LODS, JEAN

(1903-1974)

Director. Jean Lods was born in Paris and decided on a career in film from a very early age. He studied at the Conservatoire of Strasbourg before beginning work on his own. Most of Lods's early work as a filmmaker was in short, avant-garde films that walked the line between impressionism and documentary. Among these short films were titles such as24 heures en 30 minutes(1928),Champs-Elysées(1929),La Vie d'un fleuve:La Seine(1931), andLe Mile de Jules Ladoumègue(1932). He also made the filmHistoire d'une ville,Odessa(1934) during a trip to Russia; however that film has been lost.

In addition to his avant-garde poetics, Lods had a passion for things political.He made the overtly politicalLa Marche de la faim(1929) relatively early in his career. His only feature-length film,L'Équipe(1930), was also a politically oriented proletarian film. He was also a member of theAssociation des Écrivains et des Artistes Révolutionnaires(AEAR), which had as stated goals the advancement of a proletarian and naturalist esthetics in literature and film. Other members included Louis Aragon, Luis Bunuel, Jean Giono,Jean Vigo,Léon Moussinac, and Yves Allegret.

Lods's interest in things political led him to make a series of documentaries on politically or culturally iconic figures. Included in this series are the filmsAristide Maillol(1943), about the French sculptor,Hommage à Albert Einstein(1955), on the great scientist,Henri Barbusse(1958), on the writer and fellow AEAR member,Jean Jaurès(1959), on the assassinated Socialist politician, andStéphane Mallarmé(1960), on the avant-garde poet. Apart from directing, Lods also had a bit part inClaude-AutantLara's filmCiboulette(1933).

In addition to his filmmaking, Lods influenced the direction of French cinema through his friendship with Vigo and through his involvement inciné-clubs, which were central to creating an appreciation for the form and to influencing film aesthetics. Vigo, it is said, was inspired to make his classic filmL'Atalante(1934) during a trip down the Seine with Lods while he was filmingLa Vie d'un fleuve:La Seine(1931). He was also instrumental in introducing the French public to Soviet film through the founding of the ciné-club,Les Amis de Spartacus, which was devoted to the purpose. The club was founded by Lods in 1927, along with his brother-in-law, the film critic and theoristLéon Moussinac. Lods also served to inspire other filmmakers through his devotion to the teaching of the art form. He helped found theInstitut des Hautes Études Cinématographiques(IDHEC) with fellow directorMarcel L'Herbier. He also served as the head of instruction at the IDHEC from 1943 until 1952.