Eskimo (film)
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| Directed by | W.S._Van_Dyke |
| Produced by | Hunt Stromberg W.S. Van Dyke Irving Thalberg |
| Screenplay by | John Lee Mahin |
| Based on | Der Eskimo and Die Flucht ins weisse Land by Peter Freuchen |
| Starring | Ray Mala |
| Music by | William Axt |
| Cinematography | Clyde De Vinna George Gordon Nogle Josiah Roberts Leonard Smith |
| Editing by | Conrad A. Nervig |
| Studio | Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer |
| Release date(s) | November 14, 1933 |
| Running time | 117 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English, Inupiat |
Eskimo (also known as Mala the Magnificent) is a 1933 film directed by W.S. Van Dyke. It was the first major studio film made in Alaska, and starred Ray Mala, a half-Inupiat actor, and was one of the first dramatic films to use a nearly all-native cast. In 1934, it received the first Academy Award for Best Film Editing, awarded to Conrad A. Nervig.
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[edit] History
In 1932 an expedition set out from MGM's studios in Hollywood to Alaska to film what was then billed as "The Biggest Picture Ever Made". Upon arriving in Alaska, they set up "Camp Hollywood" in Northwest Alaska where they lived during the duration of the filming. Louis B. Mayer spared no expense in making sure they had everything they needed during their stay - he even sent the famous chef from the Roosevelt Hotel on Hollywood Blvd (the site of the first Oscars) with them to Alaska to cook for them.
When "Eskimo" premiered at the famed Astor Theatre in Times Square, New York, the studio received the largest amount of feedback in the history of the studio up to that time. "Eskimo" was critically acclaimed and released worldwide; as a result Inupiat Eskimo actor Ray Mala became an international movie star. Director Woody Van Dyke has a featured acting role in the movie.
[edit] Awards
Eskimo is significant for the following: winning the very first Oscar for Best Film Editing at the Academy Awards, for forever preserving Inupiat culture on film, and for being the first motion picture to be filmed in an all native language (Inupiat).
[edit] References
- Fienup-Riordan, Ann, Freeze Frame: Alaska Eskimos in the Movies, University of Washington Press, 2003.
