To Be Alive!

Last updated

To Be Alive!
Directed by Alexander Hammid
Francis Thompson
Written byAlexander Hammid
Francis Thompson
Edward Field (narration)
StarringRobert Fields
CinematographyAlexander Hammid
Francis Thompson
Production
company
Francis Thompson Productions
Distributed by S. C. Johnson & Son
Release date
  • 1964 (1964)
Running time
18 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

To Be Alive! is a 1964 American short documentary film co-directed by Francis Thompson and Alexander Hammid. The film is notable for its use of a multi-screen format and for winning the Oscar for Documentary Short Subject at the 38th Academy Awards. [1]

Contents

Concept and presentation

To Be Alive! was produced by the S.C. Johnson & Son for presentation at the Johnson Wax pavilion at the 1964 New York World's Fair. The film was designed to celebrate the common ground between different cultures by tracing how children in various parts of the world mature into adulthood. The film was shot over an 18-month period in various locations across the United States, Europe, Asia and Africa. [2]

In screening To Be Alive!, it was decided to use an experimental method consisting of three separate 18-foot screens. Unlike the Cinerama process that joined three screens into a single unbroken entity, the three screens for To Be Alive! were separated by one foot of space. [3]

In 1966, a book based on the film was released by S.C. Johnson. This text included an endorsement by Ralph J. Bunche, the Nobel Prize-winning United Nations undersecretary. [4]

Awards

To Be Alive! made history in late 1964 when it received a special award from the New York Film Critics Circle, which marked the first time that a non-theatrical commercial production was cited for an accolade. (The film was considered non-theatrical because it was included as part of the admission to the Johnson Wax pavilion.) [5]

However, the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences ruled that To Be Alive was ineligible for Oscar consideration because of its presentation on three separate screens. To rectify this, the film's producers created a 70mm single-screen version that was shown in 1965 in Los Angeles, qualifying it for the Oscar. [6] It won the Academy Award, beating out another sponsored short documentary: Point of View, produced by the National Tuberculosis Association. [7]

The film was also honored with an award by the National Conference of Christians and Jews.

Screenings

After a screening at the United Nations Pavilion at Expo 1967 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, To Be Alive was only available for public screening at the Golden Rondelle Theater at the S.C. Johnson headquarters in Racine, Wisconsin. [8]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Academy Awards</span> Annual awards for cinematic achievements

The Academy Awards, mainly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the film industry. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences located in Beverly Hills, California, United States, in recognition of excellence in cinematic achievements as assessed by the Academy's voting membership. The Academy Awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment industry in the United States and worldwide. The Oscar statuette depicts a knight rendered in the Art Deco style.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1964 New York World's Fair</span> Event held in New York City

The 1964–1965 New York World's Fair was a world's fair that held over 140 pavilions and 110 restaurants representing 80 nations, 24 U.S. states, and over 45 corporations with the goal and the final result of building exhibits or attractions at Flushing Meadows–Corona Park in Queens, New York City. The immense fair covered 646 acres (2.61 km2) on half the park, with numerous pools or fountains, and an amusement park with rides near the lake. However, the fair did not receive official support or approval from the Bureau of International Expositions (BIE).

This is a list of films by year that have received an Academy Award together with the other nominations for best documentary short film. Following the Academy's practice, the year listed for each film is the year of release: the awards are announced and presented early in the following year. Copies of every winning film are held by the Academy Film Archive. Ten films are shortlisted before nominations are announced.

A roadshow theatrical release or reserved seat engagement is the practice of opening a film in a limited number of theaters in major cities for a specific period of time before the wide release of the film. Roadshows would generally mimic a live theatre production, with an upscale atmosphere as well as somewhat higher prices than during a wide release. They were commonly used to promote major films from the 1920s–60s and build excitement.

The Canadian Film Awards were the leading Canadian cinema awards from 1949 until 1978. These honours were conducted annually, except in 1974 when a number of Quebec directors withdrew their participation and prompted a cancellation. In the 1970s they were also sometimes known as the Etrog Awards for sculptor Sorel Etrog, who designed the statuette.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">68th Academy Awards</span> Award ceremony for films of 1995

The 68th Academy Awards ceremony, organized by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored the best films of 1995 in the United States and took place on March 25, 1996, at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in Los Angeles beginning at 6:00 p.m. PST / 9:00 p.m. EST. During the ceremony, AMPAS presented Academy Awards in 24 categories. The ceremony, televised in the United States by ABC, was produced by David Salzman and Quincy Jones and directed by Jeff Margolis. Actress Whoopi Goldberg hosted the show for the second time, having previously presided over the 66th ceremony in 1994. Three weeks earlier, in a ceremony held at the Regent Beverly Wilshire Hotel in Beverly Hills, California, on March 2, the Academy Awards for Technical Achievement were presented by host Richard Dreyfuss.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">57th Academy Awards</span> Award ceremony for films of 1984

