Interesting production notes about Schindler’s List movie you probably haven’t heard

Little known about the 1993 cult film Schindler’s List, directed by Steven Spielberg.

In order to collect the clothes of the period for about 20,000 extras that will take part in the movie, the costume designer announced that he was looking for old clothes by posting ads. Since Poland was economically deadlocked during the filming, many Poles applied to these ads in order to sell their clothing from the 1930s, which they still kept in their homes.

Spielberg first showed a short cross-section of the film to composer John Williams, who wanted the film to make his music. After watching the scenes, Williams was emotionally impressed and tried to walk for a while and finally returned to Spielberg, saying that ‘this movie deserves a much better composer than him’. Spielberg’s response is short: “I know, but it’s all dead.”

John Williams, who composed the soundtrack of the movie, also called ‘Star Wars’, ‘E.T.’ He is the creator of the soundtracks of period films such as ‘superman’.

The income and copyright of Steven Spielberg from the film was entirely donated to the Shoah Foundation at the request of Spielberg. Steven Spielberg said that the money to be earned from this movie is ‘blood money’ and cannot accept it. The Shoah foundation is an institution that stores, and archives written, verbal or visual records from all over the world in relation to the Jewish genocide.

The original list of Schindler’s Jews was found in 1999 in a loft in the attic of Schindler’s apartment in Hildesheim. Oskar Schindler lived in that flat until his death in 1974. Schindler’s written legacy was also found in the same bag.

Ralph Fiennes gained 13 kg while preparing for the role of ‘Amon Goeth’. His overweight is entirely due to the famous brand ‘Guinness’ beers he drinks.

Spielberg originally proposed directing the film to Roman Polanski’ but refused it because he found it too personal. Polanski lived in Krakow until the age of 8, escaped by escaping the day when the Jews were liquidated. Polanski’s mother died in the Auschwitz concentration camp. Spielberg repeatedly apologized to Polanski after learning this fact. Roman Polanski will direct his own film in 2002, which reflects his own perspective on genocide and includes many autobiographical elements: the pianist.

The scene at the end of the movie, where real-life victims visit the grave of Oskar Schindler in turn, is not actually in the original script, it came to Spielberg’s mind when filming the movie.

Actually in real life, it is not Itzhak stern who helped Oskar Schindler prepare the list, but marcel Goldberg. In the eyes of most people who survived the genocide, Goldberg is unscrupulous and inferior because he has removed some names from the list and added bribes to him while preparing the list.

Spielberg actually had permission to shoot in the Auschwitz campground, but still did not do so with the thought of disrespect for the memory of those who died, and the set was set up just outside the campsite to be an exact copy of the camp.

Nudity and violent scenes in the movie are censored in the Philippines. Spielberg did not accept any censorship and interruption in the screening of the film, but wanted to withdraw his film, but the president of the Philippines, Fidel Ramos stepped in, allowing the censorship to be overcome. However, the same situation could not be overcome in Malaysia and the film was not banned and screened.

After the movie, many of his fans approached him to sign the pictures showing the sections on the movie scenes, but Spielberg rejected them with absolute language and announced that he would not sign any material related to this movie.

Sometime after filming, Steven Spielberg re-enrolled at California State University to complete his undergraduate education, which he left almost 34 years ago. While the short films to be prepared by students as a graduation thesis will be sufficient, the university professor has accepted the Schindler’s List film as Spielberg’s passing thesis assignment. For the first time in history, a student who won an Oscar award for the best director, was given the right to pass the class by giving a film that was awarded the best film Oscar for the first time in history.

Liam Neeson auditioned for the movie, but returned to the theater, accepting the role in ‘Anna Christie’, A Replay of a Broadway classic, making sure she was absolutely unacceptable. One evening, when the game’s show ends, when Neeson is about to change her clothes in her backstage room, her door knocks, and Steven Spielberg is said to want to see her Spielberg’s wife Kate Capshaw and the mother of Capshaw. As Spielberg introduces his wife and mother-in-law to Liam Neeson, Neeson hugs the old woman so fervently that Kate Capshaw is stuck in the narrow room. Capshaw then comments to her husband Spielberg, ‘it was a full Oskar Schindler hug.’ Neeson receives a phone call from Spielberg exactly one week after this encounter. Role is accepted.

According to the Jewish tradition and belief, when someone’s grave is visited, a small stone is left in the grave for respect.

It is the highest budget black and white film shot in the history of cinema. The previous record belongs to the movie “the longest day”, which is about the year 1962 and the second world war.

During the shooting, everyone’s mood is very bad due to the dark atmosphere and touching scenario. Steven Spielberg watched ‘Seinfeld’ every evening during the shoot to distract him.

Schindler passes by a boy in a prisoner uniform while visiting the camp. The child has his hands on his head and has an inscription like this: ‘jestem zlodziejem ziemniaków’. Polish means ‘I’m a potato thief’.

Approximately forty percent of the film was shot with a handheld camera.

Towards the end of the film, one of the hundreds of Jews who pass through a field with their freedom is actually making cameo: steven Spielberg.

The scene of the liquidation of Jews from the Jewish ghetto in Krakow is actually only one page in the script. But Spielberg does not adhere to the scenario, and by making use of the live testimonies of the victims of the genocide who were alive at that time, he turns one page into twenty pages and the scene lasts twenty minutes in the movie.

Source: imdb.com