This beautifully produced short film, created to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Leica brand, brings many of the most iconic photographic images you’ve ever seen, elegantly to life.

Celebrating 100 Years of Leica

Coincidentally I recently featured another series of classic photos. Those were tongue-in-cheek recreations by actor John Malkovich and Sandro Miller. This is at the opposite end of the gamut from that post.

It’s truly impressive how directors Jones + Tino, Stink of Sao Paulo and F/Nazca Saatchi & Saatchi recreate the recognizable subjects from several of the world’s most legendary photos (some actually taken with a Leica, some not) and seamlessly move from one to another in our contemporary realm. From the horrific images that make us cringe to the romantic ones that make us sigh, they have captured the influence the German camera has had on photography and the world.

You’ll notice in the film (which is shown further down in the post) there are some well-known photos referenced that were not taken with a Leica camera, but that is smartly addressed in the copy, claiming that Leica has changed the art of photography in general.

Here’s a look at some composites I made of the original photos referenced with screen grabs from the film.

V-J Day by Alfred Eisenstaedt, 1945 and a still from the film:

Dorthea Lange’s Migrant Mother and a still from the film:

Alexander Rodchenko’s Girl with Leica, 1934 and a still from the film:

Jeff Mermelstein’s Sidewalk, 1995 and a still from the film:

Portrait of Dennis Stock by Andreas Feininger and a still from the film:

Robert Capa’s Death of A Loyalist Soldier, 1936 and a still from the film:

Henri Cartier Bresson’s Rue Mouffetard, 1954 and still from the film:

The film “100”, shown below, is a production that honors the 100th anniversary of the first Leica camera and the opening of Leica Gallery São Paulo in November. Created by F/Nazca Saatchi & Saatchi, the commercial is the first of a series of initiatives to celebrate the date in Brazil. The two minute film highlights the influence of the German brand which, through its cameras helped move photography from the studios and bring it into real life, expanding the universe for photographers and forever changing the relationship of mankind with this form of art. In order to convey all of the effects of this influence, the film shows more than 35 famous photographic records that form the history of photography. Recollection of moments that sensitized the world because they captured the realism and spontaneity of the moment.

100:

Now with subtitles:

Full Credits:
Director: Jones + Tino
Executive Producers: Maria Zanocchi, Cecilia Salguero
Producer: Victoria Martinez
Director of Photography: Bjorn Charpentier
Editor Jones + Tino, Danilo Abraham
Production Designer: Daniela Calcagno
1st AD: Santiago Turell
Location Manager: Lucia Sánchez
Agency: F/Nazca Saatchi & Saatchi
Production: Stink Sao Paulo
Post Production: Casablanca
Sound Design: Satélite Áudio
Agency Producer: Victor Alloza
Executive Creative Director: Fábio Fernandes, Eduardo Lima
Art Director: Joao Linneu
Creative: Joao Linneu, Thiago Carvalho, Romero Cavalcanti, Bruno Oppido

Here are some other stills from the film that recreate photos you may recognize:

History can be written – or photographed. For 100 years now, famous photographers from around the world have been capturing once-in-a-lifetime moments with their Leica camera. Moments that remain unforgettable. Perhaps the most famous of all timeless, iconic photos can be seen in our film. So go on a journey through time with Leica. With impressive pictures that you can rediscover every time you view them. And which you will never forget.

The exhibition “36 from 100“ with further Leica iconic photos can be seen at the Leica Camera AG in Wetzlar, Germany.

More information on 100years.leica-camera.com.

Thanks so much to Stink for giving me the full credits and to them, Jones + Tino and F/Nazca Saatchi & Saatchi for the images and creating such a nice piece of work.