Hans Theyer (1884–1955) was an

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

cinematographer The cinematographer or director of photography (sometimes shortened to DP or DOP) is the person responsible for the recording of a film, television production, music video or other live-action piece. The cinematographer is the chief of the camera ...

. From 1907, Theyer travelled around the world as a newsreel cameraman for

Pathé Pathé SAS (; styled as PATHÉ!) is a French major film production and distribution company, owning a number of cinema chains through its subsidiary Pathé Cinémas and television networks across Europe. It is the name of a network of Fren ...

. Theyer’s work took him as far as China, Alaska, the

South Sea Islands Polynesia ( , ) is a subregion of Oceania, made up of more than 1,000 islands scattered over the central and southern Pacific Ocean. The indigenous people who inhabit the islands of Polynesia are called Polynesians. They have many things in ...

, Africa and the Middle East. In January 1914, Theyer was employed as a cinematographer for the German Messter film studio. At the outbreak of

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

he was assigned by Messter to the German War Office to produce films on the German war effort. In January 1915, Theyer was sent to the Western Front and to occupied Belgium to record a film together with American film correspondent Albert K. Dawson. Parts of this footage have been located in the film archives of the Library of Congress by film historians Ron van Dopperen and Cooper C. Graham while researching their book ''American Cinematographers in the Great War''. In 1916, Theyer returned to Vienna and joined producer

Alexander Kolowrat Count Alexander " Sascha" Joseph von Kolowrat-Krakowsky (29 January 1886 – 4 December 1927) was an Austrian film producer of Bohemian-Czech descent from the House of Kolowrat. A pioneer of Austrian cinema, he founded the first major film st ...

who had set up film propaganda productions for the Austrian war effort.

Selected filmography

* '' Serge Panine'' (1922) * '' A Vanished World'' (1922) * '' Masters of the Sea'' (1922) * '' Miss Madame'' (1923) * '' Children of the Revolution'' (1923) * ''

The Moon of Israel ''The Moon of Israel'' (, or "The Queen of the Slaves") is a 1924 Austrian epic film. It was directed by Mihaly Kertész (later Michael Curtiz). The script was written by Ladislaus Vajda, based on H. Rider Haggard's 1918 novel '' Moon of Israe ...

'' (1924) * '' The Revenge of the Pharaohs'' (1925) * '' The Master of Death'' (1926) * ''

Der Rosenkavalier (''The Knight of the Rose'' or ''The Rose-Bearer''), Op. 59, is a comic opera in three acts by Richard Strauss to an original German libretto by Hugo von Hofmannsthal. It is loosely adapted from Louvet de Couvrai's novel ''Les amours du cheva ...

'' (1926) * '' The Family without Morals'' (1927) * ''

The Criminal of the Century ''The Criminal of the Century'' () is a 1928 German silent crime film directed by Max Obal and starring Luciano Albertini, Gritta Ley, and Hans Albers. It was shot at the Staaken Studios in Berlin. The film's art direction was by Jacek Rotmil ...

'' (1928) * ''

The Woman of Yesterday and Tomorrow ''The Woman of Yesterday and Tomorrow'' () is a 1928 Austrian silent film, silent drama film directed by Heinz Paul and starring Arlette Marchal, Vivian Gibson, Livio Pavanelli.Klapdor p.241 It is based on the novel of the same title by Alfred Sch ...

'' (1928) * ''

Ship of Girls A ship is a large vessel that travels the world's oceans and other navigable waterways, carrying cargo or passengers, or in support of specialized missions, such as defense, research and fishing. Ships are generally distinguished from boats, ...

'' (1929) * ''

Archduke John Archduke John of Austria (, ; (or simply ''Nadvojvoda Janez''); 20 January 1782 – 11 May 1859), a member of the House of Habsburg-Lorraine, was an Austrian field marshal and imperial regent (''Reichsverweser'') of the short-lived German Empi ...

'' (1929) * ''

Devotion Devotion or Devotions may refer to: Religion * Anglican devotions, private prayers and practices used by Anglican Christians * Buddhist devotion, commitment to religious observance * Catholic devotions, customs, rituals, and practices of worship ...

'' (1929) * ''

The Midnight Waltz ''The Midnight Waltz'' () is a 1929 Austrian silent film directed by Heinz Paul and starring Elisabeth Pinajeff, André Mattoni and Gritta Ley.Büttner & Dewald p.454 The film's sets were designed by the art director Hans Ledersteger. The plot wa ...

'' (1929) * ''

Kult ciała Kult or KULT may refer to: * Kult (band), Polish rock band * Kult (card game), collectible card game * Kult (role-playing game), role-playing game * '' Kult: The Temple of Flying Saucers'', 1989 video game * '' Kult: Heretic Kingdoms'', a 2004 vi ...

'' (1930) * ''

The Deed of Andreas Harmer ''The Deed of Andreas Harmer'' () is a 1930 Austrian silent crime film directed by Alfred Deutsch-German and starring Oskar Marion, Tala Birell and Attila Hörbiger.Von Dassanowsky p.40 The film's sets were designed by the art director Emil Step ...

'' (1930) * ''

Adventures on the Lido ''Adventures on the Lido'' () is a 1933 Austrian musical comedy film directed by Richard Oswald and starring Alfred Piccaver, S.Z. Sakall and Nora Gregor. Because Oswald was a Jew, both this and another film of his were denied permission to b ...

'' (1933) * ''

The Fairy Doll ''The Fairy Doll'' () is a 1936 Austrian romance film directed by E.W. Emo and starring Adele Sandrock, Magda Schneider and Paul Hörbiger. It is based on the 1888 ballet work '' Die Puppenfee'' composed by Josef Bayer, owing more to the score ...

'' (1936)

Bibliography

* Jung, Uli & Schatzberg, Walter. ''Beyond Caligari: The Films of Robert Wiene''. Berghahn Books, 1999.

References

External links

* 1884 births 1955 deaths Austrian cinematographers Film people from Vienna {{Austria-film-bio-stub