Jerome Hill
Encyclopedia
Jerome Hill was an American filmmaker and artist.
He was born into the family of Louis W. and Maud Van Corlandt Hill, one of the prominent families of Saint Paul and heirs to the railroad fortune of James J. Hill, the famed “Empire Builder.”
He attended St. Paul Academy where, as a student, he first demonstrated skill as an artist. He studied music at Yale University
receiving a degree in music. As a student, he took many trips to New York City to see a variety of arts events. After graduation in 1927, he traveled to Europe where he began to study painting, and experiment with still photography and film. While painting Landscapes in the south of France, Hill discovered and purchased a piece of property in Cassis, a scenic port town on the Mediterranean Sea.
Hill’s film endeavors began with Ski Flight (1938), a documentary and instructional film on downhill skiing. Filmed on location at Mt. Rainier in Washington state, and starring skier Otto Lang
, the film premiered at Radio City Music Hall
. A second documentary film The Seeing Eye (1939-40) profiled companion animals.
His artistic career was put on hold during WWII when he joined the military serving a variety of roles. He was assigned to a Tank Destroyer Battalion in 1942, and later served as a liaison officer with French forces. He also worked on the military motion picture team creating training films for the Army.
After the war, Hill continued to travel and paint for most of the 1940s. In 1949, he returned to documentary filmmaking with his portrait of American painter Grandma Moses
, produced with cinematographer Erika Anderson. The film was nominated for an Academy Award and marked Hill’s creative partnership with Anderson that would produce the feature length documentary, Albert Schweitzer. The film won an Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature of 1957.
Hill made his first “story” film, The Sand Castle made in 1959-60. Inspired by Carl Jung
and his theories of the subconscious, it was a comedy-fantasy in black and white with a dream sequence in color introducing a novel form of stop-motion animation. Jung’s ideas also motivated the full-length film Open The Door and See All the People (1964). Hill would create numerous notable films during his career that included Schweitzer and Bach, the hand-painted animation shorts: Anticorrida Merry Christmas, The Artist’s Friend, and The Canaries.
In 1971, Hill made his full-length autobiographical film, Film Portrait
. An especially poignant cinematic work, Film Portrait was created after Hill had been diagnosed with an incurable cancer and was contemplating his legacy as an artist and philanthropist. The work was selected as an outstanding Film of the Year for presentation at the 1972 London Film Festival
and won the Gold Dukat Prize at the 21st Annual Film Festival in Mannheim.
Jerome Hill’s life and career was largely defined by his support for the arts and humanities on an international level. In 1957 and 1958, he initiated a series of Performing Arts Festivals in Cassis. These festivals presented an array of European theatre professionals and Musicians that Hill helped support financially. In 1964, he founded a philanthropic foundation for the arts and humanities (Avon Foundation), which since 1973 has been known as the Jerome Foundation. He helped fund Film-Makers’ Cinematheque Film Culture
magazine, and Cahiers du cinéma
, and was involved in the Spoleto Festival in 1961 and the International Exposition of the New American Cinema.
After meeting with avant-garde filmmaker Jonas Mekas
about the possibility of writing an article for one of his film publications, Mekas presented Hill with the idea of a museum devoted to the preservation and exhibition of film as art. This vision eventually became Anthology Film Archives
, and would be considered Hill’s most important contribution to the cultivation of the visual arts. Realized through Hill’s financial and creative support, Anthology Film Archives opened on November 30, 1970 at Joseph Papp’s Theater. Hill was heavily involved with the organization up until his death in 1972. His work continues to be recognized for its importance to the history of cinema.
His short film La Cartomancienne (1932
) was restored for the DVD collection Unseen Cinema: Early American Avant Garde Film 1894-1941
released in October 2005.
His most famous work was Film Portrait
(1972
), an autobiographical
piece about the artist's own life, which won numerous awards and is one of only 450 films nominated for the National Film Registry
at the Library of Congress
.
Hill had a Chalet
built at Sugar Bowl Ski Resort
and while living there, paid for and operated "The Magic Carpet", the first aerial tramway
on the west coast.
He was born into the family of Louis W. and Maud Van Corlandt Hill, one of the prominent families of Saint Paul and heirs to the railroad fortune of James J. Hill, the famed “Empire Builder.”
