Research
The number of visitors to the Foundation and its archives considerably increased
in the past year. Besides many requests both in writing and by telephone, more
and more researchers come to consult the documents in person. Very often Joris
Ivens' work itself is the reason for the research. Chen Yu Lin, a Taiwanese
Ph. D. student doing his research at Barcelona University, is working on an
investigation about how the YU KONG series were received. And there are a number
of students who research films or specific aspects of the works by Joris Ivens.
Joanne Large, a student at the Courtauld Institute of Art in London studied
the archives to research the ideas of left-wing intellectuals in the 60's and
70's, more particularly a journey of French intellectuals to China at the time
of the YU KONG series.
Sometimes the main purpose is not Ivens, but still our archives appear to be
helpful. Charles Musser, professor of American Studies and Film Studies at Yale
University visited the archives for a study of Paul Robeson and the position
of (black) left-wing intellectuals and the 'Family of Man' ideas in the United
States of America. Paul Robeson sang the songs for the English version of LIED
DER STRÖME; SONG OF THE RIVERS. Ian Mundell, an English journalist/researcher,
working in Brussels, does research into the oeuvre by Chris Marker, who also
collaborated with Joris Ivens, for instance on LOIN DE VIETNAM. He also wrote
the commentary for …A VALPARAISO.
Fact and fiction
The international magazine Documentary Box published an interesting interview
with Helen van Dongen. Helen van Dongen, long-time collaborator with and second
wife to Joris Ivens' edited most films he made in the thirties and the forties.
That primary sources, like interviews with witnesses, are not always so reliable,
appears from several of her statements and the accompanying filmography. She
was said to have collaborated in THE BRIDGE, in editing RAIN and BORINAGE and
she was supposed to have taken the decision that Ernest Hemingway should speak
the commentary of THE SPANISH EARTH in stead of Orson Welles. Her filmography
becomes more and more impressive in this way, but it will have to be modified.
From documents it appears that her involvement in these films was less big.
That she edited the music version of RAIN (in 1932) is true, but she was not
involved in editing the original version, just as with THE BRIDGE and BORINAGE,
and neither in the decision-making of THE SPANISH EARTH. It is likely though
that she did the editing of the first-mentioned films at a later stage to make
them suitable for projection. However, it is not customary to classify that
in a filmography.
Netherlands - Japan
As part of 400 years of trade relations with Japan the State Archives made an
inventory of documents in Dutch archives connected with Japan. Jan Fernhout,
collaborator of the State Archives also visited the Joris Ivens Archives to
make an inventory of the documents linking Joris Ivens with Japan. It deals,
for instance, with documents about THE 400 MILLION, KNOW YOUR ENEMY: JAPAN and
about the trip to Japan Joris Ivens and Marceline Loridan made in 1971. The
result can be consulted through the State Archives.
Doc's Kingdom
The international seminar on documentary films Doc's Kingdom still develops
itself and in more than one field. From September 13 to 16 a national seminar
about the Portuguese documentary was held in Serpa, Portugal. It dealt with
the most recent and interesting productions.
As part of the Yamagata International Documentary Film Festival in Japan a version
of Doc's Kingdom was presented. In the mean time the preparations for the second
international seminar in Serpa are in full swing. The seminar is planned for
September 17-22, 2002. There is more information on our website.
Joris Ivens in BiFi
Also the Bibliothèque du Film (BiFi) in Paris has a Joris Ivens collection
with interesting documents about the early period of Ivens' work in particular.
The list of works, however, was not always complete and/or correct. This was
due to the fact that many documents were written in Dutch or German. The foundation
has offered to correct and complete this inventory; an offer readily accepted
by BiFi. Kees Bakker will do the work in December.
The Great History Quiz
and falsification of history
A history quiz resulting in falsification of history? It exists: In the Great
History Quiz, organised by de Volkskrant together with the Historisch Nieuwsblad,
was a question about Joris Ivens: "Why did the Dutch government decide
to stop the filmmaker Joris Ivens' passport at the end of the forties?"
According to de Volkskrant the correct answer was that his passport had never
been stopped. The question is somewhat misleading though, for the passport was
not stopped at the end of the forties, but it was indeed stopped on May 10,
1950 to be exact. Not for 10 years as Ivens tried to make people believe later,
but for 'only' five months. After some discussion with the editorial staff responsible
they maintained their point of view that Ivens' passport had never been stopped
and did not want to admit that the correct answer had not been among the possible
answers given. Apparently de Volkskrant and the Historisch Nieuwsblad think
falsification of history not so bad as recognising the mistake they made.
The Spanish Earth
For her graduation from her study of Art History at the University of Leiden
Jessica Kroskinski wrote a dissertation on THE SPANISH EARTH with the title
'The Law of Half Truths; Propaganda in the Documentary Film'. The title of her
dissertation points at a Joris Ivens' statement from his second autobiography.
The dissertation contains the full commentary by Hemingway and Renoir in the
original languages and in a Dutch translation. The dissertation is available
for perusal at the Foundation.
Rome, Luxembourg, and
Madrid
From 29 November till 10 December the second Asian Film Festival will take place
in the Palazzo delle Esposizione in Rome. There will be six films of Joris Ivens
in the programme: THE 400 MILLION, INDONESIA CALLING, BEFORE SPRING, THE PHARMACY,
THE FOOTBALL INCIDENT, and SHANGHAI.
In the Cinémathèque of Luxembourg will start an extensive Joris
Ivens Retrospective in January 2002, which is also presented in the light of
a new German publication: Poesie und Politik, der Dokumentarfilmer Joris Ivens.
In Madrid the First 'Muestra de Cine Documental' will be held from 18 to 24
January 2002. It includes a Joris Ivens Retrospective of 15 films. Please visit
our website www.ivens.nl for updated information.
Renovation house where
Joris Ivens was born
By providing money for the preservation of monuments and historic buildings
the renovation of the house in Berchenstraat in Nijmegen where Joris Ivens was
born has been made possible. The Ivens family occupied three houses, of which
the business premise of the former photo shop of Ivens' father was seriously
affected in the course of the past century. After the last Ivens, Thea Nooteboom-Ivens
left the house in the sixties, it was occupied by several printing shops. By
studying photographs from the archives a reconstruction has been made of the
façade and the interior.