The 57th Academy Awards were presented March 25, 1985, at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, Los Angeles. Jack Lemmon presided over the ceremonies. This ceremony marked the first time that multiple black nominees would win an Oscar, when Prince and Stevie Wonder won for their respective work on Purple Rain and The Woman in Red. Additionally, it was the only time that all five nominees in Best Original Song topped the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

The 38th Academy Awards, honoring the best in film for 1965, were held on April 18, 1966, at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium in Santa Monica, California. They were hosted by Bob Hope, and were the first Oscars to be broadcast live in color. Lynda Bird Johnson, daughter of President Lyndon B. Johnson, attended the ceremony, escorted by actor George Hamilton.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alexandr Hackenschmied</span> American film director, photographer, actor, film editor and cinematographer

Alexandr Hackenschmied, born Alexander Siegfried George Hackenschmied, known later as Alexander Hammid was a Czech-American photographer, film director, cinematographer and film editor. He immigrated to the U.S. in 1938 and became involved in American avant-garde cinema. He is best known for three films: Crisis (1939), Meshes of the Afternoon (1943) and To Be Alive! (1964). He made Meshes of the Afternoon with Maya Deren, to whom he was married from 1942 to 1947. His second marriage was to the photographer Hella Heyman, who had also collaborated with Hammid and Deren on several films.

The Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival is the largest documentary festival in North America. The event takes place annually in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The 27th edition of the festival took place online throughout May and June 2020. In addition to the annual festival, Hot Docs owns and operates the Hot Docs Ted Rogers Cinema, administers multiple production funds, and runs year-round screening programs including Doc Soup and Hot Docs Showcase.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cambridge Film Festival</span> Film festival

The Cambridge Film Festival is the third-longest-running film festival in the UK. The festival historically took place during early July, but now takes place annually during Autumn in Cambridge. It is organised by the registered charity Cambridge Film Trust.

Sentinels of Silence is a 1971 short documentary film on ancient Mexican civilizations. The film was produced by Manuel Arango, and directed and written by the filmmaker Robert Amram, and is notable for being the first and only short film to win two Academy Awards.

The Kerry Film Festival is an annual film festival that takes place in County Kerry, Republic of Ireland, during October / November. The Kerry Film Festival is funded by Kerry County Council, Fáilte Ireland, the Arts Council as well as having corporate sponsorship.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Canadian Screen Awards</span> Canadian media awards

The Canadian Screen Awards are awards given for artistic and technical merit in the film industry recognizing excellence in Canadian film, English-language television, and digital media productions. Given annually by the Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television, the awards recognize excellence in cinematic achievements, as assessed by the Academy's voting membership.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Golden Rondelle Theater</span>

The Golden Rondelle Theater is a historic theater currently located in the administration complex of S. C. Johnson & Son in Racine, Wisconsin. Featuring a radical design, the theater was originally part of the 1964-65 World's Fair before being moved to Racine. At the World's Fair the theater was used to show the award-winning film To Be Alive!. After the fair, the theater was dismantled, shipped to Racine, and used as the basis of a re-designed theater. The design work was by Taliesin Associated Architects, the successor firm to that of Frank Lloyd Wright.

Doc NYC is an annual documentary film festival in New York City. Co-founded by Thom Powers and Raphaela Neihausen, the festival is the country's largest documentary film festival with over 300 films and events and 250 special guests. By 2014, DOC NYC had become America's largest documentary film festival and voted by MovieMaker magazine as one of the "top five coolest documentary film festivals in the world". The festival takes place over 9 days in November at the West Village's IFC Center, Chelsea's Cinépolis, and SVA Theater.

The Genie Award for Best Theatrical Short Film was a Canadian film award, historically presented by the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television through its Genie Awards program to a film judged as the year's best short film. The award has been inclusive of short films in the live action drama, animated and documentary genres.

John Wadsworth Barnes was an American film director and producer. He was most active in the educational film industry, producing, directing and writing for Encyclopædia Britannica Films. In his career he worked on and helped create over 100 film projects. He produced the Academy Award nominated documentary The Living City. He wrote for a radio drama series, made experimental Bolex films, and produced the film To Live Together.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Francis Thompson (film director)</span> American film director, producer, and writer

E. Francis Thompson was an American director, producer, and writer known for his multi-screen and giant-screen filmography.

The 9thannualCanadian Screen Awards were held in the week of May 17 to 20, 2021, to honour achievements in Canadian film, television, and digital media production in 2020.

References

  1. ↑ "The 38th Academy Awards (1966) Nominees and Winners". oscars.org. Retrieved May 5, 2016.
  2. ↑ "Time: The World of Already". Time. June 5, 1964. Archived from the original on May 14, 2009. Retrieved May 26, 2008.
  3. ↑ New York Times obituary of Alexander Hamid
  4. ↑ To Be Alive! (the book version)
  5. ↑ Hall, Phil, The New PR. 2007, Larstan Publishing. ISBN   0978918207
  6. ↑ Alternative Film Scene
  7. ↑ Academy Award database Archived July 1, 2012, at archive.today
  8. ↑ "The Golden Rondelle". Archived from the original on August 28, 2008. Retrieved May 26, 2008.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.