#gut2web

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4 Questions about German Expressionism in Film

1. How did art influence the German Expressionist movement? What similarities does the the movement in art have to the movement in film? Differences?

2. Just how much influence did Hitler and the Nazis have upon the Expressionist movement?

3. Were German Expressionist films well received in other countries besides Germany? Were any countries against German Expressionism?

4. What led to the downfall of German Expressionism in film?

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You Learn Something New Everyday

When I signed up for the Gutenberg to the Web course back in the early spring of my freshman year, I truly had no idea what I was in for. I knew I would learn about communications and the history of the areas we were visiting, but I had no idea what I would learn about myself and those around me. 

This trip sparked within me my love for travel and journalism. Before this trip, I wrote for The Pendulum and I'll be honest, I thought I hated it. But throughout this experience we learned so much about journalism and the different outlets that are used such as television, radio, and print. We also learned extensively about the impact that journalism had on the history of the time period. Whether is was used for propaganda or for free speech, journalism had a humongous impact of the day to day lives of civilians in every corner of the globe. After talking to the correspondent at Sky News, I knew journalism was something that had affected and would continue to affect my life and my studies.

Journalism is not something I originally thought would have a huge influence on this trip or my life, but boy was I wrong. It's amazing how a study abroad experience can impact your life far beyond the actual travel.

Kim

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Questions: answered.

1.    What does modern German film look like?

Many modern German films, such as Downfall, Good Bye Lenin!, and The Lives of Others, reflect upon the totalitarian and communist regimes of 20th century Germany. These modern films, as explained by the film museum in Berlin, focus on the reflecting on historical themes from Germany’s past so as not to repeat them. The Berlin film museum answered this question more so than the Frankfurt film museum since it focused more on movie content rather than the technology and visual techniques associated with movie making. The museum in Berlin also focused heavily on German cinema and German actors, whereas in Frankfurt we noticed the displays concentrated on American movies. From both of these museums, we understood that modern German cinema is very similar to US cinema in its style and content. Stylistically, filmmakers aim for the same goal — to produce meaning beyond what is being said on screen through various camera, lighting and sound techniques. Content is based around entertaining audiences, however there are often greater themes based around world and/or interpersonal conflicts.

2. How did German film develop from expressionism to what it is now? Both museums did a good job of explaining what German cinema is now, however I think the question of how it developed is still somewhat a mystery. The museum in Berlin guided us through a chronological timeline of German cinema, with some actor highlights, but rather than explaining how each era of film developed into the next, it was focused on explaining each era of film as its own entity. The Frankfurt museum was much more technology-oriented, and what we took from that was that German film techniques evolved with the developing technologies—as all film in any country has. As a whole, we understand the different eras of German film and how they reflect the history of the time period, but we are left to wonder what truly sparked the changes in these different film themes and techniques.

3. How did Americans view German Expressionist film during that time period? This question was better answered in our original research than in anything we learned in the two museums we visited. I think this question is of more interest to Americans rather than the broad spectrum of nationalities that visit these German museums daily. From our research, we know that Americans (especially American filmmakers) really took a liking to the works of German filmmaker F. W. Murnau. His films grew in popularity in the states, so much so that Fox Films offered him a job. We also knew that many filmmakers immigrated to the United States during the rise of Hitler and propaganda films to pursue their own film ideals. From this, we can infer that Americans really appreciated German expressionist film both stylistically and content-wise. Beyond this, the museums did not offer much more information on the subject.

-Abbey and Kim

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What Abbey wants to look further into

I would love to further explore and hear personal accounts of people who lived in Eastern Europe during the Soviet communist regime, andof people who are holocaust survivors. There are so many facts and statistics that I have learned throughout the years, and sometimes those just don’t hit home. I was intrigued by the emotion and realness that I felt when Peter Keup recanted his story to our class. I would love to hear more personal accounts of what it was like and how people really felt during the Soviet regime, and even extend it into other courses of history that we studied, such as the holocaust. In history textbooks, I think it is hard to tell how the people felt because they weren’t allowed to speak their minds during the regime.

 I think it is so important to seek personal accounts of these events, because sooner than later, most people who experienced these travesties will no longer be around to tell the tale of how they really felt and experienced life during those times. Personal accounts delve so much deeper than history books. I will definitely seek these accounts by reading books on the subject, written by those who experienced the times. I also will always be on the lookout for talks and lectures (Elon has so many events, maybe one day it will be a lecture by a holocaust survivor or someone who lived in western Germany).

-Abbey

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2 film museums, 2 different perspectives

After visiting the Frankfurt film museum, it was very interesting to be able to compare it to the Berlin film museum. Kim and I’s main focus in the fall prep class was film—more specifically German expressionist film. The two museums were very different in their own respects, and I enjoyed each one in different ways. Being a Cinema and Television Arts major, it would be hard not to have interest in such well constructed film museums.

  Both museums looked at the history of film in a chronological order, though their focuses were very different. While in Berlin, the museum really focused on the films themselves, in Frankfurt the museum focused on the techniques and processes that go into making a film. Berlin centered in on whole movies, their content, and characters—the museum moved us along by creating a path of famous and well-made movies from earliest to most recent. In Frankfurt, the two levels were separated into the earliest forms of motion picture and how it was created and viewed, versus more modern films and the technology and technique associated with creating such films.

  Within the Cinema and Television Arts major, there are so many different aspects to focus on and be more interested in than others. I love the technology associated with making cinema and television—I love to work cameras, being in the control room, and editing. So naturally, my personal interests geared me to really enjoy the Frankfurt film museum. It was so cool to see how the technology has developed and to look at different famous movies and see how they created the content and what techniques they used to give meaning to the stories. Where many people are very interested in films as a whole, the end result, I really love the process and analyzing the separate pieces that make a whole. The Frankfurt film museum gave me an incredible look into what I am interested in.

  (Some Gutenbergers having fun with the green screen exhibit in the Frankurt film museum)

I also quite enjoyed the Berlin museum, since after all of our research in the fall, I felt quite knowledgeable about German expressionist cinema and it was so interesting to see the films explained and analyzed by the professionals who put this museum together. However, early 1920’s expressionism in cinema was only a small part of the museum. The rest of the museum was very interesting, however I didn’t feel I knew as much about German cinema since expressionism and therefore felt way more interested in the beginning of the museum in the expressionist section.

  Going to two film museums did not feel like we were repeating anything, because they were so different in what they displayed and taught their audiences. 

-Abbey 

(I've had wifi troubles since landing, since I have not yet gotten home, I'm finally able to post this!!) 

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Elaborate Books and Where to Find Them

As I was meandering through the Gutenberg Museum, I began to notice how intricate and elaborate books were back when it was extremely hard to print books. I found this to be odd. Why are books so much more beautiful from a time when is was painstakingly hard to print books? Nowadays, books are relatively plain despite the ease with which they are printed. Why are books from the 1400s more beautiful and elaborate than my favorite series today?

I chalk it up to the sheer ease of mass production. Back when books had to be bound by hand, they had intricate pages and breathtaking covers. The tiles for the text had to be laid out one by one (for Gutenberg) or handwritten in beautiful script. I find that to be so incredible. When the press was developed, tiles of letters were created in a plethora of shapes and sizes to accommodate the size of the page. Small tiles, large tiles, miniature tiles, these were all carved individually to then be laid out by hand to then be covered in ink and manually printed. Nowadays we click a button and change the amount of copies we want and it’s printed. Just like that. Yet the pages are plain and devoid of any artwork that could have been easily cut and pasted on a page to beautify it.

I also found the development of images drastically changed the way books were printed and viewed. As I was walking around, I saw these beautifully hand drawn and colored maps. They were so intricate and unique depending on who was the artist. Then, I found my way into a section about newspapers and as I was looking at the papers I had no idea what they were about until I saw the images (again, I cannot read German, sadly). I saw an old black and white newspaper with Hitler on the front page. It surprised me how much an image could change my understanding. While I love how images help in cross-cultural understanding, I also wish we still had the freedoms of free-handing illustrations to make unique pieces. I am one of those people who loves the past. 

Advancements are great once I'm used to them, but I have to adjust. While I embrace the ease of technology and mass production, I still wish we had unique books and creative covers and hand drawn illustrations. The easier it is to produce something, the less meaning it has to the future and the past. 

