Denmark, the Hollywood of silent film
The Danish film industry, from around 1910 and a decade on, was a world leader, both commercially and artistically. It was an age when stars like Asta Nielsen, Valdemar Psilander and Gunnar Tolnæs found fame far beyond their native shores, and Denmark’s all-time greatest director, Carl Theodor Dreyer, created a considerable part of his oeuvre.
Now the Danish Film Institute is launching the streaming site Stumfilm.dk, where everyone can follow the digitisation of more than 400 works from the 1897-1928 period. This film-archaeological project will be both wide-ranging and unpredictable. Some of the old reels have not been viewed since the 1920s. As the films are digitised, they will be streamed on the site, accompanied by posters, photos, thematic articles, scripts and contemporary reviews.
Stumfilm.dk is the biggest-ever project of film-history dissemination in Denmark. The many films and accompanying materials will hopefully engage cultural-history buffs and curious viewers alike. A particular target audience is international film scholars and institutions of learning, where Danish silent films are on the curriculum. Accordingly, Stumfilm.dk will feature in an English-language version.
Stumfilm.dk is made possible by generous donations from the Augustinus Foundation, the Aage and Johanne Louis-Hansen Foundation and the A.P. Møller Foundation.
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