The Land

(41:26), b/w, sound
Documentary showing the poor state that American agriculture had fallen into during the Great Depression. Flaherty made this documentary about the dire consequences of 100 years of over-production of cotton just as the USA was entering World War2, & it wasn’t shown then, because it might give the enemy a propaganda advantage. In fact the musical score, which fills the entire 45 minutes of the film is as striking as the poetic imagery of the dus...

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La Villita

(30:25) color, silent
Unedited footage showing NYA restoration of this small Spanish settlement in San Antonio, Texas. Reel 1, NYA girls make Spanish poster decorations which are put up for the Christmas fiesta. Reel 2, San Antonio mayor Maury Maverick watches NYA boys excavating, leveling ground, and laying brick wall. Shows parts of the restored Alamo and the San Jose Mission. Reel 3, Apache Indians present a Matachina dance at the Christmas fiesta, stone is moved and c...

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NYA Train Women for War Production

(8:50) color, sound
The NYA trains girls to sew, to make military and civil defense posters and signs, to prepare food, and to assist in hospital work (feeding and massaging patients, sterilizing instruments, making x-ray pictures, etc.). Women learn to operate machine tools (drill presses, lathes, etc) in an airplane plant, to weld sheet metal, to solder and drill radio parts, and to inspect finished work. Eleanor Roosevelt introduces and narrates...

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NYA in Wartime

(9:55) color, silent
Graduates of NYA schools operate lathes, presses, and milling machines a machine shop. Airplane, wings and fuselages are drilled and welded by girls. Life Jackets are tested. Life rafts are assembled and waterproofed. Deck section of a submarine are moved and assembled in a shipyard. Bulkhead sections are welded. The submarine is launched.