Panorama View, Street Car Motor Room

Cameraman Billy Bitzer hit on a neat idea when he decided to strap a camera (or himself) to an overhead crane and film the activity on the factory floor below as he glided over them. As filmmakers have learned since, there's something inherently dramatic about this shot which means it is timeless in many ways. At times this vision of corporate industrial manufacturing in action is akin to a glimpse into hell. Health and Safety would have a field day here - at one point a number of men seem to suddenly scatter as if to avoid something dangerous. There seems to be little demarcation of the areas in which different activities take place; all the machines are jammed into cramped areas. Men hammer objects and you can only imagine the noise, smell and heat in such a place.

Panorama View, Street Car Motor Room (1904)

During the early 1900's Westinghouse Electric & Manufacturing Company made a number of industrial films that allowed the public to see what went on inside their buildings. Needless to say, these films didn't contain any sort of plot but some might find them interesting.

Of all the films made by the Westinghouse Company, the ones with Billy Bitzer behind the camera were the most fascinating since they usually involved crane shots, which were still rather new at the time. This one here has the camera placed on a crane and we go down the motor room as the title clearly states. The film is certainly refreshing when you compare it to the majority of the series thanks in large part to the camera moving and actually giving us more than the same thing to look at. It was fascinating getting to see how the work was done as well as what the people were wearing back in the day. Obviously, it was easy to see who had money in their pockets and who didn't.