Alf Ottar Gladtvet (September 1, 1890 – June 9, 1962) was a

Norwegian Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to: *Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe * Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway * Demographics of Norway *The Norwegian language, including ...

filmmaker and pioneer in the film industry. He made documentaries, feature films, commercials, animated films, newsreels. and many short films. He also worked as a cinema machinist and cinema director.

Family

Gladtvet was born in

Kristiania Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...

(now Oslo), Norway. He was the son of the hardware dealer and cinema owner Carl Otto Severin Gladtvet (1863–1918) and Agnes Elisabet Roshauw (1862–?). He was married to the actress Solveig Gladtvet (1903–1951).

Feature films

Gladtvet directed two feature films in the 1910s. The first feature film was the western-inspired '' Overfaldet paa postaapnerens datter eller Kampen om pengebrevet'' from 1913. Gladtvet was only partly involved in the pioneering days of Norwegian cinema, and he sometimes acted as

Peter Lykke-Seest Peter Lykke-Seest (26 September 1868 – 4 February 1948) was a Norwegian poet, novelist, playwright, non-fiction writer, script writer and film director. He was born in Christiania as a son of wholesaler Jens Peter Seest and Caroline Christ ...

's photographer. Already in 1918, however, Gladtvet directed his second feature film, ''

Revolutionens datter ''Revolutionens datter'' (The Daughter of the Revolution) is a Norwegian silent film from 1918 directed by Ottar Gladtvet. It has been restored and preserved. Plot The film tells the story of Albert Fjeld, a worker at a shipyard, and Claire Staa ...

''. The film premiered at Cirkus Verdensteater in Kristiania on October 14, but it was not a financial success. The press, on the other hand, saw the film as a positive contribution to Norwegian cinematography.

Travel and documentary films

Gladtvet made his first documentary film, ''Kristiania'', in 1912; it was a collection of images of various places in the capital. In his first years as a photographer, he was associated with the family's cinema operation, but in 1922 he established the company Gladtvet Film, which took on all possible film assignments. He was also very involved in film newspaper features and other topical films throughout his photographic career. Gladtvet was greatly responsible for refreshing and promoting Norwegian travel film. His film ''Raumabanen – Norges nyeste turistbane'' (Raumabanen: Norway's Newest Tourist Railway) from 1925 depicts scenic surroundings, follows the tourists on board the train and on a mountain tour, and also includes characteristic women in

traditional clothing A folk costume (also regional costume, national costume, traditional garment, or traditional regalia) expresses an identity through costume, which is usually associated with a geographic area or a period of time in history. It can also indicat ...

at the end of the film. These women in folk clothing became his hallmark in travel film. In 1939, Ottar Gladtvet made a full-length documentary film that documented the Norwegian royal couple on their journey to the United States: '' Til Vesterheimen'' (To Vesterheim). It was produced by Oslo Kinematografer and was first shown as short films in cinemas in Oslo. It chronologically follows the royal couple's journey through the country as they meet many famous people, such as

Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...

Sonja Henie Sonja Henie (8 April 1912 – 12 October 1969) was a Norway, Norwegian figure skating, figure skater and film star. She was a three-time List of Olympic medalists in figure skating, Olympic champion (Figure skating at the 1928 Winter Olympics, ...

, and

Henry Ford Henry Ford (July 30, 1863 – April 7, 1947) was an American industrialist, business magnate, founder of the Ford Motor Company, and chief developer of the assembly line technique of mass production. By creating the first automobile that mi ...

. In addition to these films, Gladtvet also made exotic travel films, such as ''

Blandt Syd-Amerikas urskovsindianere ''Blandt Syd-Amerikas urskovsindianere'' (''Among the Primeval Forest Indians of South America'') is a Swedish–Norwegian documentary film about Gustaf Bolinder's ethnographic expedition to South America from 1920 to 1921. The film was shot by O ...

'' (Among the Primeval Forest Indians of South America) from 1921.

Filmography

As director

*1912: ''Kristiania'' *1913: '' Overfaldet paa postaapnerens datter eller Kampen om pengebrevet'' *1918: ''

'' *1921: ''

'' *1924: ''Mary og Doug besøker Kristiania'' *1924: ''Mary og Doug besøker Stockholm'' *1924: ''Raumabanen – Norges nyeste turistbane'' *1925: ''Bergensbanen'' *1925: ''Christiania Spigerverk'' *1925: ''Fra gullkysten til Freia'' *1926: ''Tyveriet fra Bagdad'' *1927: ''Luna sæpen'' *1927: ''Fiinbeck har røm'' *1927: ''Det mystiske kjøkken (noget at glæde seg til)'' *1930: ''Fra sneblokaden på høifjeldet'' *1930: ''Med Dovrebanen til Otta'' *1930: ''Sildebyen Haugesund'' *1930: ''Sonja Henie'' *1950: ''Stavanger – St. Svithuns by''

As cinematographer

*1913: '' Overfaldet paa postaapnerens datter eller Kampen om pengebrevet'' *1917: '' Unge hjerter'' *1917: ''

De forældreløse ''De forældreløse'' ( en, The Orphans}) was a 1917 Norwegian drama film written and directed by Peter Lykke-Seest Peter Lykke-Seest (26 September 1868 – 4 February 1948) was a Norwegian poet, novelist, playwright, non-fiction writer, scr ...

'' *1918: ''

Lodsens datter ''Lodsens datter'' (The Pilot's Daughter) is a Norwegian film from 1918 directed by Peter Lykke-Seest. It is considered lost. The work was part of a genre of "daughter" films in fashion at the time in Scandinavian cinema, with similar titles inc ...

'' *1918: ''

'' *1921: ''Det nye år?'' (also producer) *1921: ''

'' *1924: ''Raumabanen – Norges nyeste turistbane'' *1925: ''Bergensbanen'' *1925: ''Christiania Spigerverk'' *1925: ''Fra gullkysten til Freia'' *1929: '' Norge, vårt Norge, i toner og billeder'' *1930: ''Med Dovrebanen til Otta'' *1930: ''Sildebyen Haugesund'' *1930: ''Sonja Henie'' *1936: '' Vi vil oss et land...'' *1939: '' Til Vesterheimen'' *1942: ''

Trysil-Knut ''Trysil-Knut'' is a Norwegian film from 1942. Rasmus Breistein directed this skiing melodrama during the German occupation of Norway. It tells the story of the legendary skier Knut from Trysil, an ardent patriot at the beginning of the 1800s wh ...

'' *1943: ''

Bergen Bergen (), historically Bjørgvin, is a city and municipality in Vestland county on the west coast of Norway. , its population is roughly 285,900. Bergen is the second-largest city in Norway. The municipality covers and is on the peninsula of ...

'' *1944: ''

Ti gutter og en gjente ''Ti gutter og en gjente'' (Ten Boys and a Girl) is a Norwegian children's film from 1944 directed by Alexey Zaitzow. Plot The film is about ten boys that try to help a street musician collect money for an accordion. The film is considered one o ...

As screenwriter

*1913: '' Overfaldet paa postaapnerens datter eller Kampen om pengebrevet'' *1918: ''

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gladtvet, Ottar 1890 births 1962 deaths Norwegian film directors