Original Release
Earlier, Curtis had experimented with multimedia. In 1911 he created a stage show, with slides, a lecture and live musical accompaniment, called The Indian Picture Opera. He used stereopticon projectors, where two projectors dissolved back and forth between images. This was his prelude to entering the motion picture era.
The film opened in New York City and Seattle, Washington in December 1914, with live performances of a score by John J. Braham. Braham had access to wax cylinder recordings of Kwakwaka'wakw music, and the promotional campaign at the time suggested that his score was based on these; in fact, there were few snatches of Kwakwaka'wakw music in the score. Although critically praised, the film was a commercial failure.
Read more about this topic: In The Land Of The Head Hunters
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