A Short History of the Highrise 2013
Distributed by National Film Board of Canada, 1123 Broadway, Suite 307, New York, NY 10010; 800-542-2164
Produced by the New York Times and the National Film Board of Canada
Directed by Katerina Cizek
Streaming , color, 17 min. total
High School - General Adult
Art, Architecture
Date Entered: 06/07/2016
Reviewed by Marsha Taichman, Cornell UniversityA Short History of the Highrise is comprised of four short documentaries exploring the history of highrise buildings. The series was made collaboratively by the National Film Board of Canada and The New York Times. The first three films are composed of images from the New York Times’ archives, and user-submitted images are used as the basis of the final film, which deals with a concept (Home) rather than building elements (Mud, Concrete and Glass). The first three films are narrated by three different speakers (musicians Feist and Cold Specks, as well as the director, Katerina Cizek) and the final film is accompanied by a Patrick Watson song. I would have liked the continuity of a single voice in the films, but the ones chosen are measured and melodic.
Mud traces the historical roots of the highrise, from the Babel to the New York City tenements buildings. Archival photographs are intermixed with charming animations of architectural drawings, figurative paintings and landscapes. The work itself is very graphic and fast, but the experience can be lengthened by exploring the interactive elements in each segment, which incorporate additional imagery, history and facts.
Concrete explores how residential high-rises and public housing attempt to foster social equality in the 20th century. The vertical housing movement is discussed, as is the evolution of lower cost dwellings. It is the longest film and extremely engaging.
Rhyming is occasionally used in the monologues, and I found it to be distracting. For example, “see” is rhymed with “vertically,” in the first line of Glass, which examines the present day proliferation of luxury condos and the growing segregation between the rich and poor.
Home is a compilation of images related to living in highrises submitted by New York Times readers worldwide. Watson’s soundtrack is gorgeous, and provides melancholy overtones for a variety of photographs. The soundtrack crescendos dramatically near the end of the film and the music does not always suit the images that it accompanies.
A Short History of the Highrise is a wonderful concept that will serve to educate and entertain viewers for many years to come.
Awards
- 2014 Peabody Award
- 2014 Sheffield Innovation Award from the 2014 Sheffield Doc/Fest
- 2014 News and Documentary Emmy Award
- 2015 Best Original Program or Series produced for Digital Media - Non-Fiction at the 3rd Canadian Screen Awards