Bernard Wilets and Trevor, c. 1995

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The AFA's Geoff Alexander remembers Bernard Wilets:   Bernard passed away from a heart attack in February, 2007.  He and I would chat several times a year, fascinating discussions, because Bernard was one of the few academic filmmakers who owned the copyright to his material, and utilized multiple distributors selling the same titles.  When no longer making films, he was keen on keeping them in the public eye, and often asked about royaties and contact people pertaining to the companies still selling his films.  He was a brilliant screenwriter, and used terrific actors, having worked out a gentleman's agreement with SAG to pay actors under scale, for academic films, provided their names were left uncredited.  We hosted Bernard in a 30-year retrospective of his work at a show in San Jose on March 4, 1999, where he fielded questions and discussed his work.  Just prior to my meeting him in 1995, he'd just tossed his files and photos in the trash, sure that they were worthless, a fact that he and I would bemoan several times yearly in subsequent discussions.   He was friendly, self-effacing, and always stayed in touch, which is why were dismayed to find his phone number inoperative when we tried to call him in April of 2007.  We finally discovered in January, 2008, that he'd passed away.  We'll miss Bernard, a nice man and a memorable filmmaker.  His films, in particular the 'Man and the State' and 'Bill of Rights in Action' series, will live on, and, I predict, will give him the recognition he didn't receive in his final days. Wilets appeared on camera in at least one of his films, Hamilton and Jefferson on Democracy.

Biography

Born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on 19 March 1928, Bernard Wilets moved to Long Beach, California at an early age, eventually attending UCLA and obtaining a Master’s Degree in English. He began writing plays and composing music (“leaning toward atonality”). In 1964, he made his first of over eighty films, Buses That Serve The Community for Film Associates.

Wilets, a prolific filmmaker whose subject matter included the Bill of Rights, drama, music, and history, saw perhaps his greatest artistic success in his ‘Man and the State’ series, originally distributed by Bailey (BFA) in the early 1970s. Wilet’s actors, recruited through southern California theatrical contacts, were superb, and some of the finest to appear in educational films of any kind.  Wilets is an exceptional writer and craftsman, whose best work is as fresh today (1999) as it was when originally released.

Filmography (grouped by series). We have seen many, but not all of the following films. Films denoted by an asterisk (*) are recommended. Films denoted by @ have been shown at ciné16. 

Man and the State series

@ The Trial of Socrates (1971)*
@ Machiavelli on Political Power (1972) *
@ Burke and Paine on Revolution (1973) *
Hamilton and Jefferson on Democracy *
@ Roosevelt and Hoover on the Economy (1976) *
@ Marx and Rockefeller on Capitalism (1977) *


Bill of Rights in Action series

@ Freedom of Speech
@ Juvenile Law
Story of a Trial
Capital Punishment
@ De Facto Segregation
@ Freedom of the Press
@ Equal Opportunity (1969) *
@ Right to Privacy
@ Privilege Against Self-incrimination
Women’s Rights
@ Freedom of Religion (1969) *
@ Due Process of Law (1971) *


Power of the Presidency series

Armed Intervention
Economic Controls


Law and the Citizen series

Contract Law
Landlord-Tenant Law


Discovering Music series

Discovering American Folk Music
@ Discovering American Indian Music (1971) *
Discovering Country and Western Music
@ Discovering Dynamics in Music (1968), a film for very young elementary children
Discovering Electronic Music
Discovering Jazz
@ Discovering Dynamics in Music (1968), a film for very young elementary children
@ Discovering the Music of Africa (1967) *
Discovering the Music of India (1969)
@ Discovering the Music of Japan (1967) *
@ Discovering the Music of Latin America (1969) *
Discovering the Music of the Middle Ages (1968)
@ Discovering the Music of the Middle East (1968)
@ Discovering Russian Folk Music

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