About
Robert Gardner
Overview
Robert Gardner was the Director of the Film Study Center at Harvard University from 1957 to 1997. He is known for his work in the field of non-fiction film.
He is an internationally renowned filmmaker and author whose works have entered the permanent canon of non-fiction filmmaking. Some of his most prominent films include Dead Birds (1964), a lyric account of the Dugum Dani, a Stone Age society at one time living an isolated existence in the Highlands of the former Netherlands New Guinea (Gardner was the leader of the Peabody Museum-sponsored expedition to study the Dani in 1961-62); Rivers of Sand (1974), a social commentary on the Hamar people of southwestern Ethiopia; and Forest of Bliss (1985), a cinematic essay on the ancient city of Benares, India, which explores the ceremonies, rituals, and industries associated with death and regeneration.
Gardner’s films have received numerous awards, including the Robert J. Flaherty Award for best nonfiction film (twice); the Golden Lion for Best Film at the Florence Film Festival (three times); and First Prizes at the Trento, USA Dallas, Melbourne, Nuoro, EarthWatch, Athens, and San Francisco film festivals. His films have been invited to Festivals throughout the world including Jerusalem, Bergen, London, Munich, Toronto, Montreal, Margaret Mead, Marseilles, Locarno, Chicago and Cinema du Réel.
Known for
Acting |
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2000 | Looking at Forest of Bliss | Actor | Himself | N/A N/A |
1979 | Q'eros: The Shape of Survival | Actor | Narrator | 59 Average |
1972 | Screening Room | Actor | Himself | N/A N/A |
1972 | Reality's Invisible | Actor | Himself | 59 Average |
1963 | Dead Birds | Actor | Narrator | 59 Average |
1960 | Flaherty and Film | Actor | Self - Host | N/A N/A |
Directing |
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2013 | Dead Birds Re-Encountered | Directing | Director | N/A N/A |
2000 | Looking at Forest of Bliss | Directing | Director | N/A N/A |
1993 | Dancing with Miklos | Directing | Director | N/A N/A |
1988 | Ika Hands | Directing | Director | N/A N/A |
1986 | Forest of Bliss | Directing | Director | 59 Average |
1985 | Sons of Shiva | Directing | Director | N/A N/A |
1980 | Deep Hearts | Directing | Director | N/A N/A |
1976 | Altar of Fire | Directing | Director | N/A N/A |
1974 | Rivers of Sand | Directing | Director | 59 Average |
1973 | Mark Tobey Abroad | Directing | Director | N/A N/A |
1972 | Screening Room | Directing | Director | N/A N/A |
1972 | Land-Divers of Melanesia | Directing | Director | N/A N/A |
1965 | Marathon | Directing | Director | N/A N/A |
1963 | Dead Birds | Directing | Director | 59 Average |
1957 | The Hunters | Directing | Director | 59 Average |
1952 | Mark Tobey | Directing | Director | N/A N/A |
1951 | Blunden Harbour | Directing | Director | N/A N/A |
Writing |
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1988 | Ika Hands | Writing | Writer | N/A N/A |
1974 | Rivers of Sand | Writing | Writer | 59 Average |
1963 | Dead Birds | Writing | Writer | 59 Average |
Production |
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1986 | Forest of Bliss | Production | Producer | 59 Average |
1981 | The Shepherds of Berneray | Production | Executive Producer | N/A N/A |
1973 | Mark Tobey Abroad | Production | Producer | N/A N/A |
1970 | The Nuer | Production | Producer | 59 Average |
1951 | Dances of the Kwakiutl | Production | Producer | N/A N/A |
Sound |
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1980 | Deep Hearts | Sound | Sound Recordist | N/A N/A |
Camera |
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2022 | Expedition Content | Camera | Additional Photography | 59 Average |
1970 | The Nuer | Camera | Additional Photography | 59 Average |
Crew |
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2013 | Dead Birds Re-Encountered | Crew | Cinematography | N/A N/A |
2000 | Pilot Notes: Journals Of A Solitary Aviator | Crew | Cinematography | N/A N/A |
1988 | Ika Hands | Crew | Cinematography | N/A N/A |
1986 | Forest of Bliss | Crew | Cinematography | 59 Average |
1980 | Deep Hearts | Crew | Cinematography | N/A N/A |
1974 | Rivers of Sand | Crew | Cinematography | 59 Average |
1973 | Mark Tobey Abroad | Crew | Cinematography | N/A N/A |
1963 | Dead Birds | Crew | Cinematography | 59 Average |
Editing |
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2013 | Dead Birds Re-Encountered | Editing | Editor | N/A N/A |
1988 | Ika Hands | Editing | Editor | N/A N/A |
1986 | Forest of Bliss | Editing | Editor | 59 Average |
1980 | Deep Hearts | Editing | Editor | N/A N/A |
1974 | Rivers of Sand | Editing | Editor | 59 Average |
1963 | Dead Birds | Editing | Editor | 59 Average |