Filming The Trial

Last updated
Filming The Trial
Directed by Orson Welles
Written byOrson Welles
Produced byOrson Welles
StarringOrson Welles
Cinematography Gary Graver
Running time
82 mins
Country United States
Language English

Filming 'The Trial' is an unfinished making-of film by Orson Welles, made in 1981, which focuses on the production of his 1962 film The Trial .

Contents

Background

In 1978 Orson Welles directed Filming Othello . That film had mostly consisted of a monologue in which Welles discussed his 1952 adaptation of Othello . Encouraged by the result, he set out to make a similar documentary/essay film looking back at his own film of The Trial.

Filming

In 1981, Welles gave a 90-minute question-and-answer session at the University of Southern California after a screening of The Trial . He had his cinematographer Gary Graver film the session with a view to editing highlights of the footage into the projected film. Graver observed, "A lot of people were there in the audience that day who are successful filmmakers now", [1] as well as several noted film critics such as Joseph McBride and Todd McCarthy. [2]

However, Welles never got round to editing the raw footage. Its only use in Welles' lifetime was by BBC journalist Leslie Megahy for his 1982 Arena documentary on Welles; specifically, the documentary features a young man asking Welles whether he would agree he has been persecuted by The Establishment and the capitalist system, and Welles being somewhat bemused by the question.

Revival of the footage

After Orson Welles' death in 1985, all of his unfinished films were bequeathed to his long-term companion Oja Kodar, and she in turn donated many of them (including Filming 'The Trial') to the Munich Film Museum for preservation and restoration.

In the 2000s, the Munich Film Museum then edited together the complete footage into an 82-minute cut of the Q&A session. Since Graver had to change film cartridges approximately every 10 minutes, this created breaks in filming, which are noticeable in the final cut.

The restored footage has been screened at various film festivals, but has never been released on video or DVD. However, since the work is in the public domain, it is available on YouTube in its full length. [3]

Related Research Articles

<i>F for Fake</i> 1974 film by Orson Welles

F for Fake is a 1973 docudrama film co-written, directed by, and starring Orson Welles who worked on the film alongside François Reichenbach, Oja Kodar, and Gary Graver. Initially released in 1974, it focuses on Elmyr de Hory's recounting of his career as a professional art forger; de Hory's story serves as the backdrop for a meandering investigation of the natures of authorship and authenticity, as well as the basis of the value of art. Far from serving as a traditional documentary on de Hory, the film also incorporates Welles's companion Oja Kodar, hoax biographer Clifford Irving and Orson Welles as himself. F for Fake is sometimes considered an example of a film essay.

Oja Kodar is a Croatian actress, screenwriter and director known as Orson Welles's romantic partner during the later years of his life.

<i>The Trial</i> (1962 film) 1962 film by Orson Welles based on the novel of the same title by Kafka

The Trial is a 1962 drama film written and directed by Orson Welles, based on the 1925 posthumously published novel of the same name by Franz Kafka. Welles stated immediately after completing the film: "The Trial is the best film I have ever made". The film begins with Welles narrating Kafka's parable "Before the Law" to pinscreen scenes created by the artists Alexandre Alexeieff and Claire Parker.

Moby Dick is a two-act drama by Orson Welles. The play was staged June 16–July 9, 1955, at the Duke of York's Theatre in London, in a production directed by Welles. The original cast included Welles, Christopher Lee, Kenneth Williams, Joan Plowright, Patrick McGoohan, Gordon Jackson, Peter Sallis, and Wensley Pithey. The play was published by Samuel French in 1965.

<i>The Other Side of the Wind</i> 2018 satirical drama film

The Other Side of the Wind is a 2018 satirical drama film, directed, co-written, co-produced and co-edited by Orson Welles, and posthumously released in 2018 after 48 years in development. The film stars John Huston, Bob Random, Peter Bogdanovich, Susan Strasberg, and Oja Kodar.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gary Graver</span> American filmmaker (1938–2006)

Gary Foss Graver was an American film director, editor, screenwriter and cinematographer. He was a prolific filmmaker, working in various roles on over 300 films, but is best known as Orson Welles' final cinematographer, working over a period of six years on Welles' epic film The Other Side of the Wind which was released in 2018, 48 years after it was started.

The Orson Welles Show was an unsold television talk show pilot directed by Orson Welles. It has never been broadcast or released in its entirety. Filming began in September 1978 and the project was completed around February 1979. It ran 74 minutes and was intended for a 90 minute commercial time slot.

