LECTURE 1: INTRODUCTION TO FILM APPRECIATION

A film is never really good unless the camera is an eye in the head of a poet Orson Welles

Poetry is the first and last of all knowledgeit is as immortal as the heart of man
William Wordsworth

If a man can bridge the gap between life and death, if he can live after he's died, then maybe he
was a great man. Immortality is the only true success. James Dean

How can we appreciate film? Is film an art form? Are films made by artists? How can we analyse a
film? What happens to stories when they cross boundaries of medium and geography? These are just
some of the questions we will be discussing in this unit on Film Appreciation. In order to answer
some of these questions we must understand and appreciate film on its own terms; we need to
create an aesthetics of film. However, this does not refer to a prescriptive delineation of what
makes a good film and what makes a bad film. Rather, we will be linking what you learn in scripting
video, in terms of narrative, and what you learn in media aesthetics, in terms of techniques and
synthesizing them with themes and content by means of analytical tools.

An understanding and appreciation of film is especially important in Malta where we are lacking in
the production of indigenous product. At the moment we are not selling our product abroad for
various reasons: social, economic and artistic. Malta only has a population of 400,000 people and in
order to become professionals in this industry we need to be able to make a living out of it. To make a
living out of it we need to sell it to as many people as possible. In Malta the numbers just dont add
up. The solution is to start selling our product abroad. But before we can do that, we must learn from
others past and present, we need to keep updated on what is happening in the industry and we need to
create products which can be considered universal. Otherwise, how can we compete? And this starts
with an understanding and an appreciation of film. The best art transcends our cultural matrix and
speaks to our common humanity, especially in this world of globalization where everyone is linked to
everything. We need to have our voice projected onto the world stage but we need to be careful as to
how to do it were competing with so many voices we need to make sure we have the tools we need
in order to be heard and to tell compelling stories which have got to do with what makes us, us.

To this end, we will use close critical analysis of filmic texts to create an awareness of the aesthetic
qualities of film and to introduce some of the key concepts and terminology associated with diverse
methods and approaches to the study of the art of film.

Theory and practice are not separate activities but each is related to the other. Moreover, we
will learn from the past and how that impacts contemporary films. Therefore the choice of films
ranges from the older to the more contemporary.
 PART 1: FILM AS ART

An aesthetics of cinema involves first of all accepting that film is a legitimate art form, that cinema
does more than simply copy what is out there, in the real world and that the medium possesses
distinctive formal and expressive qualities that potentially confer aesthetic value.

Many theorists in arguing for film as an art form first started with the question: what is film?
However, we cannot essentialise the true nature of film and there is no list of categories which
allows us to essentialise film as an art form. There is no checklist we can go through which will
determine what is art and what isnt. However, there are several myths against film as an art form,
some of which we can first debunk.

COUNTERACTING THE MYTHS

MYTH 1: BECAUSE IT IS A MEDIUM WHICH RELIES ON MECHANICS IT CANNOT

EXPRESS TRUE ARTISTRY; IT SIMPLY RECORDS WHAT IS OUT THERE

When film first emerged, as a mechanical device to record, there was no assumption that film as a
media can serve artistic purposes. If anything, in fact, there was an opposing assumption that film is
merely a recording device devoid of artistic interest. This means that early filmmakers and film
theorists first had to legitimate their practices before they could secure a receptive audience.

Why would we, nowadays, even give credence to such a claim? While Classical Film Theorists
focused on debunking this myth, there have been contemporary theorists who have sought to uphold
this myth. One of these contemporary theorists is R. Scruton (1981) who in his essay Photography
and Representation argues that films are just photographs of a more or less artistically valuable
dramatic representations. If we had to take his argument further, the implication is that films cannot
be artistic representations themselves because photographs cannot represent: their mechanical
production blocks any artistic interpretation of what is being photographed.

Many theorists have come out against Scrutons claims and we can even refer to older theories to
discredit this proposal. However, the photographic image, as we shall see, is not a mere
reproduction of reality: the choices the filmmaker takes are representative of the artistic
interpretation of what they see and hear. Rudolf Arnheim, in 1957, pointed to the expressive
qualities of film and points to the discrepancies between a filmic representation and reality:
discrepancies in perceived depth, size and shape of objects, range of view and flow of space and time.
Moreover, for each of the discrepancies between the film image and the perceived reality, Arnheim
provides examples of their expressive potential.

Bazin also debunked this myth; this time, through the concept of realism and he located the power of
film in the immediacy and accessibility of its recorded image. Siegfried Kracauer also explored the
relationship between film and the real in his seminal work The Theory of Film: The Redemption of
Physical Reality.

