Film Class: The Modern 1930s – Hallelujah

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In the 2012 edition of the Las Palmas de Gran Canaria International Film Festival, the cycle "The Moderns" was programmed. It was an exploration of avant-garde cinematographic art prior to the advent of sound cinema, conceived by our colleague Francisco Ponce. We now propose to complete that milestone with nine films made between 1929 and 1934, selected by Luis Miranda, the festival’s director. ALELUYA (Hallelujah) United States, 1929, 109´ DIRECTOR: King Vidor SCREENPLAY: King Vidor and others PRODUCTION: King Vidor CINEMATOGRAPHY: Gordon Avil (B&W) EDITING: Hugh Wynn MUSIC: Eva Jessye CAST: Daniel L. Haynes, Nina Mae McKinney, William Fountaine, Harry Gray, Fanny Belle DeKnight, Everett McGarrity. SYNOPSIS: Black workers toil and suffer day after day on the cotton plantations. But they pray at all hours, and that consoles them in their wretched lives. When Zeke loses all his family’s money in a dice game, his brother Spunk decides to demand it back, and a fight breaks out that costs him his life. Repentant, Zeke becomes a preacher to bring hope and resignation to his people. In collaboration with the DISA Foundation