Realities; 18; David Lean: A Self Portrait
- Series
- Realities
- Episode Number
- 18
- Episode
- David Lean: A Self Portrait
- Producing Organization
- Thomas Craven Film Corporation
- AAPB ID
- cpb-aacip/516-804xg9g344
- NOLA Code
- RLTS
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- Description
- Episode Description
- This film portrait of David Lean, one of the most respected directors in the movie industry today, was filmed almost entirely in Killarney, Ireland, the location for Leans latest production, Ryans Daughter. Scenes of Lean directing his new movie are intercut with personal interviews in which Lean explains his method of working, how he began his career, and his relationship with his actors and actresses. Also interviewed are two of Leans close associates -- Robert Bolt, who wrote the script for Ryans Daughter, and Sam Spiegel, who produced some of Leons earlier successes including Bridge on the River Kwai. The program includes extracts from some of Leans previous films -- Great Expectations, In Which We Serve, Brief Encounter, Breaking the Sound Barrier, Bridge on the River Kwai, Lawrence of Arabia, and Doctor Zhivago -- and his recent film, Ryans Daughter. Set in the Ireland of 1916, Ryans Daughter concerns a romantic young girl who collides with her respectable provincial community. Lean has received two Academy awards as best director -- in 1957 for Bridge on the River Kwai and in 1962 for Lawrence of Arabia. He was awarded the Grand Order of the British Empire, but refuses to add it to his name. (Description adapted from documents in the NET Microfiche)
- Episode Description
- Film director David Lean, whose latest work is Ryans Daughter, will be the subject of a one-hour documentary to be broadcast on Monday, March 8 at 9:00 pm, on the Public Broadcasting Service, as part of NETs Realities series. David Lean: A Self Portrait spans the career of the two-time Academy Award winner, covering all of his films beginning in 1942 with In Which We Serve, co-directed with Noel Coward, through MGMs Ryans Daughter (1970). Interviews with Lean, conducted during the production of Ryans Daughter in Ireland, have been assembled so that the director is the narrator of the program, with numerous film clips illustrating the attitudes and techniques he describes. Lean tells of his early beginnings with Noel Coward and Alexander Korda, his method of working, the development of his craft, his relationships with actors, and his feelings about the industry, critics and audiences. Revelations about Lean are also made by many of his colleagues, including actresses Julie Christie (Doctor Zhivago), Sarah Miles (Ryans Daughter, actor John Mills (In Which We Serve, This Happy Breed, Great Expectations and Ryans Daughter), playwright Robert Bolt (Lawrence of Arabia, Zhivago, and Ryans daughter), producer Sam Spiegel (Lawrence and Bridge on the River Kwai), Anthony Havelock-Allan (Great Expectations, Oliver Twist, and Ryans Daughter) and cinematographer Freddie Young (Lawrence, Zhivago, and Ryans Daughter). When you are young, when youve got a small budget, when people are not really expecting much from you, you make a halfway good film, the critics are very, very happy and give one a lifting hand, he says. When ones made a few successes they begin to suspicious of you. Lean notes that audiences are way ahead of the film industry. Its quite easy to make an exciting film which is exciting for the moment, but when the audience goes out of the theatre, they instinctively now that it was really basically a phony, says Lean. Among the many honors bestowed upon David Lean films are 26 Academy Awards, seven New York Film Critics awards, including Best Picture awards for Bridge on the River Kwai and In Which We Serve, two Directors Guild of America awards, and three Film of the Year designations by the British Film Academy. Following its broadcast, David Lean: A Self-Portrait will be made available to college and university film departments across the nation. The documentary was produced and directed by Thomas Craven for the NET Division, Educational Broadcasting Corporation. (Description adapted from documents in the NET Microfiche)
- Episode Description
- 1 hour piece, produced by Thomas Craven Film Corporation and initially distributed by NET in 1971. It wasoriginally shot in color.
- Episode Description
- David Lean, director of some of the most profitable films in movie history, believes that his success with big-budget productions has created a disparity between his movies popular appeal and their poor reception by critics. In a film portrait of Lean on NETs Realities series, the renowned director dismisses the importance of critical response to his latest films. When you are young, when youve got a small budget, when people are not really expecting much from you, you make a halfway good film, the critics are very, very happy and give one a lifting hand, he says. When ones made a few successes they begin to suspicious of you. Now when one becomes a professional, Lean adds, the very fact that ones being given a lot of money to make a film with is ... a dirty word. Money is a dirty word nowadays. I dont know why it should be, because there are good things that cost a lot of money to make ... I dont think the public has this attitude at all ... They dont give a damn if it costs nothing or if it costs a lot. With Doctor Zhivago, Lean took his most severe drubbing form the critics in New York, London and Germany. Yet, the movie earned more money than all his previous movies combined. His laurels includes two Academy Awards as best director -- in 1957 for Bridge on the River Kwai and in 1962 for Lawrence of Arabia. Lean uses audience appeal to gauge, new trends in film art, and this, he believes, has put him ahead of other filmmakers. Audiences on the whole are being way ahead of the film industry, he states. The film industry has too often played down to audiences. I think its quite easy to make an exciting film which is exciting for the moment, but when the audience goes out of the theatre, they instinctively know that it was really basically a phony. A good script, Lean believes, is the whole essence of a film. In his last three films, Lawrence of Arabia, Doctor Zhivago and Ryans Daughter, he has worked closely with his script writer Robert Bolt. He also relies heavily on music and sound effects. Music ... art noises which make dramatic points, and many is the time music has saved me. Ive made a mess of the scene or an actor who should be very thought and is soft, and youd be astounded what a little bit of hard music will do. Realities -- David Lean: A Self-Portrait is produced and directed for NET Division, Educational Broadcasting Corporation by Thomas Craven. (Description adapted from documents in the NET Microfiche)
- Series Description
- Realities consists of 40 episodes produced in 1970 by various producers.
- Broadcast Date
- 1971-03-18
- Asset type
- Episode
- Genres
- Documentary
- Topics
- Biography
- Film and Television
- Media type
- Moving Image
- Credits
-
-
Director: Craven, Thomas
Editor: Andrews, Chris
Executive Producer: Slevin, Tom
Guest: Lean, David
Interviewee: Bolt, Robert
Interviewee: Spiegel, Sam
Producer: Craven, Thomas
Producing Organization: Thomas Craven Film Corporation
- AAPB Contributor Holdings
-
Indiana University Libraries Moving Image Archive
Identifier: [request film based on title] (Indiana University)
Format: 16mm film
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- Citations
- Chicago: “Realities; 18; David Lean: A Self Portrait,” 1971-03-18, American Archive of Public Broadcasting (GBH and the Library of Congress), Boston, MA and Washington, DC, accessed May 1, 2025, http://americanarchive.org/catalog/cpb-aacip-516-804xg9g344.
- MLA: “Realities; 18; David Lean: A Self Portrait.” 1971-03-18. American Archive of Public Broadcasting (GBH and the Library of Congress), Boston, MA and Washington, DC. Web. May 1, 2025. <http://americanarchive.org/catalog/cpb-aacip-516-804xg9g344>.
- APA: Realities; 18; David Lean: A Self Portrait. Boston, MA: American Archive of Public Broadcasting (GBH and the Library of Congress), Boston, MA and Washington, DC. Retrieved from http://americanarchive.org/catalog/cpb-aacip-516-804xg9g344