’s lost her chest --- I mean chess set, which is "the only thing she got from her marriage". The cops eventually get around to visiting their favorite snitch "Gabby", who as played by Al Dennis, is the best and funniest actor in the whole series. 'Newspaper: Behind the Scenes' (1970) 15m, uncredited director. Shows the San Jose Mercury News in all elements of production. Ornithology Special: We have a number of short bird films by directors such as Olin Sewall Pettingill Jr., Murl Deusing, and Dan Gibson. Contact us for the bird(s) of your choice, and we'll recommend a film that is appropriate. 'Plant Pilferage' (1966) 30m, dir. Francis J. Rose. This film, made for the Highway Safety Foundation, was shot at a Sunbeam appliance factory, was meant to show 60's plant managers how to prevent employee theft. The plant is surrounded by barbed wire, and the good guys go around checking lunch pails (one of the employees is shown hiding a clothes iron in it beforehand). Right off the bat, you start pulling for the employees, taking glee in every theft. Terrible microphone placement is one of the hallmarks of this remarkable period piece on industrial-employee relations. 'San Jose 70/71' (1971) 27m, unknown director. This defines the concept of 'lost' film. The credits having been stripped off somewhere in the distant past, no one seems to know who produced this film, but it's brightly optimistic tone is indicative of the youthful energy of this city of only 500,000 people. Here we visit City Hall, with Ron James as mayor, the impossibly young future mayors Norman Mineta and Janet Gray Hayes, and their Council counterparts Virginia Schaeffer, Joe Colla, Walter Hays, Kurt Gross, and the ever-testy Dave Goglio. A city with a future! The redevelopment agency is hard at work here, bringing you the spanking new Park Center Plaza development, and the highly touted, remarkable Performing Arts Center, just beginning construction, which will finally put San Jose on the cultural map of the nation. Documentaries 'Bertrand Russell Discusses Mankind's Future' (1960) 14m, director uncredited. In an interview with Woodrow Wyatt, Lord Russell envisions an organized and static world. He also points out man's capability, through education and self - knowledge, to abolish war, poverty and disease. ‘Ohrid Express’ (1965) 12m, dir. Robert Legrande/Jean Dasque. We join the idyllic world of conductor Petra Mihalowski, whose slow, narrow-gauge Macedonian train was built in 1895, and runs from Presak to Orhid. Here are charming scenes of laundry washed by the lake, the soapy water heated in large copper kettles. ‘Pineapple Culture’ (1955) 10m, prod. Paul Hoefler. Workers are shown planting young plants, bent over and using a since-outlawed short-handled hoe, to the tune of 5-7,000 plants per day, and all the narrator has to say about it is that eventually, machines will do the work. Some of the rows in the film bear the words "Del Monte", leaving us to wonder if the filmmaker was given an expense-paid holiday in exchange for some PR work, with enough shots left over for an ed film 'VD' (1972) 26m. dir. Richard Leacock. Presents interviews with actual patients and physicians in which symptoms and treatment are explained to dispel much of the mystery surrounding venereal diseases. Shows Project Venus, a teen-run hotline in Philadelphia, and other clinics, including one in Boulder, CO, and actual examinations. According to director Leacock, the man describing his NSU symptoms is filmmaker Stan Brakhage. ‘Whales and Whalermen’ (1970?) 15m, photographed by Dick
Reucassel, prod. Paul Hoefler. As with many Hoefler-produced films, we’re left to wonder what
percentage of the film involved him directly. What we can say is that, in the
middle of the "save the whales" business of the 70’s, Hoefler
released this film largely laudatory of the whaling industry, possibly the gruesomest, most horrifying whale hunting film ever made. 'Village Potters of Onda' (1966), 27m, dir. Edith Sperry. This film shows the activities and ways of life of Japanese folk potters in Onda, a romote village in the mountains of North Central Kyushu. Presents a detailed account of traditional pottery - making techniques which have remained relatively unchanged for more than250 years. 9 families in village make pottery, including Sakamoto, Yunase (sp?), Kokakuro (sp?). Techniques originated in Korea. They use a total of 7 glazes. The kiln is fired every two months, uphill stoking of progressive kiln chambers. Ethnographic European ‘Anastenaria’ (1968) 20m, dir. Peter Haramis. Dionysian worship in modern Greece, with lyra, drum, and fire dancing. Anastenaria is a form of worship taking place on May 21, sanctioned by the Greek Orthodox Church. Here we experience the slaughter and communal eating of a calf, a procession and the final initiation dance. 'Farmer-Fishermen' (1948) 15m, dir. Ronald Craigen. Narrated in the first-person, a boy's narration of fishing culture in Norway. The boy and father return to farm during warm months, and he and his sister tend flocks for the summer in a mountain hut, away from their parents. Many other adolescents do the same, making for great camaraderie in the mountains. Net mending, potato planting, weaving, etc. Scenes from Bergen, and village of Floro. A remarkably beautiful film. 'On Mediterranean Shores (Southern Greece)' (1948) 20m, dir. John