He attended St. Paul Academy where, as a student, he first demonstrated skill as an artist. He studied music at Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
receiving a degree in music. As a student, he took many trips to New York City to see a variety of arts events. After graduation in 1927, he traveled to Europe where he began to study painting, and experiment with still photography and film. While painting Landscapes in the south of France, Hill discovered and purchased a piece of property in Cassis, a scenic port town on the Mediterranean Sea.
Hill’s film endeavors began with Ski Flight (1938), a documentary and instructional film on downhill skiing. Filmed on location at Mt. Rainier in Washington state, and starring skier Otto Lang
Otto Lang (film producer)
Otto Lang , born in Tešanj, Bosnia-Herzegovina, was a skier and pioneer ski instructor in the United States. He founded ski schools on Mount Rainier, Mount Baker and Mount Hood beginning in the 1930s, and as the director of the ski school at Sun Valley became the ski instructor for Hollywood stars...
, the film premiered at Radio City Music Hall
Radio City Music Hall
Radio City Music Hall is an entertainment venue located in New York City's Rockefeller Center. Its nickname is the Showplace of the Nation, and it was for a time the leading tourist destination in the city...
. A second documentary film The Seeing Eye (1939-40) profiled companion animals.
His artistic career was put on hold during WWII when he joined the military serving a variety of roles. He was assigned to a Tank Destroyer Battalion in 1942, and later served as a liaison officer with French forces. He also worked on the military motion picture team creating training films for the Army.
After the war, Hill continued to travel and paint for most of the 1940s. In 1949, he returned to documentary filmmaking with his portrait of American painter Grandma Moses
Grandma Moses
Anna Mary Robertson Moses , better known as "Grandma Moses", was a renowned American folk artist. She is often cited as an example of an individual successfully beginning a career in the arts at an advanced age. Although her family and friends called her either "Mother Moses" or "Grandma Moses,"...
, produced with cinematographer Erika Anderson. The film was nominated for an Academy Award and marked Hill’s creative partnership with Anderson that would produce the feature length documentary, Albert Schweitzer. The film won an Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature of 1957.
Hill made his first “story” film, The Sand Castle made in 1959-60. Inspired by Carl Jung
Carl Jung
Carl Gustav Jung was a Swiss psychiatrist and the founder of Analytical Psychology. Jung is considered the first modern psychiatrist to view the human psyche as "by nature religious" and make it the focus of exploration. Jung is one of the best known researchers in the field of dream analysis and...
and his theories of the subconscious, it was a comedy-fantasy in black and white with a dream sequence in color introducing a novel form of stop-motion animation. Jung’s ideas also motivated the full-length film Open The Door and See All the People (1964). Hill would create numerous notable films during his career that included Schweitzer and Bach, the hand-painted animation shorts: Anticorrida Merry Christmas, The Artist’s Friend, and The Canaries.
In 1971, Hill made his full-length autobiographical film, Film Portrait
Film Portrait
Film Portrait is a full-length autobiographical movie directed by, and about, the life of Minnesotan film-maker and artist, Jerome Hill...
. An especially poignant cinematic work, Film Portrait was created after Hill had been diagnosed with an incurable cancer and was contemplating his legacy as an artist and philanthropist. The work was selected as an outstanding Film of the Year for presentation at the 1972 London Film Festival
London Film Festival
The BFI London Film Festival is the UK's largest public film event, screening more than 300 features, documentaries and shorts from almost 50 countries. The festival, , currently in its 54th year, is run every year in the second half of October under the umbrella of the British Film Institute...
and won the Gold Dukat Prize at the 21st Annual Film Festival in Mannheim.
Jerome Hill’s life and career was largely defined by his support for the arts and humanities on an international level. In 1957 and 1958, he initiated a series of Performing Arts Festivals in Cassis. These festivals presented an array of European theatre professionals and Musicians that Hill helped support financially. In 1964, he founded a philanthropic foundation for the arts and humanities (Avon Foundation), which since 1973 has been known as the Jerome Foundation. He helped fund Film-Makers’ Cinematheque Film Culture
Film Culture
Film Culture was an American film magazine started by Adolfas Mekas and his brother Jonas Mekas in 1954, and is now defunct. It is best known for exploring the avant-garde cinema in depth, but also published articles on all aspects of cinema, including Hollywood films.Past contributors include...
magazine, and Cahiers du cinéma
Cahiers du cinéma
Cahiers du Cinéma is an influential French film magazine founded in 1951 by André Bazin, Jacques Doniol-Valcroze and Joseph-Marie Lo Duca. It developed from the earlier magazine Revue du Cinéma involving members of two Paris film clubs — Objectif 49 and...
