1. CRHS IB Film 2014: Director Focus
John Ford
CRHS IB Film 2014: Director Focus

2. Lance Phillips, Mykell Sloan, Breanna Balzarini
John Ford: Early Life
Lance Phillips, Mykell Sloan, Breanna Balzarini

3. Brief Bio John Martin Feeney born February 1st, 1894
1914 Working for Brother in Hollywood
Worked way up to directing in 1917
Served in WWII from
Died August 31st, 1973
of stomach cancer

4. Influences directed several Western shorts
D.W. Griffith's Birth of a Nation (1915) would start Ford's fascination
Orson Welles, Citizen Kane (1941)

5. Early Westerns The Tornado (1917) Straight Shooting (1917)
The Iron Horse (1924)
As Westerns began to lose their appeal in late 1920s, John Ford would turn to directing comedies and dramas

6. Early Films (Non-Western)
The Prince of Avenue A (1920)
The Girl in No. 29 (1920)
Up the River (1930)
Ford wouldn't make another western until 1939
with Stagecoach.

7. Ford's Style Used a fine balance of action and romance
Complimented this with comedic digressions
Used beautiful sceneries shot on-location
Used quiet and personalized moments in his characters
Included authentic and specific details to plot setting or time period
4/20/2017

8. John Ford: Directing Style
Jonathan Haugen and Nate Colven

9. Characters Protagonists were stereotypically Americanized.
Usually tough and rugged character.
Usually outsiders, separated from society
Native American characters were always separated and ostracized from society.
Preferred to create characters in his own image, emotionally tough and unwavering in their opinions.

10. Shot Selection
Long shots featuring natural surroundings (primarily western)
Focuses shots around making characters appear strong or weak in comparison to the environment.

11. Shot Selection Cont.
Prefers medium or long static shots as opposed to close-ups.
Although he did not usually use moving shots, Ford was famous for his use of tracking shots.

12. On-Set Attitude Focused on discipline and efficiency
Gave actors in his movies minimal instruction , preferring to instead to demonstrate what he wanted the actors to do.
Reacted very harshly whenever an actor made a mistake, berating and insulting them.

13. Symbolism
Focused on western staples such as wagons and trains, starting films with a vehicle leaving or arriving.
Used interior lights in an Expressionist style.
Used the act of lighting a cigarette or matches to great effect.

14. John Ford: Directing Career/ Filmography
By Brandon Ganaden and Tanner Soom

15. Timeline of Career Began his Career in California in 1914.
Followed in footsteps of older brother Francis Ford
Jack Ford started out in his brother's films
an assistant, handyman, stuntman and occasional actor frequently doubling for his brother
During his first decade as a director Ford honed his craft
dozens of features (including many westerns) but fewer than a dozen of the more than sixty silent films he made between 1917 and 1928
Ford was one of the pioneer directors of sound films
he shot Fox's first song sung on screen, for his film Mother Machree (1928) of which only three of the original seven reels survive

16. Timeline of Career (Cont.)
Stagecoach (1939) was Ford's first western since 3 Bad Men in 1926, and it was his first with sound.
Reputedly Orson Welles watched Stagecoach forty times in preparation for making Citizen Kane. It remains one of the most admired and imitated of all Hollywood movies.
Made Documentaries for the Navy Documentary.
Ford returned to the big screen with The Searchers
the only Western he made between 1950 and 1959, which is now widely regarded as not only one of his best films, but also regarded by many as the greatest western ever made.
His last completed work was Chesty: A Tribute to a Legend
A documentary on the most decorated U.S. Marine, General Lewis B. Puller, with narration by John Wayne

17. Western Films Stagecoach
The Searchers
Cheyenne Autumn
How the West was won
The Horse Soldiers
The Long Gay Line
Mogambo
The Fugitive
Fort Apache
At the Front
The Long Voyage Home
Four Son’s
Famous for his most popular Westerns including Stage Coach, The Searchers, and the Man Who Shot Liberty Valance.
Especially in his Westerns John Ford was a pioneer of Location shooting and long shot which frames his characters against a vast harsh and rugged natural terrain.

18. Other Films
Ford was noted for his work on dramas other than the Westerns he was initially highly regarded for, and directed more than a few romance movies in the prime of his directing.
Directed Young Mr. Lincoln, nominated for an academy award.
Also directed The Grapes of Wrath, another historical drama highly regarded in his directing ability
How Green Was My Valley, won five Academy Awards for directing here as well.
The Battle of Midway won for documentary.

19. John Ford: Awards & Honors
By: Leo Thom
Brandon Davis
Connor Mishler

20. Award Timeline Became very active during late Silent Era
No awards for silent films
Prominent director in “Talkies” era
Started to win awards consistently
Post-“talkies” Era
Won bulk of awards in this Era
End of Career/Death
Won multiple awards of recognition

21. Academy Awards Best Director Best Picture The Quiet Man (1952)
How Green Was My Valley (1941)
The Grapes of Wrath (1940)
The Informer (1935)
Was Nominated for Stagecoach (1939)
Best Picture
Was Nominated for The Quiet Man (1952)

22. Golden Globes
Won the Special Pioneer award in the motion picture industry.
Nominated for Best Director (The Quiet Man, 1952)

23. Other Notable Awards Life Achievement Award (1973)
Blue Ribbon Award (1963)
Multiple DGA Awards ( )
Founder’s Award (1997)
NBR Award (1958)

24. Walk of Fame Ford is honored with the inclusion in the “Walk of Fame”
(1960)
When he died in 1973, he was honored by the American Film Institute with the “Life Achievement Award”.