Ferno, photographed by Richard Leacock. Depicts life on the shores of the
Mediterranean and trade on the sea itself. Portrays the Corinth Canal,
Kephellania, Pireaus, andAthens, as well as travel through the Ionian and Aegean
Seas. Shows Costitution Square and Arcopolis. Ethnographic Hispanic and Latino 'Alfareros de Puebla' (1968) 15m, unknown Director. This film discusses the pottery industry of Puebla, Mexico and describes the creation of Talavera tile. Here we see the entire process, beginning with digging mud and preparing clay. The film shows potters, painters, and firing in the kilns of the La Trinidad factory. Shows use of lead-based slip (not approved by OSHA) and perforated squares used to outline the designs in the tiles for the painters. A beautiful and lost film detailing an important element in the culture of Puebla. 'Cada Día Sé Más (1963) 16m, unknown Director. This most interesting film describes a typical day of an upper-class teenage boy in Mexico City. We begin by joining a typical upper class Mexican family at breakfast. Soon, his friend picks him up in a new Opel coupe to go to the Escuela Moderna Americana prep school. There are no Mexican Indians in the film, with the possible exception of the family maid. The film essentially portrays elements in the family culture, education, and socialization of Mexico's future leaders. Films such as this Spanish language instruction film had to pass through Mexican censors, concerned about how their country was being perceived in the United States. 'El Organillero de Madrid' (1963) 14m, dir. José López Moreno. This exceptional and rare film portrays a traditional type of organ grinder in Madrid. The barrel organ is a portable instrument that uses perforated paper cards that produce music when passing over a roller surface, activating a bellows and blowing air through a tuned pipe. This film follows the organist and his young son pedaling the organ to various places in Madrid, including the San Antonio de la Florida chapel, and Plaza Mayor. Scenes include people throwing coins from windows, and boy picking them up. The film is full of wonderful streets scenes of a bygone time in Madrid. Director Moreno was best known for a series of Spanish horror films. 'Pueblo Mexicano de Caldereros' (1962) 8m, prod. Stuart Roe & Richard Guttman. This exceptional film discusses how the people of the Mexican village of Mijas (called 'Santa Clara' in film) follow an ancient tradition of coppermaking established before the coming of the Spanish missions, and shows their methods in detail. 56 families live in the village, all are coppersmiths. Highlights include building an oven from mud and stone, melting copper ore, and the beating of sheet copper into large trays and bowls by small and large hammers. 'Valle de las Palmas' (1966) 11m, prod. D.L. Richardson. Here Pablo, a
Mexican boy, tells about his family, friends and teacher, and the farm life in
his valley. A terrific "day in the life" story of a rural family of a country
doctor living in a hamlet of Northern Baja California. Home, work, and school
scenes depict life as it was in 1966 'Ancient World: Egypt' (1952) 55m, dir. Ray Garner. Traces the story of Egypt from the prehistoric period to the time of the Ptolemies. Pays particular attention to the Nile, Temples, Pyramids and the Sphinx. Garner's masterful shooting includes a single shot of ruins, light and dark as clouds pass, a signature of his. Script by Garner is well-written, including: "For Egypt is a monument, not to the conqueror or statesman, but to the artist, the architect, the painter, the sculptor, whose works will remain in the minds of men, when pomp and ceremony are but whispering echoes in the corridors of time." Music by Menelaos Pallandios. Music & Dance Films ‘Jose Iturbi: Part II’ (1946) 10m, dir. Reginald LeBorg. Iturbi plays
piano and harpsichord, the
latter a two-manual unit in a beautiful interpretation of a piece by Jean-Philippe Rameau. 'Music from Oil Drums' (1956) 20m, dir. Toshi & Peter Seeger. Long unavailable,
this film presents Pete Seeger (who wrote a manual for playing steel drums)
visiting steel drum makers and players in Trinidad. We found the process of
tuning the pans particularly interesting. 1) Many of these films are old, some may be the only print of a given film that we can find anywhere. While we strive to have the best print possible, it's not uncommon for a film to have splices or other damage, including missing titles, occasionally. We can correct some -- but not all -- red color shifts. We have watched and researched each of these films, and feel they're all critical to save. 2) We have made every attempt to include films that are in the public domain or are out of distribution. In the case of the latter, we will have attempted to identify current copyright holder. If we cannot, we have decided to move ahead anyway and put the film up on the Internet Archive, as it's not uncommon for companies making these films to be out of business, and/or the filmmakers deceased. Occasionally, a copyright holder could resurface, and send us a "Cease and Desist" request, requesting that the film be removed from the Internet Archive. In such a case, when provided with proof, we will honor the C&D request, and remove the film.
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