People among sharks
| Movie | |
|---|---|
| Original title | People among sharks |
| Country of production | Germany |
| original language | German |
| Publishing year | 1947 |
| length | 84 minutes |
| Age rating | FSK 6 |
| Rod | |
| Director | Hans Hass |
| script | Hans Hass |
| production | Hans Hass Nicholas Kaufmann Klemens Lindenau |
| music | Herbert Windt |
| camera | Hans Hass Alfred von Wurzian |
| cut | Ursula Hühne |
| occupation | |
| |
In the film People under Sharks by diving pioneer Hans Hass from 1947 , marine biological work is shown with the help of a swim diving device. It is the birth of modern research diving . In addition, it is shown how little dangerous sharks are in reality for humans. The film is one of the most important contributions to underwater film today .
content
In this film, Hans Hass leads the audience on a diving expedition through the Aegean Sea lasting several months . It shows sensational underwater photos of wrasse, jellyfish, sponges, sea carnations and rays for the time. The silently gliding divers makes it easy to observe the animals in their natural environment and bring them closer to the viewer.
In order to take even more explosive underwater photos, Hass uses a new type of breathing apparatus - a modified diving reserve from the Drägerwerk . He literally transforms himself into a fish-like creature and moves freely under water without shortness of breath. Because of the pure oxygen inhaled underwater, this is not without risk. An incident actually occurs and hatred has to struggle with impaired vision and loss of consciousness, which shows that using the device is not without risk and requires a lot of discipline and skill.
The expedition also aims to investigate the possibility of obtaining food from the sea. To this end, Albrecht Beckh, a biologist from the Reichsnährstand , conducts studies on the occurrence of plankton.
The diving locations keep changing and the film demonstrates the scientific work of marine biologists. In addition to the underwater hunt for fish and turtles, the encounter with the shark, who is presented as the noble ruler of the seas, is the highlight of the film. Lured by dynamite fishermen, sharks, rays and tuna appear, which Hass can film up close underwater. Recordings never seen before show how the divers move between the dreaded sharks and how they can flee by screaming or swimming. Hatred also proves that, unlike the shark, moray eels are far more dangerous to humans.
background
People under Sharks was created between June and October 1942 on the occasion of Hans Hass's expedition to the Sporades, Cyclades and Crete. Initially, he was a two-part UFA - Kulturfilm planned and led by Nicholas Kaufmann produced. In addition to the UFA, from which Hass received foreign exchange , the Navy supported him by providing an expedition ship with crew, fuel and provisions. In addition, the ship was given escort by armed boats, since at that time there was already an acute threat from Allied submarines in the Aegean Sea. Alfred von Wurzian, Jörg Böhler and Alfons Hochhauser were released from military service to participate in the expedition.
The film was only finished after the end of the war and “denazified” before it was released: scenes showing marines, warships and uniforms were cut out. Kaufmann, who in the meantime was production manager at the Swiss Kulturfilm AG IRIS-Film in Zurich, brought it to cinemas in Switzerland. The premiere took place on June 24, 1947 in the “Capitol” in Zurich. The film premiered in Austria on September 3, 1948 at the Urania in Vienna, and in Germany in 1949.
Together with Hass' Adventures in the Red Sea (1951) and the works of Jacques-Yves Cousteau ( The Silent World , 1956; World Without Sun , 1964), people under sharks are counted among the most important contributions in underwater films today .
Scientific results
During the expedition, Hans Hass was not only able to observe and film the behavior of the sharks, but also to collect collections of the vegetation of submarine caves. He handed some of the collections over to the Zoological Institute of the Humboldt University in Berlin and Ferdinand Albert Pax , director of the Zoological Institute and Museum in Breslau. He wrote his doctoral thesis in zoology about the bog animals in Berlin.
In addition to scientific investigations, a particular aim of the expedition was to try out the new swim diving device in practice. It should revolutionize research diving.
In 2014, the unique film and photo recordings by Hans Hass formed the basis for a research project on dynamite fishing and the species of shark found in Greek waters.
literature
- Hans Hass: People and Sharks . Zurich 1949, DNB 451854136 .
- Michael Jung: Hans Hass - A lifetime on an expedition . Stuttgart 1993, ISBN 3-927913-63-4 .
- Paul Thie: With Hans Hass in the Aegean Sea. The captain of the expedition ship tells. Berlin 1953, DNB 455041105 .
Web links
- People with sharks in the Internet Movie Database (English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ Paul Thie: With Hans Hass in the Aegean Sea. The captain of the expedition ship tells. Berlin 1953, p. 22.
- ↑ Hans J. Wulff: Underwater film. In: Thomas Koebner : Reclams Sachlexikon des Films. Reclam, Stuttgart 2007, ISBN 978-3-15-010625-9 , pp. 707-708.
- ↑ Zogaris Stamatis, De Maddalena Alessandro: Sharks, blast fishing and shifting baselines: insights from Hass's 1942 expedition Aegean. In: Cahiers de Biologie Marine. 55, 2014, pp. 305-313.