D.W. Griffith
Directing
- Born:
- 1875-01-22
- Died:
- 1948-07-23
- Place of birth:
- LaGrange, Kentucky, USA
Biography
David Llewelyn Wark Griffith was a premier pioneering American film director. He is best known as the director of the controversial and groundbreaking 1915 film The Birth of a Nation and the subsequent film Intolerance (1916). Griffith's film The Birth of a Nation made pioneering use of advanced camera and narrative techniques, and its immense popularity set the stage for the dominance of the feature-length film. It also proved extremely controversial at the time and ever since for its negative depiction of Black Americans and their supporters, and its positive portrayal of slavery and the Ku Klux Klan. Griffith responded to his critics with his next film, Intolerance, intended to show the dangers of prejudiced thought and behavior. The film was not the financial success that its predecessor had been, but was received warmly by critics. Several of his later films were also successful, but high production, promotional, and roadshow costs often made his ventures commercial failures. Even so, he is generally considered one of the most important figures of early cinema.
Known For
Filmography
Hollywood Black
Mary Pickford a Blessing and a Curse
Charlie Chaplin, The Genius of Liberty
Flashback: The First World War
Mary Pickford: The Muse of the Movies
Why Be Good?: Sexuality & Censorship in Early Cinema
D.W. Griffith - Years of Discovery 1909-1913
The Tramp and the Dictator
Star Power: The Creation Of United Artists
The First 100 Years: A Celebration of American Movies
The Making of 'The Birth of a Nation'
American Experience
Lillian Gish: The Actor's Life for Me
Hollywood
D.W. Griffith: An American Genius
General Massacre
The Legend of Rudolph Valentino
Footlight Varieties
San Francisco
The Struggle
Abraham Lincoln
1930 Prelude to "The Birth of a Nation"
Lady of the Pavements
The Battle of the Sexes
Drums of Love
The King of Kings
The Sorrows of Satan
That Royle Girl
Sally of the Sawdust
Isn't Life Wonderful
America
The White Rose
One Exciting Night
Orphans of the Storm
Dream Street
Screen Snapshots (Series 1, No. 20)
Way Down East
The Love Flower
Remodeling Her Husband
The Idol Dancer
The Greatest Question
Scarlet Days
The Mother and the Law
The Fall of Babylon
True Heart Susie
Broken Blossoms or The Yellow Man and the Girl
The Girl Who Stayed at Home
A Romance of Happy Valley
The Greatest Thing in Life
Lillian Gish in a Liberty Loan Appeal
The Hun Within
The Great Love
Hearts of the World
Betsy's Burglar
A Girl of the Timber Claims
The Children of the Feud
Fifty-Fifty
Diane of the Follies
The Social Secretary
Intolerance: Love's Struggle Throughout the Ages