Spring Silent Film Fest Concludes with 20000 Leagues Under The Sea
The Spring Fest of Silent Films concludes with adventures above and below the high seas in ‘20000 Leagues Under the Sea’, a 1916 silent film based on the Jules Verne classic using the first successful under water cinematography.
The original 1916 silent film was actually an amalgam of two of Jules Vernes’ novels, ‘20000 Leagues Under The Sea’ and its sequel, ‘The Mysterious Island’ both of which featured Captain Nemo. However, when the film makers combined the two stories, they added an extraneous story line, some of which remains in this version of this ground-breaking film.
In the film, the enigmatic Captain Nemo invents a deep-sea “monster” that terrorizes the seas. Then in a flashback from the ‘Mysterious Island’ novel, Nemo reveals he was Prince Daaker of India and that he created the Nautilus submarine to avenge a personal enemy. But finding his long-lost daughter among the wreckage of a ship he destroys, Nemo is overcome with emotion and dies. His loyal crew buries him at the bottom of the his beloved sea, setting the Nautilus afire to drift into the sunset.
This thrilling presentation includes a full sound score with lively music by Dan Schaaf, sound effects and voice over work by multiple area actors.
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Production of Original Film
The film was the first feature-length motion picture filmed underwater. The underwater scenes were photographed in the Bahamas. Actual underwater cameras were not used, but a system of watertight tubes and mirrors allowed the camera to shoot reflected images of underwater scenes staged in shallow sunlit waters. For the scene featuring a battle with an octopus, the underwater cinematographer devised a viewing chamber called the “photosphere”, a 6×10-foot steel globe in which a cameraman could be placed. The chamber was connected to a boat by a submarine tube from where the cinematographer gave his directions.
Susie Young Baxter, CEO, has published PanoramaNOW Magazine for 31 years. Her hobbies are Camping, Boating, Hiking, Nature, Gardening and Outdoor Activities. She is an Artist, Graphic Designer, an Avid Seamstress, Dabbles in Homemade Crafts and Landscaping. Since her Father was a Health Teacher, she also likes homeopathic Health Solutions. Since blogging started over 10 years ago, PanoramaNow has been added to Newsbreak – a national news affiliate.
