Oskar Fischinger

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Oskar Fischinger (born June 22, 1900 in Gelnhausen , † January 31, 1967 in Los Angeles ) was a German-American filmmaker and pioneer of abstract film . He also worked as a special effects specialist. He was the brother of Hans Fischinger .

Life

After an apprenticeship as an organ builder, Fischinger worked as a mechanical engineer in Frankfurt am Main . In 1922 he graduated as an engineer .

Under the influence of Walther Ruttmann's "Opus I", Fischinger turned to abstract film. He developed a wax cutting machine, with the help of which he created organically flowing picture sequences. In commercials for the cigarette brand “ Muratti ” (1934/35) the protagonists are cigarettes marching to ballet music.

In February 1936, Fischinger emigrated to the United States , where he received an offer from Paramount in Hollywood under the intercession of Ernst Lubitsch . The destitute family was supported by Paul Kohner and Charlotte Dieterle, who founded the European Film Fund in 1938 . In December 1936, Fischinger signed a contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM). He later designed the film adaptation of Toccata and Fugue in D minor for Walt Disney for his film Fantasia (1939).

At the time, Fischinger was one of the few filmmakers who thought about the connection between music and visual effects as early as the beginning of the sound film in the 1920s. In films such as Studies, for example, he subordinated the visual rhythm to the auditory rhythm in the opening sequences. Fischinger's work and those of his avant-garde colleagues ( Walter Ruttmann , Hans Richter , Viking Eggeling and others) are considered to be the forerunners of the modern video clip .

From 1936 Fischinger also devoted himself to painting and painted abstract.

He died on January 31, 1967 in Los Angeles after a long illness.

In 2012/13 the EYE Film Instituut Nederland in Amsterdam together with the Center for Visual Music presented the exhibition Oskar Fischinger (1900–1967): Experiments in Cinematic Abstraction .

On June 22, 2017, Google dedicated an interactive doodle to him .

Filmography

  • 1920: silhouettes
  • 1920: bars
  • Studies 1–4 (1921–1925)
  • Spirals (1925)
  • Allegretto (1936)
  • American March (1941)
  • Composition in Blue (1935)
  • Circles (all circles included Tolirag) (1933)
  • Motion Painting No. 1 (1947)
  • Munich-Berlin hike (1927–1929)
  • Muntz TV Commercial (1952)
  • Muratti intervenes (1934)
  • Muratti Private (1935)
  • Mutoscope Reels (1945)
  • Organic Fragment (1941)
  • Mental Constructions (1927)
  • Study No. 2 (1929)
  • Study No. 3 (1930)
  • Study No. 4 (1930)
  • Study No. 5 (1930)
  • Study No. 6 (1930)
  • Study No. 7 (1930/31)
  • Study No. 8 (1931)
  • Study No. 9 (1931)
  • Study No. 12 (1932)
  • Study No. 13 (1933/34)
  • An Optical Poem (1937)
  • Wax experiments (1921)

literature

  • Cindy Keefer, Jaap Guldemond (eds.): Oskar Fischinger 1900–1967: Experiments in Cinematic Abstraction. Amsterdam: EYE Filmmuseum / Los Angeles: Center for Visual Music / London: Thames & Hudson 2013, ISBN 978-90-71338-00-7
  • William Moritz: Optical Poetry: The Life and Work of Oskar Fischinger. Indiana University Press, 2004, ISBN 0-253-21641-9
  • Helmut Herbst: Thinking with technology. Construction of an eye music. In: Sound & Vision, Music Video and Film Art . Frankfurt 1993, pages 36-41
  • Herbert Gehr (Red.): Optical poetry - Oskar Fischinger - life and work German Filmmuseum Frankfurt am Main 1993, ISBN 3-88799-045-5
  • Ursula Cremerius: The Abstract Avant-garde Film. A contribution to film poetry , Hamburg 1986
  • Martina Dillmann: Oskar Fischinger (1900–1967): The painterly work , dissertation University of Frankfurt am Main 1996, DNB 972191305 ; Volume 1, 118 pages, 44 sheets, illustrations 2004 DNB 97219133X , Volume 2, images, 233 pages DNB 972191364 .
  • Kay Less : 'In life, more is taken from you than given ...'. Lexicon of filmmakers who emigrated from Germany and Austria between 1933 and 1945. A general overview. ACABUS-Verlag, Hamburg 2011, ISBN 978-3-86282-049-8 , p. 170 f.

documentary

  • Muratti & Sarotti, History of German Animated Films, Director: Gerd Gockell, 80 min., 2000 [1]

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Herbert Gehr: Optical poetry: Oskar Fischinger life and work , German Film Museum , Frankfurt am Main, 1993, p. 50
  2. The Art Of The Film Title Design Throughout Cinema History by Julia Mey
  3. Fischinger - CVM pages. Retrieved June 23, 2017 .
  4. ^ Oskar Fischinger (1900-1967): Experiments in Cinematic Abstraction. Retrieved June 23, 2017 (English).