<i>Filming Othello</i> 1978 film

Filming Othello is a 1978 documentary film directed by and starring Orson Welles about the making of his award-winning 1951 production Othello. The film, which was produced for West German television, was the last completed feature film directed by Welles.

Don Quixote is an unfinished film project written, co-produced and directed by Orson Welles. Principal photography took place between 1957 and 1969. Test footage was filmed as early as 1955, second-unit photography was done as late as 1972, and Welles was working on the film intermittently until his death in 1985. The film was eventually edited by Jesús Franco and was released in 1992, to mixed reviews.

The Deep is an unfinished film directed by Orson Welles, based on Charles Williams' novel Dead Calm (1963), which was later adapted as an eponymous 1989 film. Welles produced and wrote The Deep, as well as played the role of Russ Brewer opposite Jeanne Moreau and Laurence Harvey.

<i>The Merchant of Venice</i> (1969 film) 1969 unfinished film directed by Orson Welles

The Merchant of Venice is a 1969 drama short film directed by Orson Welles based on William Shakespeare's play of the same name. While actually completed, it is frequently cited as an unfinished film, though better described as a partially lost film due to the loss of film elements.

Orson Welles' Magic Show is an unfinished television special by Orson Welles, filmed between 1976 and 1985. In it, Welles performs various magic tricks for the camera, promising that no trick photography is used.

The Spirit of Charles Lindbergh is a short film made in 1984 by Orson Welles. The film was intended as a private video letter from Welles to his longtime friend and accountant Bill Cronshaw, who was ill. In the film, Welles sits behind a typewriter at his desk and speaks of the human spirit, quoting the journal of aviator Charles Lindbergh. Welles was in visibly poor health himself when the film was made, and he did not intend for it to be seen by the public.

One Man Band, also known as London and Swinging London is an unfinished short film made by Orson Welles between 1968 and 1971. The film started life as a part of a 90-minute TV special for CBS, entitled Orson's Bag, consisting of Welles' 40-minute condensation of The Merchant of Venice, and assorted sketches around Europe. This was abandoned in 1969 when CBS withdrew its funding over Welles' long-running disputes with US authorities regarding his tax status, and Welles continued to fashion the footage in his own style.

Nella terra di Don Chisciotte is an Italian-language documentary travelogue series about Spain, made by Orson Welles. It began filming in 1961, but did not air until 1964. The series follows Welles' travels around Spain, and was narrated by Arnoldo Foà. The series was made for Radiotelevisione Italiana (RAI-TV). Co-starring with Welles were his Italian wife Paola Mori, and their young daughter Beatrice Welles.

Moby Dick is an unfinished film by Orson Welles, filmed in 1971. It is not to be confused with the incomplete 1955 film Welles made of his meta-play Moby Dick—Rehearsed, or with the 1956 film Moby Dick, in which Welles played a supporting role.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paola Mori</span> Italian actress and aristocrat (1928–1986)

Paola di Gerfalco, Contessa di Gerfalco, better known by her professional name Paola Mori, was an Italian actress and aristocrat, and the third and last wife of Orson Welles.

An Evening with Orson Welles is a series of six short films created in 1970 by Orson Welles, for the exclusive use of Sears, Roebuck & Co. Welles produced the recitations of popular stories for Sears's Avco Cartrivision machines, a pioneering home video system. Four of the films are regarded as lost; as of 2022, two of the films, The Golden Honeymoon and Two Wise Old Men: Socrates and Noah, are known to exist.

Beatrice Giuditta Welles is an American former child actress, known for her roles in the film Chimes at Midnight (1966) and the documentary travelogue In the Land of Don Quixote (1964). The daughter of American filmmaker Orson Welles and Italian actress Paola Mori, she is a former model, radio and TV personality, founder of a cosmetics line and designer of handbags and jewelry.

The following is a list of unproduced Orson Welles projects in roughly chronological order. During his long career, American actor and filmmaker Orson Welles had worked on a number of projects which never progressed beyond the pre-production stage under his direction. Some of these productions fell in development hell or were cancelled.

References

  1. "An interview with Orson Welles's cinematographer Gary Graver by Harvey Chartrand – Excerpts from PENNY BLOOD magazine #11 « Wellesnet: The Orson Welles Web Resource" (Interview). Wellesnet.com. 2008-11-21. Retrieved 2011-11-12.
  2. Filming The Trial at IMDb
  3. "Filming 'The Trial' [1981] (Unedited) - Rare Orson Welles Documentary". YouTube .