That Mothers Might Live poster

That Mothers Might Live

6.2(12)193810m1

That Mothers Might Live is a 1938 American short drama film directed by Fred Zinnemann. The short is a brief account of Hungarian physician Ignaz Semmelweis and his discovery of the need for cleanliness in 19th-century maternity wards, thereby significantly decreasing maternal mortality, and of his struggle to gain acceptance of his idea. Although Semmelweis ultimately failed in his lifetime, later scientific luminaries advanced his work in spirit like microbiologist Louis Pasteur, who provided a scientific theoretical explanation of Semmelweis' observations by helping develop the germ theory of disease and the British surgeon, Dr. Joseph Lister who revolutionized medicine putting Pasteur's research to practical use. In 1939, at the 11th Academy Awards, the film won an Oscar for Best Short Subject (One-Reel).

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Status
Released
Budget
—
Box office
—
Language
English
  • infection
  • death in childbirth
  • washing hands
  • germs
  • maternity
  • child birth
  • sanitation

Top billed cast

Behind the camera

Produced in

United States of America

Videos

No extra videos are listed for this title yet.

Release dates

  • United StatesUS

    • Theatrical30 Apr 1938

Frequently asked questions

That Mothers Might Live was released on 30 April 1938.

Audience reviews

1
  • C

    CinemaSerf

    6/28/2025

    6/10

    There isn’t any dialogue in this short feature, just an increasingly frenzied narration as Sheppherd Strudwick portrays the visionary Austrian physician Ignaz Semmelweis. He was a man determined to establish just why so many perfectly healthy women died so swiftly after childbirth - but with no obvious cause. Gradually, he began to realise that it might be the doctors themselves who were carrying diseases about their…

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