Archive of films workers leaving the factory (again) / Die Arbeiterinnen verlassen die Fabrik

Austria
2012, 11 min

Section: Imagina
Year: 2013

In the Lumière brothers’ first film from 1895 workers were captured leaving their factory, a process which took less than a minute. In the hypnotic variation on this iconic moving image we observe a similar event played out over eleven minutes. What has changed in 117 years? And who are these workers today?

Synopsis

The title of the early silent film Workers Leaving the Lumière Factory in Lyon essentially tells us everything we need to know. Its contemporary variation is more ambiguous. While we initially make out indistinct figures in a seemingly endless corridor, we finally see their faces up close. Using a precise formal concept, the director not only treats cultural memory, harking back to one of the most celebrated works in film history, but she is also quick to make use of the medium’s appeal, establishing a compelling rhythm to enhance footage of an ostensibly banal event.

About the director

Katharina Gruzei (b. 1983, Klagenfurt, Austria) studied at university in Linz, Santa Barbara, and Berlin. She works with both photographic and film media; in her conceptual pieces she examines sociological and political issues, but also the qualities of the medium itself. She treats archive footage, using its artistic depiction to uncover the nature of her chosen theme.

Contacts

sixpackfilm
Neubaugasse 45/13, 1070, Vienna
Austria
Tel: +43 152 609 900
E-mail: [email protected]
www: www.sixpackfilm.com

About the film

Color, 35 mm

Section:	Imagina

Director:	Katharina Gruzei
Screenplay:	Katharina Gruzei
Dir. of Photography:	Renate Bauer
Editor:	Katharina Gruzei
Producer:	Katharina Gruzei
Contact:	sixpackfilm

Guests

Brigitta Burger-Utzer

Distributor, Sales Agent