Melodie der Welt

Running time: 49'

Melodie der Welt / Melodie świata / Melody of the World
Production: GER 1929

The documentary, first made as an advertisement for the Hamburg-America Lines, is the first German feature-length film with sound. A sailor and his beloved with all their belongings go to the port where a ship is waiting for them. These are the last sweet moments they spend on land, for they are about to part with what they know and enter the new, faraway land. The picture includes rhythmic sequences that depict the confrontation of man with war, death, love, and fun. A film which by many critics is believed to be the predecessor of such documentaries as “Koyaanisqatsi” by Godfrey Reggio or “Baraka” and “Samsara” by Ron Fricke.

 

 

 

 

Authors:

  • Walter Ruttmann

    Graduate painter and architect of the Universities of Zurich and Munich. Along with Hans Richter and Viking Eggeling he experimented with abstract filmmaking for some time. After 1925 Ruttmann decided to end his activities in this area, and directed his passion towards the exploration of film editing techniques. He is most famous for “Berlin: Symphony of a Big City” from 1927. Ruttmann later became part of the Nazi propaganda apparatus. He worked with Leni Riefenstahl, with whom he wrote the script to “Triumph of the Will.” He is also one of the cinematographers for “Metropolis” and “The Nibelungs” by Fritz Lang. Died in the battlefield during World War II, making a film chronicle about the western front. 

    Filmography:

    Lichtspiel Opus I-IV (1921-1925)     
    Der Sieger (1922)
    Das Wunder (1922)     
    Der Aufstieg (1926)
    Spiel der Wellen (1926)
    Berlin, die Sinfonie der Großstadt (1927)
    Dort, wo der Rhein… (1927)
    Deutscher Rundfunk (1928)
    Melodie der Welt (1929)
    Weekend (1930)
    In der Nacht(1931)
    Acciaio (1933)
    Triumph des Willens (1934)
    Im Dienste der Menschheit (1937)
    Deutsche Panzer (1940)
     

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Screenings: