The Idea / L'Idée / Ideja

Berthold Bartosch (Théâtre du Vieux-Colombier)

1932, France, 24'

Based on Frans Masereel's woodcut graphic novel. An expressive animated representation of utopian revolution which liberates the desire of free expression. Complexity of employed techniques and avant-garde music score made the film a breakthrough in animated film history.

Po risoromanu Fransa Masereela, ki temelji na lesorezu. Ekspresiven animiran prikaz utopične revolucije, ki osvobaja hrepenenje po svobodnem izražanju. Kompleksnost uporabljenih tehnik in avantgardna glasba sta tukaj ustvarili prelom v zgodovini animiranega filma.

---

Recommended for children under 14: yes
Techniques: cut-out, hand-painted, superimposed animation shot with multi-plane cameras, mixed materials (paint, soap)

Script: Frans Masereel, Berthold Bartosch
Producers: Kurt Wolff, Carl Koch, Frans Masereel
Cinematography: Walter Türck, Franz Planer
Music: Arthur Honegger
Distribution: L’Agence du court métrage

Berthold Bartosch

was a visual artist interested in early cinematic experiments already by the time of his studies in Vienna (1910s). In 1919 he moved to Berlin and became a part of avant-garde artistic groups, he also started creative collaborations with Lotte Reiniger. Since 1930s Bartosch has lived and created in Paris. "Bartosch showed that animation could be POETIC...It was Bartosch who first dared to give animation the dimensions of a great art, trusting it to voice his pain, to lay bare his heart, to tell of his hope for a better future - which he never saw." - Alexander Alexeieff and Claire Parker.

Read more:
Robert Russett, Cecile Starr. Experimental Animation: An Illustrated Anthology, 1976. Andreea Vraja. GoCritic! Review: L’idee, https://cineuropa.org/en/newsdetail/435838?n=@