Film Form and Film History

Film Form and Film History • 464: Film content and form historically inflected • Film movements – Time period or nation – Common production structure • Technological shifts • Influence of other artistic realms • Still writing much Film history Early Cinema (1893-1903) • Pictures in motion + light • 1826: Invention of photography • 1878: Eadweard Muybrdge—photo series of running horse • 1882: Etienne-Jules Marey—first camera to use flexible film • 1889: George Eastman—crude flexible film base—celluloid Early Cinema (1893-1903) • Mechanized intermittent motion – Marey used Maltese cross gear • 1893: Edison’s assistant, W.K.L. Dickson made short 35mm films • Edison felt movies were fad • Louis and August Lumière invented camera/projector system • Edison’s Black Maria—1st film studio – Portion of roof opened to reveal light Early Cinema (1893-1903) • George Méliès—filmmaker and magician – Special effects – 1897: glass-sided studio – Built elaborate settings • Early cinema moved freely between nations • 1904—narrative form becomes dominant • WWI restricted flow of films Classical Hollywood Cinema (19081927) • 1908: Motion Pictures Patents Company – Merger of 10 firms – Attempt to regulate/control film production – 1915: declared a monopoly • 1910: Film companies move to California • Great demand for film—could not be met • A few large studies with individuals under contract – Few peripheral producers Classical Hollywood Cinema (19081927) • • • • Smaller studios merged—conglomerates Today’s major studios exist by 1920 Oriented toward narrative 1903: The Great Train Robbery – Prototype American film – Clear linearity, space, logic • 1905: The Kleptomaniac – Simple parallel narrative Classical Hollywood Cinema (19081927) • D.W. Griffith—great early American director – May be over-credited – Last-minute rescues – Crosscutting between locales/times – The Birth of a Nation (1915) – Intolerance (1916) – Facial expressions Classical Hollywood Cinema (19081927) • 1909-1917: Basic continuity principles • By 1920: Continuity standard • Standardized—formulaic? – Production companies followed same strategies and techniques • 1919: Chaplin, Griffith, Pickford, and Fairbanks form United Artists German Expressionism (1919-1926) • 1916: German government begins to support film industry—propaganda – Compete with foreign films • 1917: Universumfilm Akteiengesellschaft (UFA) – State sponsored film company – Talented people from across Europe – Hitchcock German Expressionism (1919-1926) • Expressionist style: avant-garde movement in painting, literature, etc. • Emphasis on mise-en-scene – Distorted shapes—exaggerated for expressive purposes – Actors in heavy makeup – Slow, jerky movements – Interaction of elements of mise-en-scene German Expressionism (1919-1926) • 1924: Germans begin to imitate American films – Dilute Expressionist quality French Impressionism (1918-1930) • • • • • Avant-garde art/film movement Initiated out of major French companies Result of WWI depression of film industry Vast importation of films after WWI Younger French directors encouraged to experiment – Declared cinema ―art‖ – Cinema should be like music French Impressionism (1918-1930) • • • • Centrality of emotion in aesthetic Intimate psychological narrative Interactions of a few characters Psychological causes and depth in narrative • Inner action—rather than external physical behavior French Impressionism (1918-1930) • Manipulate plot time and subjectivity • Flashbacks—may be bulk of film • Characters’ dreams, fantasies, mental states • Experimented with cinematography and editing – Render mental states filmically – Point-of-view cutting French Impressionism (1918-1930) • Rhythmic editing to suggest pace • New technology of frame mobility – Moving camera • Sound technology discouraged filmic experimentation Surrealism (1918-1930) • Outside commercial film industry • Isolated artistry—more radical movement than Impressionism • Perplexed/shocked audiences • Belief in superiority of certain forms of association previously neglected • Omnipotence of dreams • Undirected play of thought Surrealism (1918-1930) • • • • • • Present hidden elements of unconscious Automatic writing Bizarre or esoteric imagery/scenery Anti-narrative Attacks causality Absent narrative logic – Evasive – Dreamlike – Non-existent character motivation or psychology Surrealism (1918-1930) • Free form of film • Allow suppressed impulses of viewers to surface • Eclectic filmic style • Scenic influence of Dali • Refused to canonize any one style Soviet Montage (1924-1930) • Pre-1924: Soviet cinema marked by slowpaced melodrama • Post-Revolution film companies refused to supply state-theatres • 1918: