Eskimo (film)
| Eskimo | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Directed by | W. S. Van Dyke |
| Produced by |
Hunt Stromberg W. S. Van Dyke Irving Thalberg |
| Screenplay by | John Lee Mahin |
| Based on |
Der Eskimo and Die Flucht ins weisse Land by Peter Freuchen |
| Starring | Ray Mala |
| Music by | William Axt |
| Cinematography | Clyde De Vinna |
| Edited by | Conrad A. Nervig |
| Distributed by | Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer |
|
Release date
|
|
|
Running time
|
117 or 120 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English Inupiat |
| Budget | $935,000 |
| Box office | $1,312,000 |
Eskimo (also known as Mala the Magnificent and Eskimo Wife-Traders) is a 1933 American Pre-Code drama film directed by W. S. Van Dyke and released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM). It is based on the books Der Eskimo and Die Flucht ins weisse Land by Danish explorer and author Peter Freuchen. The film stars Ray Mala as Mala, Lulu Wong Wing as Mala's first wife Aba, Lotus Long as Mala's second wife Iva, Peter Freuchen as the Ship Captain, W. S. Van Dyke as Inspector White, and Joseph Sauers as Sergeant Hunt.
Eskimo was the first feature film to be shot in a Native American language (Inupiat), and the first feature film shot in Alaska. The film also incidentally documented many of the hunting and cultural practices of Native Alaskans. The production for the film was based at Teller, Alaska, where housing, storage facilities, a film laboratory, and other structures were built to house the cast, crew, and equipment.
It was nicknamed "Camp Hollywood". The crew included 42 cameramen and technicians, six airplane pilots, and Emil Ottinger — a chef from the Roosevelt Hotel. Numerous locations were used for filming, including Cape Lisburne in March 1933, Point Hope and Cape Serdtse-Kamen in April to July, and Herald Island in the Chukchi Sea in July. The film crew encountered difficulties recording native speech due to the "kh" sound of the native language. Altogether, pre-production, principal photography, and post-production took 17 months.
...
Wikipedia