American Dreaming: Filmmakers Document The Designers Of A Lost Era

Hemmings recently published some fascinating news, “Greg Salustro and Robert Edwards are Detroit-area natives and passionate car enthusiasts who are working with noted cinematographer and equally-committed car guy Jim Toscano on a documentary called American Dreaming. It will cover the booming postwar era in American car design, from the late 1940s through the start of the safety and emissions-regulated 1970s.”

Hemmings conducted an interview to get a better understanding of what audiences might be able to expect and what the filmmakers have learned along the way. Be sure to check out the full story here.

GRAND PRIX

Photo: www.PontiacsOnline.com, Art by Bill Porter

The article opens with a beautiful, yet often overlooked point, “Auto designers work in secret, bringing ideas to life for cars that may end up in that showroom five, six or seven years later. They’re futurists, dreamers and seers, anticipating the needs of future motorists and setting styling trends that the public will later come to appreciate.”

The article continues and gives enthusiasts an idea of the heavy weights that will make appearances, “Among the designers that they’ve filmed are the aforementioned Rodell Smith, Bill Porter (Pontiac design chief), Elia “Russ” Rusinoff (GM), Wayne Kady, Roger Hughet, Paul Tatseos, George Anderson, and Mary Ellen Dohrs, who was one of the first – if not the first – female designer hired after the War by GM, and whose tenure pre-dated Harley Earl’s so-called ‘Damsels of Design.’

Also interviewed on film have been art curators and historians like Jerry Herron; including them has the effect of showing the viewer why these illustrations are important, why they need to be collected and preserved, and their creators be recognized.”

kady-silver-deville

Image: www.CurbSideClassic.com, Art by Wayne Kady

We certainly look forward to this documentary’s release. They still have about 20 designers they want to interview, granted that fundraising allows. The article closes with the fact that, while upwards of 30 separate interview may be too much material for a 70-minute film, the filmmakers are certainly entertaining the idea of breaking up to raw footage into an archival series. Stay tuned!

About the author

Andrew Almazan

Andrew Almazan is a graduate of CSULB with a degree in English and a passion for traditional kustoms and hot rods. His first exposure to out of this world vehicles was through the prevalent low rider, baja bug, and kustom culture of LA county.
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