PARE LORENTZ: FDR’S MOVIEMAKER
By Dr. Robert J. Snyder, Associate Professor
of Broadcasting
Department of Communication Technologies
University of Wisconsin-Platteville
The Plow That Broke the Plains
Tugwell
was so enthusiastic about Lorentz’s ideas that
Tugwell wanted 18 movies made. Lorentz suggested they
start by making one movie first before scheduling 18.
Lorentz proposed a film on the Dust Bowl. He was then
hired as a technical consultant at a salary of $18.06
per day with a per diem of $6. Thus, the man hired by
the federal government to produce a movie on the Dust
Bowl had never made a movie in his life. Yet, thanks
to his writings as a film critic, Lorentz knew he wanted
to make a film that emphasized pictures, music and words,
in that order. He also wanted the film to be a film
of merit, that is, it would have to hold its own on
the screen next to the productions of Hollywood. Not
just technically, the film also had to be dramatic,
capable of holding an audience’s attention. But
his lack of a production background would hurt him.
For example, when Tugwell asked what budget Lorentz
would need for this first film, he literally guessed
$6,000. This first film, “The Plow That Broke
the Plains” wound up costing nearly $20,000. Lorentz,
with help from his wife, the actress Sally Bates, would
wind up paying for the overage.
The
cost overrun was due to Lorentz’s lack of production
experience, as well as a lack of understanding as to how
the bureaucracy in Washington worked. When he left Washington
to begin filming, he only had a sketchy outline, not a
script, of the project. He wanted to film some dust storms
but beyond that had no specific plan for the rest of the
footage. Lorentz made a smart move in hiring a professional
camera crew, consisting of Ralph Steiner, Paul Strand
and Leo Hurwitz, each of whom had produced documentary
films of their own. However, due to a lack of a working
script, let alone a plan, they didn’t understand
what Lorentz wanted to accomplish. This, and their political
differences, led to conflict among the crew. Lorentz paid
farmers in cash to drive their tractors, but without prior
approval from Washington. Lorentz hoped to use Hollywood
stock film footage to fill in some gaps on the film. But
the major studios were not interested in cooperating with
the federal government’s movie making efforts, perhaps
out of a fear of competition, a loathing of President
Roosevelt, or both. A few sympathetic directors, none
ever publicly acknowledged eventually helped Lorentz obtain
some footage. Lorentz also had to hire someone to teach
him how to cut and edit film.
While working on a rough cut of the movie,
Lorentz interviewed 12 potential composers for the musical
score. He settled on the last person he talked to, Virgil
Thomson. Thomson, the composer of the opera “Four
Saints in Three Acts,” while knowledgeable of in
all aspects of American music, had never written a score
for a film. Perhaps this lack of formal film production
background was a plus, as the two became true collaborators.
They would talk at length about what Lorentz wanted to
do with integrating music into the story. Lorentz might
strum a musical idea on a guitar. Thomson would play his
evolving score on the piano during the playback of edited
sequences.
Once Lorentz completed assembling “The
Plow That Broke the Plains,” he next faced the daunting
task of getting his film distributed. Hollywood studios
had already refused to open doors when Lorentz came looking
for stock footage. Lorentz first played “The Plow”
for President Roosevelt in March, 1936. He then flew to
Hollywood and held private screenings for those directors
who had helped him obtain his stock footage. They reassured
him that he had made a good film. “The Plow”
had its public premiere on May 16, 1936, at Washington’s
Mayflower Hotel, under the sponsorship of the Museum of
Modern Art. Five other European films were also shown,
including an excerpt from Leni Reifenstahl’s “The
Triumph of the Will,” made for the German Nazi government.
“The Plow” received excellent press coverage,
including rave reviews for its educational value due to
its depiction of the country’s wasted resources.
While response to “The Plow” was greater than
Lorentz had hoped, commercial distribution was not forthcoming.
Some were labeling it New Deal propaganda. Lorentz’s
biggest problem may have been that he added to a government
film what Hollywood had for sell; compelling drama.
In
order to get distribution for “The Plow,”
Lorentz devised a plan that would be borrowed by others,
including Mel Gibson for his “The Passion of the
Christ.” Lorentz flew to various cities and arranged
screenings for the local press. The press would often
hype the film as “the one Hollywood didn’t
want you to see.” This tactic worked as eventually
“The Plow” received 3,000 bookings in mostly
independent movie theaters.
