Shallow well project

Series: Navajos film themselves

Duration: 14

Year Published: 1966

Creator: Museum of Modern Art

Format: 16mm

Color: B&W

Sound: silent

Description: Navajo filmmaker John Nelson documents old and new technologies in this account of the building of a shallow well. A series of shots shows the old pond from which the Navajo used to draw water. After the camera moves around the stagnant pool, the action cuts to the Navajo constructing the well and following the various processes needed for its completion. Intercut are shots of the Navajo reading blueprints, measuring and receiving instructions. Nelson uses the circular pan favored by the Navajo filmmakers, always moving in a sunwise direction. When the job is finished, a Navajo is seen drawing water from the well. The film concludes with trucks driving away from the site.


1 user has this film:
New York Public Library


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