This abstract film—which Franz Schömbs called a “film experiment”—seeks to merge space and time. To achieve this, Schömbs stretched colorful cardboard strips, painted with various shapes, onto a machine he built himself, the Integrator. A rotating mechanism arranged the strips into different constellations, which were then interwoven in the film through multiple exposures. The geometric shapes, whose colors range from cool to warm, fade or stand out to continuously create new motifs.
CLASSICAL FILM SELECTION
THE BIRTH OF THE LIGHT
English title:
The birth of the light
Original title:
Die Geburt des Lichts
Director:
Franz Schömbs
Country:
Germany
Genre:
animation
Year:
1958
Length:
7’
Cast:
-
A quote for the film:
-
Selective list of festivals and awards:
Cinema Ritrovato Festival in Bologna
Director’s bio:
Franz Schömbs (1909–1976) was a German experimental filmmaker, painter, and photographer whose work explored abstraction, color, and movement. Drawing from visual arts and choreography, he developed a unique cinematic language focused on rhythm, light, and form. Working largely outside mainstream cinema, Schömbs created a small but distinctive body of films that connect postwar experimental practices with earlier traditions of visual abstraction.
