City Symphonies: 1921-1930

City Symphonies predate the official coining of the term documentary by a few years, but these films use many of the same observational techniques. Acting as a bridge between the actualities of the early days of cinema and the poetics of late-silent and early-sound film, these early symphonies use expressive editing to create odes to the cities they were shot in. The directors of these films find new angles and new ways to move the camera, sometimes using slow-motion to emphasize the observational gaze. There is an evolution throughout these films that moves from focusing on the architecture of a city to the people and activities that create the essence of a city. The first City Symphony, Manhatta, along with Skyscraper Symphony, set their sights on New York, while Berlin is the focus of the next two films, followed by a glimpse of the resort town of Nice, France ninety-five years ago.

Live piano accompaniment by Dr. Philip Carli.
 

Manhatta

(Charles Sheeler, Paul Strand, US 1921, 11 min., 35mm)

Skyscraper Symphony

(Robert Florey, US 1929, 9 min., 35mm)

Berliner Stilleben

(László Moholy-Nagy, Germany 1926, 9 min., 35mm)

Berlin, Symphony of a Great City

(Berlin, die Sinfonie der Großstadt, Walter Ruttman, Germany 1927, 65 min., 16mm)

À Propos de Nice

(Boris Kaufman, Jean Vigo, France, 1930, 24 min., 16mm)