See you soon, 

Kim

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Dachau after some reflection

After touring Dachau on Tuesday, I needed a few days to reflect and think about it. In all honesty, I think it was too shocking for me to process right away. Sitting back and shifting through my memories of it, as well as talking to classmates about it in small groups and in our larger class discussion, really helped me form my final thoughts on visiting Dachau.

  I had thought that I might get very emotional during the tour; I was expecting to maybe cry or be on the verge of tears. I was a little scared to visit it and walk through the place where such atrocities happened. But while the tour was actually happening, I just felt empty. All happy emotions were gone, but there were no other emotions to replace them—I just felt void of anything. Touring the camp was very solemn and sobering, but I did not have the reaction I thought I was going to.

  After thinking about it for a few days, I have come to the conclusion that during the tour, it was just to mortifying to accept that I was standing in the place where so many were tortured and killed. As I was walking through, I really avoided picturing what Dachau was actually like while it was in use. I think if I had really pictured in my head what happened right on the very same floor while we were in the gas chamber or the rooms where bodies were kept before they were burned, I might have gotten sick. I wasn’t able to visualize these things until after; if I had been there and visualized these atrocities, I would not have been able to handle it.

  However I felt during the tour, I came out of it realizing that everyone must visit one of these sites in their lifetime. You can know all of the facts of what happened at these concentration camps, but to walk through it is an entirely different experience. I think that it is important to go so that the holocaust is never forgotten. Every time a person is free to walk in and out of a concentration camp, it shows that Hitler did not win. But most of all, I think it is important to go and pay respects to the people who were brutally murdered at the hands of the Nazis, just because of who they were. These sites have museums on them, but are first and foremost memorials and graveyards. I think it is so important to go to pay respect to all those who have died there, as if to say they are not forgotten. 

(Unlike many, I decided not to take any pictures at Dachau. I personally felt that it was not a place to do so.)

-Abbey 

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Dachau with a Guide

Four years ago, I saw Dachau for the first time. On January 20, 2015, I experienced Dachau again. Both circumstances were completely different experiences for two completely different individuals.

The first time I viewed Dachau I had just turned 16, and I was on a school trip for one week in Europe. I meandered through the museum located in the old office space reading every bit of information I could get my eyes on. I made my way slowly to the religious memorials, though I didn’t know what they were at the time, and experienced the crematorium and “funeral grounds” at my own, slow pace. I was one of the last people to leave the Dachau grounds on that visit and one of the few people that didn’t shed a tear.

On my second visit, I was accompanied by 25 other students, two professors, and one tour guide. I have to say, it was a completely different experience than the one I had four years ago, which is to be expected since I am four years wiser and about 20 degrees colder.

Although today was different, that isn't necessarily a bad thing. Today was extremely informative. I learned a lot about the camp that I didn’t know on my journey four years ago, such that it was all male and many of the other camps were modeled after Dachau. I also learned about the importance of propaganda during the war and the roles that concentration camps played in promoting the Nazi agenda.

Four years ago I didn’t think this information was important for my experience, and today, I still don’t think the information is necessary to truly understand a concentration camp. I almost feel like the amount of information that was thrown at me today, while informative and important for me to know, was nonessential in understanding the human struggle that occurred everyday at the camp. I felt it almost dehumanized the experience. By making it all about the information, by making it into a history lesson, it took away the emotion and hardships that occurred at the camp that any common visitor could have understood.

Four years ago I experienced a different camp than I did today. I experienced a camp without knowledge but with heart. Today I experienced a camp with knowledge and little heart. It still felt extremely powerful, and I still connected with the history of the camp and the struggle of the people that went through the area, but I felt like I had less time to cope with what I was experiencing.

I think a lot of experiences are individualistic; people need to experience things in their own way and I firmly believe a concentration camp is one of those things. I know everyone I went with back in 2011 experienced the camp in their own unique way by taking however much or little time they needed. I think a guide adds a lot to the experience, but also detracts from essential reflection time.

My last parting words are these: Even though I was freezing today, I am extremely thankful for the clothes on my back and the shoes on my feet that I, unlike concentration camp prisoners, am lucky to have.

-Kim