, and was involved in the Spoleto Festival in 1961 and the International Exposition of the New American Cinema.
After meeting with avant-garde filmmaker Jonas Mekas
Jonas Mekas
Jonas Mekas is a Lithuanian-born American filmmaker, writer, and curator who has often been called "the godfather of American avant-garde cinema." His work has been exhibited in museums and festivals across Europe and America.-Biography:...
about the possibility of writing an article for one of his film publications, Mekas presented Hill with the idea of a museum devoted to the preservation and exhibition of film as art. This vision eventually became Anthology Film Archives
Anthology Film Archives
__notoc__Anthology Film Archives is a film archive and theater located at 32 Second Avenue on the corner of East Second Street in the East Village neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City devoted to the preservation and exhibition of experimental film. It is the only non-profit organization of its...
, and would be considered Hill’s most important contribution to the cultivation of the visual arts. Realized through Hill’s financial and creative support, Anthology Film Archives opened on November 30, 1970 at Joseph Papp’s Theater. Hill was heavily involved with the organization up until his death in 1972. His work continues to be recognized for its importance to the history of cinema.
His short film La Cartomancienne (1932
1932 in film
-Events:*Cary Grant's film career begins*Katharine Hepburn's film career begins*Shirley Temple's film career begins*Disney released Flowers and Trees, the first cartoon in three-strip Technicolor film.*Santa, first sound film made in Mexico released....
) was restored for the DVD collection Unseen Cinema: Early American Avant Garde Film 1894-1941
Unseen Cinema: Early American Avant Garde Film 1894-1941
Unseen Cinema: Early American Avant Garde Film 1894-1941 is a 7-disc and 19-hour DVD retrospective released by Image Entertainment in October 2005, and which includes some of the earliest American experimental film. It includes the work of:...
released in October 2005.
His most famous work was Film Portrait
Film Portrait
Film Portrait is a full-length autobiographical movie directed by, and about, the life of Minnesotan film-maker and artist, Jerome Hill...
(1972
1972 in film
The year 1972 in film involved some significant events.-Top grossing films :- Awards :Academy Awards:*Avanti!, directed by Billy Wilder, starring Jack Lemmon and Juliet MillsB...
), an autobiographical
Autobiography
An autobiography is a book about the life of a person, written by that person.-Origin of the term:...
piece about the artist's own life, which won numerous awards and is one of only 450 films nominated for the National Film Registry
National Film Registry
The National Film Registry is the United States National Film Preservation Board's selection of films for preservation in the Library of Congress. The Board, established by the National Film Preservation Act of 1988, was reauthorized by acts of Congress in 1992, 1996, 2005, and again in October 2008...
at the Library of Congress
Library of Congress
The Library of Congress is the research library of the United States Congress, de facto national library of the United States, and the oldest federal cultural institution in the United States. Located in three buildings in Washington, D.C., it is the largest library in the world by shelf space and...
.
Hill had a Chalet
Chalet
A chalet , also called Swiss chalet, is a type of building or house, native to the Alpine region, made of wood, with a heavy, gently sloping roof with wide, well-supported eaves set at right angles to the front of the house.-Definition and origin:...
built at Sugar Bowl Ski Resort
Sugar Bowl Ski Resort
Sugar Bowl is a ski and snowboard area in northern Placer County near Norden, California along the Donner Pass of the Sierra Nevada, approximately west of Reno, Nevada on Interstate 80, that opened on December 15, 1939...
and while living there, paid for and operated "The Magic Carpet", the first aerial tramway
Gondola lift
A gondola lift is a type of aerial lift, normally called a cable car, which is supported and propelled by cables from above. It consists of a loop of steel cable that is strung between two stations, sometimes over intermediate supporting towers. The cable is driven by a bullwheel in a terminal,...
on the west coast.
Filmography
- 1937 Ski Flight
- 1950 Grandma Moses
- 1957 Albert Schweitzer
- 1961 The Sand Castle
- 1964 Open the Door and see all the People
- 1965 Death in the Forenoon
- 1969 Canaries
- 1972 Film Portrait
External links
- The Jerome Hill Papers are available for research use at the Minnesota Historical Society.
- Jerome Foundation
- Jerome Hill Papers Online
- Dutiful Son: Louis W. Hill Sr. Book, Book about Louis W. Hill Sr., son and successor of empire builder James J. Hill, Father of Jerome Hill at Ramsey County Historical Society.