From Jam Handy of Detroit, here’s a classic in industrial films called Master Hands, celebrating the creation of the 1936 Chevrolet.     

Produced by Jam Handy for Chevrolet Motor Division in 1936, Master Hands is a classic in industrial filmmaking. Learned papers have been written about it, the film has its own Wikipedia page, and in 1999 it was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress.

You’ll note there is very little narration, only a brief introduction at the top. The storytelling is done entirely though cinema, accompanied by a dramatic musical score composed by Samuel Benavie and performed by the Detroit Philharmonic Orchestra.The subject, of course, is automobile manufacturing, specifically the 1936 Chevrolet. True to the movie’s title, the cinematography by Gordon Avil maintains a tight focus on the the hands of the workers throughout the process, from the machinists in the tool rooms to the production line workers in final assembly.

As the film demonstrates, automaking is a complicated and harmonious process, but we can’t help but note that at Chevrolet in 1936, there was less harmony among the workers than the film might suggest. On December 30, Chevrolet workers in Flint launched their historic sit-down strike, which led a few months later to the first formal labor agreement between General Motors and the United Auto Workers. There’s a lot to take in here; so we’ll let you dive in. Enjoy the film.

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