25. John Ford: Politics & Influence
Casey Decker
Ian David

26. Politics Began his career with leftist leanings
Roosevelt supporter
Leader in the pro-union movement
Helped found anti-Nazi/fascist and pro-progressive/liberal organizations
Early movies like Grapes of Wrath considered by some to be leftist
Later shifted to the right
Major supporter of Richard Nixon
Overall political philosophy never really clear, likely intentionally
“The truth about my life is nobody's damn business but my own”
Refused to truly answer questions on the political meanings of his films

27. McCarthyism in the Directors Guild of America
C.B. DeMille, director of Cleopatra and The Ten Commandments, organized an anti-communist DGA faction
Tried to make members of the Guild sign a loyalty oath
Made accusations against the Guild’s President of communist sympathy
Ford spoke up against DeMille and called the whole ordeal “laughable”
Guild members realized how ridiculous the situation was and voted to end it

28. Ireland Irish heritage
Father was a Democratic party leader in Maine, Irish immigrant
Visited Ireland during the Irish War of Independence
1921
Had cousins fighting in the IRA, which he became a supporter of
Eventually forced out of country by the British
Remained a supporter of the IRA throughout his career, channeling money to the organization

29. Influences
Joined Hollywood at a young age, began as stuntman and actor
Experience as an actor likely played role in one of his signature traits: emphasis on character development
Famous for taking the often one-dimensional Western genre and making it complex
Ford’s complex politics also influenced the complexity of his films: not everything is so black and white
Joined the Navy during World War II
Continued making movies in the form of documentaries
Won awards for some of these documentaries

30. Influences
At start of his career, most of Hollywood was not focusing on lighting or setting
Ford influenced by German filmmaking style, which highlighted creative lighting and the use of shadows
Became known for his artistic lighting
Also used appealing and prominent backgrounds for his Westerns
Filmed outdoors, used valleys and mountains in the southwest
Skilled at enhancing visuals, making them interesting
Monument Valley in the southwest was one of Ford’s favorite shooting locations, helped define his visual style.

31. The History of “Western” Films
Bryan McCarthy, Damon Day

32. Origin of western films
Western films were being produced near the end of the Western Expansion era (1860’s)
A lot of early western films were representations of conflicts and wars during Western Expansion
Westerners did not have the most positive views of American frontier due to the hardships and conflicts
Western films shined a positive light on the American Frontier with stories of Heroes and triumph

33. Evolution of Western 1. Expanding Westward (journey/adventure)
2. Establishing civilization (opportunity/law)
3. Conflict with Native Americans
4. Horse/cowboy stories

34. Why we watched them Escapism Curiosity Moral ambiguity
During the depression era, western films were used as an escape from society
Emotionally beneficial to see the “good guy always win”
Curiosity
Curiosity led to interest as the western genre grew due to popularity in the fictional, glamorized stories of life on the frontier
Moral ambiguity
Some films held room for debate on the moral boundaries that define a character as good or bad
“Shane” (1953)
“High Noon” (1952)

35. Role of John Ford
One of the first Western directors to evolve from the silent era
Embodied the popular, stereotypical “good guy” in numerous western films
He contributed to the popularization of the western genre through his notable films that became hits
“Stagecoach”
“The Searchers”

36. Characteristics of Western Films
The western genre is mainly an American genre that represents U.S. history around 1860 – 1910.
During Western expansion
Elements/Themes
Primary civilization (savagery/lawlessness)
Culture vs Nature
Community vs Individual
Settlers vs “Indians”
Traditional Western Hero

37. Works Cited
Franklin, Richard. "John Ford." Senses of Cinema RSS. N.p., 21 July Web. 13 Feb
Grost, Michael E. "The Films of John Ford." Classic Films and Television. N.p., 6 Mar Web. 13 Feb
Levy, Bill. John Ford: A Bio-Bibliography. Westport: Greenwood, Print.

38. Works Cited
Lindsay Anderson, Never Apologise: The Collected Writings, London: Plexus, Republication of "Meeting in Dublin with John Ford: The Quiet Man", Sequence 14, 1952.
Lindsay Anderson, About John Ford, London: Plexus, 1981, 1999 edition.
Peter Bogdanovich, John Ford, Berkeley: University of California Press, 1967, revised 1978.
Peter Cowie, John Ford and the American West, New York: Harry Abrams Inc., 2004.

39. Works Cited www.IMDB.com
Lindsay Anderson, About John Ford, London: Plexus, 1981, 1999 edition.

40. Works Cited
Martynuska, Malgorzata. “The Evolution of the Western Genre Resulting From Social Changes in the USA.” Zeszyty Naukowe University Wed-pdf. February 13, 2014.
“The Evolution of the Western Genre.” Filmslate magazine Web. February 13, 2014.