Ottar Gladtvet

Alf Ottar Gladtvet (September 1, 1890 – June 9, 1962) was a Norwegian filmmaker and pioneer in the film industry. He made documentaries, feature films, commercials, animated films, newsreels. and many short films. He also worked as a cinema machinist and cinema director.

Family Gladtvet was born in Kristiania (now Oslo), Norway. He was the son of the hardware dealer and cinema owner Carl Otto Severin Gladtvet (1863–1918) and Agnes Elisabet Roshauw (1862–?). He was married to the actress Solveig Gladtvet (1903–1951). but it was not a financial success. The press, on the other hand, saw the film as a positive contribution to Norwegian cinematography.

Travel and documentary films Gladtvet made his first documentary film, Kristiania, in 1912; it was a collection of images of various places in the capital. In his first years as a photographer, he was associated with the family's cinema operation, but in 1922 he established the company Gladtvet Film, which took on all possible film assignments. He was also very involved in film newspaper features and other topical films throughout his photographic career. Gladtvet was greatly responsible for refreshing and promoting Norwegian travel film. His film Raumabanen – Norges nyeste turistbane (Raumabanen: Norway's Newest Tourist Railway) from 1925 depicts scenic surroundings, follows the tourists on board the train and on a mountain tour, and also includes characteristic women in traditional clothing at the end of the film. These women in folk clothing became his hallmark in travel film. In 1939, Ottar Gladtvet made a full-length documentary film that documented the Norwegian royal couple on their journey to the United States: Til Vesterheimen (To Vesterheim). It was produced by Oslo Kinematografer and was first shown as short films in cinemas in Oslo. It chronologically follows the royal couple's journey through the country as they meet many famous people, such as Franklin D. Roosevelt, Sonja Henie, and Henry Ford. In addition to these films, Gladtvet also made exotic travel films, such as Blandt Syd-Amerikas urskovsindianere (Among the Primeval Forest Indians of South America) from 1921.

Filmography As director

1912: Kristiania 1913: Overfaldet paa postaapnerens datter eller Kampen om pengebrevet 1918: Revolutionens datter 1921: Blandt Syd-Amerikas urskovsindianere 1924: Mary og Doug besøker Kristiania 1924: Mary og Doug besøker Stockholm 1924: Raumabanen – Norges nyeste turistbane 1925: Bergensbanen 1925: Christiania Spigerverk 1925: Fra gullkysten til Freia 1926: Tyveriet fra Bagdad 1927: Luna sæpen 1927: Fiinbeck er rømt 1927: Det mystiske kjøkken (noget at glæde seg til) 1930: Fra sneblokaden på høifjeldet 1930: Med Dovrebanen til Otta 1930: Sildebyen Haugesund 1930: Sonja Henie 1950: Stavanger – St. Svithuns by

As cinematographer

1913: Overfaldet paa postaapnerens datter eller Kampen om pengebrevet 1917: Unge hjerter 1917: De forældreløse 1918: Lodsens datter 1918: Revolutionens datter 1921: Det nye år? (also producer) 1921: Blandt Syd-Amerikas urskovsindianere 1924: Raumabanen – Norges nyeste turistbane 1925: Bergensbanen 1925: Christiania Spigerverk 1925: Fra gullkysten til Freia 1929: Norge, vårt Norge, i toner og billeder 1930: Med Dovrebanen til Otta 1930: Sildebyen Haugesund 1930: Sonja Henie 1936: Vi vil oss et land... 1939: Til Vesterheimen 1942: Trysil-Knut 1943: Bergen 1944: Ti gutter og en gjente

As screenwriter

1913: Overfaldet paa postaapnerens datter eller Kampen om pengebrevet 1918: Revolutionens datter