The Birth of a Nation
| The Birth of a Nation | |
|---|---|
Theatrical release poster
|
|
| Directed by | D. W. Griffith |
| Produced by | D. W. Griffith Harry Aitken |
| Screenplay by | D. W. Griffith Frank E. Woods |
| Based on |
The Clansman by T. F. Dixon Jr. |
| Starring |
Lillian Gish Mae Marsh Henry B. Walthall Miriam Cooper Ralph Lewis George Siegmann Walter Long |
| Music by | Joseph Carl Breil |
| Cinematography | G. W. Bitzer |
| Edited by | D. W. Griffith |
|
Production
company |
David W. Griffith Corp.
|
| Distributed by | Epoch Producing Co. |
|
Release date
|
|
|
Running time
|
12 reels 133–193 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | Silent film English intertitles |
| Budget | >$100,000 |
| Box office | unknown; estimated $50–100 million |
The Birth of a Nation (originally called The Clansman) is a 1915 American silent epic drama film directed and co-produced by D. W. Griffith and starring Lillian Gish. The screenplay is adapted from the novel and play The Clansman, both by Thomas Dixon Jr. Griffith co-wrote the screenplay (with Frank E. Woods), and co-produced the film (with Harry Aitken). It was released on February 8, 1915.
Three hours long, the film was originally presented in two parts separated by an intermission; it was the first 12-reel film in America. The film chronicles the relationship of two families in the American Civil War and Reconstruction era over the course of several years: the pro-Union Northern Stonemans and the pro-Confederacy Southern Camerons. The assassination of President Abraham Lincoln by John Wilkes Booth is dramatized.
The film was a commercial success, though it was highly controversial for its portrayal of black men (some played by white actors in blackface) as unintelligent and sexually aggressive towards white women, and the portrayal of the Ku Klux Klan (KKK) (whose original founding is dramatized) as a heroic force. There were widespread African-American protests against The Birth of a Nation, such as in Boston, while thousands of white Bostonians flocked to see the film. The NAACP spearheaded an unsuccessful campaign to ban the film. Griffith's indignation at efforts to censor or ban the film motivated him to produce Intolerance the following year.
...
Wikipedia