film subjection of State Commission of Education – Strict controls on film supplies and film stock – Producers hoarded supplies Soviet Montage (1924-1930) • Young directors responded with experimentation • Edited footage from eclectic sources into whole – Creates impression of continuity – Develop first school of film criticism – Theorized editing and continuity – Film exists not in individual shots but via combination/continuity Soviet Montage (1924-1930) • 1921: Lenin’s New Economic Policy – Allowed private management of business for several years – Promoted reappearance of film stock and equipment • Sergei Eisenstein – Strike(1925) – Battleship Potemkin (1925) Soviet Montage (1924-1930) • • • • • • • Distinct approach to narrative form Downplayed psychology Emphasis on social causes/reactions Not always a clear protagonist Collective hero Often avoided well-known or trained actors Typage—cast by appearance of type of character Soviet Montage (1924-1930) • Stalin encouraged simple and understandable films • 1934: Socialist Realism – Government-instituted artistic policy – Dictated that all artworks must depict revolutionary energies grounded in realism Classical Hollywood Cinema—Sound • Sound develops via efforts of firms to increase power • Popularized by Warner Brothers • Must make sound compatible with theatres • 1930: Most cinemas wired for sound • Sound initially created setback for American film—static films Classical Hollywood Cinema—Sound • Use of diegetic sound with Classic Hollywood style • Studios developed reputations/styles – MGM—prestige studio (big stars) – Warner Bros. (genre pictures) – Universal (experimental) • Rise of the Musical Classical Hollywood Cinema—Sound • 1930s: Common use of color film stock • Technicolor—process of color film stock exposure using two colors – – – – – – Created odd tones 1930: Technicolor using three primary colors Technicolor used until 1970s Needed vast amount of light Allowed directors to capture greater depth of field Tend toward deep-focus style Classical Hollywood Cinema—Sound • Deep-focus style – Popularized by Citizen Kane (1941) – Use of foreground and background simultaneously in focus Italian Neorealism (1942-1951) • Ambiguous term • Younger generation • Mussolini encouraged firm industry to create historical epics • New goal of revealing current social realities • Filmed on location—out of necessity – New developments in mise-en-scene Italian Neorealism (1942-1951) • Used non-actors • Avoided Hollywood lighting system • Italian cinema tradition of dubbing – Allowed for extensive camera movement • Innovative sense of narrative form – Loose narrative relations – Non-causal motivation and detail – Refuses to provide omniscient perspective of events—simply unknowable – Slice-of-life plot The French New Wave (1959-1964) • 1960s-1970s: New generation of filmmakers worldwide • 1950s: writers for Cahiers du cinéma critical of respected French filmmakers • Rejected French film establishment but loved commercial Hollywood • Promoted auteurism—personal stylistic influences of director/author/actor The French New Wave (1959-1964) • • • • Tremendous output of New Wave Casual style—sloppy? Admired Neorealists Used actual Paris locations and available light • Panning and tracking to develop character • Lightweight handheld camera—new freedom seen in films The French New Wave (1959-1964) • • • • • • • Casual humor Esoteric references to other films Gags removed solemnity from film-viewing Loose causal connections Lacked goal-oriented protagonists Jolting shifts in tone Discontinuous editing The French New Wave (1959-1964) • Jump cuts • Ambiguous endings—uncertainty • French film industry not hostile to New Wave The New Hollywood • Hollywood successful through early 60s • American movie attendance declines • 1969: Hollywood firms losing $200 million annually • Counter-culture films – Easy Rider (1969) – M.A.S.H. (1970) • Rise of Movie Brats—trained in film school The New Hollywood • Movie Brats knew film form, style, and history • Personal/auteur style • Female directors • Minority directors • No single coherent style • Special effects • Digital technology The New Hollywood • Emerging Independent Film movement • Many subverted by major conglomerates • Test studios Contemporary Hong Kong Cinema • • • • • • Pre-WWII cinema—war halted production 1970: Bruce Lee Martial arts and acrobatics 1980: Jackie Chan Reckless energy Rushed production schedules—limited plots/development • Episodic with elaborate fight scenes Contemporary Hong Kong Cinema • Abrupt sequencing and ending • Exciting visual style • Florid color designs – Deep, rich colors that emanate forth • Much (if not all) sacrificed for elaborate action