BARON CODELLI AND THE LEGEND OF TARZAN is a feature-length documentary film about a little-known film project of the renowned Slovenian inventor Baron Anton Codelli. From 1910 to 1915 Codelli built nine hundred-meter high radiotelegraphy transmitters for the German Telefunken Company in Togo, Africa, making it possible in 1914, for the first time in history, to establish a wireless connection between this German colony in Africa and Berlin. “In 1912, Togo saw the arrival of a film crew led by the adventurer and wild animal hunter Hans Schomburgk, who on that occasion was making a documentary on the African wilderness. Schomburgk’s blurry recordings and underdeveloped films resulted in him losing his sponsor from Hamburg. Codelli, being an inventor, did not hesitate to offer him technical assistance. Counting on high profits from the emerging film industry, he entered into a contract with Schomburgk, becoming the producer of the first feature-length film ever shot on the African continent. Schomburgk then travelled to London, where he hired the British cameraman James Hodgson. The screenplay for the film The White Goddess of Wangora, on the other hand, was written by the Baroness Rozalija Codelli – the Baron’s mother. The story is about a young girl who washes up on the shores of Africa after a shipwreck. The baby is found by a local black tribe, who raise her and worship her as a Goddess. The tribe is later discovered by a white adventurer, who falls in love with the girl, and saves her. The leading role was performed by the German actress Meg Gehrts, making her the first white actress to act in a film shot in Africa. Most likely, this story also served as inspiration to Hodgson’s friend Edgar Rice Burroughs, who published his novel Tarzan of the Apes in 1914.”
| Producer: |
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| Director: |
Miha Čelar |
| Script: |
Miha Čelar |
| Camera: |
Uroš Škorič, Marko Ružič, Janez Štucin
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| Editing: |
Iztok H. Šuc in Aleksandar Stanojević
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| Director of photography: |
Rožle Bregar |
Miha Čelar
Scriptwriter, director and head-producer
Documentary filmography:
1. SLOVENIAN SCHOOL FOR HIMALAYAN GUIDES IN NEPAL, 2000
2. FILM JURNEY OF BOŽIDAR JAKAC– Documentary, made from restored old 8 and 9-mm short films from beginning of 19-th century, 2001
4. WHO’S AFRAID OF DR. RUGELJ 2010 – Documentary of a controversial Slovene psychiatrist, 2009.
5. HITLER’S BIBLE The documentary about Nazi’s plans to establish a neo-pagan cult temple in Bled, during the WW II, 2011.
6. Creative documentary portrait A BEAUTIFUL MIND A documentary of a Slovenian bodiless psychiatrist Dr. Jože Felc, 2014.
7. TATJANA IN MOTHERLAND – Animated documentary essay about Slovenian man who are by majority mama’s boys, 2014. – Selected for 18 Int. Documentary film festivals; DOK Seeds 2015, East Silver 2015, Noida IFFF 2015 (New Delhi) -Best Editing Award, Doc and Short INFF 2015 (Jakarta) – Golden Award, Nancy Lorain IFF 2015 – Grand Prix du Festival, El Ojo Cojo IDF 2016 –Best Documental..
8. REINVENTING THE WHEEL – Crossmeda historical documentary about 5200-years-old wheel, found in Ljubljana marsh in 2004. (Short animated film, Feature documentary, comic book and APP), 2015.
9. CODELLI – Party animated documentary portrait about Slovenian inventor who in 1911 produced the first feature film ever, filmed in Africa, 2017.- IRIS 2018 -Best SLO Doku Cinematoraphy Award, Master DOC 2019–Best History Docu, Alive DOC 2018–Best History/ Biography Docu
10. GOODNIGHT, IRENE / Scriptwriter & producer; A controversial love story of Avguštin and Irene who is being unconscious for last 22 years, 2019.
11. KAMEELEONI – The Beatles of former Yugoslavia; A musical documentary about five Slovenian teenagers which made Tito’s Yugoslavia go rock n roll, 2020
12.SONS OF BORA – A story about the return of the Karst shepherd to the ancient border between man and wolf, 2021