However, to fully understand film we must understand that film is able to do both: be highly
expressive and highly realistic. Expressiveness and realism are not mutually exclusive. Film gives the
filmmaker a variety of resources to choose from in order to tell a story, convey meaning and
evoke emotions.
MYTH 2: FILM CANNOT BE AN ART BECAUSE IT HAS LITTLE HISTORY BECAUSE
OF ITS NEWNESS

Some have claimed that because film is a young art it does not have the traditions the traditional arts
have. Yet, despite its newness it has developed substantially over the years; others have claimed that
there is a lack of settled canons. Yet, as Jarvie (1987) mentions in his Philosophy of the Film,
canonical works, for most art forms, are neither fixed there for eternity nor are all of them accepted by
everyone...it would be very hard to infer a coherent set of criteria that would explain why any of their
members should be included...though the same situation would exist in any of the arts. Indeed, while
Sight and Sound publish their greatest movies of the decade every ten years (the last one being in
2012), this list is also subject to change and variation and therefore there can be no one conclusive
list. Moreover, the idea that films have no established criteria of merit has also been quoted as a
reason. However, how can we establish the standard when these change, artists influence each other
and move the medium forward? Standards may be broken and the envelope can be pushed. There are
some schools even today which give some standards but when a standard is broken, a new standard is
born (for e.g. when Japanese filmmaker Yasujiro Ozu crosses the line in his films).

MYTH 3: FILM CANNOT BE ART BECAUSE OF ITS MASS APPEAL AND ONLY ART
FILMS CAN BE ART

Many critics have claimed that because film has mass appeal then it cannot be art. One need only look
at the sharp distinction made between experimental and avant-garde film vis-a-vis mainstream cinema
with many critics drawing a line between the two when in fact the two frequently influence each
other and styles intermesh. However, one can argue that just as there are good and bad experimental
films then there are good and bad popular mainstream films. For any test of aesthetic experience
refinement, subtlety, nuance, poetic quality, elevation, unity, harmony, rhythm, cinematic quality and
so on there are films that exemplify some, and some that exemplify all. (Jarvie, 1987). Moreover,
this overlap between mass art and experimental filmmaking can be seen in contemporary film for
example many have seen correlatives between Gravity (Alfonso Curon) and Michael Snows
experimental film work or the integration of experimental film techniques in mainstream film for
e.g. nonlinear narrative and multiple narratives (for example Paul Haggis Crash). Indeed, its the co-
existence of forms which have made the postmodern relevant. Films can integrate different
elements and it makes it the ultimate postmodern medium. If art could not appeal to the masses,
then it is to be separated from the world as it is and from social concerns, which is something many
critics are vehemently opposed to.

FILM AS ART, BUSINESS/ENTERTAINMENT AND TECHNOLOGY

So, are all films art? What makes a film an artwork? Is The Hangover art? Or should we classify
only expressive films like Luis Bunuels Un Chien Andalou as art? While some may be tempted to
classify and draw definitive lines, essentialist arguments may bring us into logical loopholes.
Instead, a more fruitful approach would be to investigate the various elements in our
understanding of film: the author of the work, if there is one, how genre conventions are used, the
effect on the spectator, the metamorphosis of stories when they are adapted into film, and how these
different elements are intermeshed in global film and its reflection of identity a globalized identity.

The issue of whether film is an art form is one which has been much discussed. Some have pointed to
Hollywood and distinguished its films from those made for a narrower public, stating that while the
latter are art, the former are simply entertainment.
However, as Bordwell (2013), points out, things arent that simple. Many of the artistic resources of
cinema were discovered by filmmakers working for the general public. Indeed, cinema is an art
because it offers filmmakers ways to design experiences for viewers, and those experiences can
be valuable regardless of their pedigree. Films for audiences both small and large belong to that
very inclusive art we call film or cinema. (Bordwell, 2013)

Sometimes, too, people consider film art to be opposed to film as a business. However, it would be
naive to assume that art and artists exist in a vacuum. Films are no different. Some movies are
made in the hope that consumers will pay to see them. Others are funded by patronage (an investor or
organization which wants to see the film made) or public money. For instance, the Malta Film
Commission offers aspiring and professional filmmakers the opportunity to create their own work, by
helping them through public funding: funding is given to projects seeking development money as well
as production funds in order to get the shooting underway. Any film whether a feature, a short film
or even a documentary costs money to make and the creation of film which inspires necessitates
consideration of these very practical concerns. However, considerations of business dont necessarily
make the artist less creative or the project less worthwhile. This also goes for more practical concerns
for example when Steven Spielberg was filming Jaws the shark made with the budget they had did not
look realistic. Therefore, a creative decision was made: to not show the shark. This resulted in a film
which heightened suspense and had audiences on the edge of their seats. Technology also influences
what goes on the screen for e.g. with computer animated imagery and techniques such as motion and
performance capture. Therefore an understanding of film allows us to understand the interplay of film
as art, business and entertainment and technology.

A QUESTION OF CHOICE

How does the filmmaker shape our experience?

There are many different types of choices which go into the art of filmmaking. When one is looking at
the creative choices filmmakers make, one must consider them in terms of the creative choices made
in terms of:

1. Film form
2. Mise-En-Scene (style)
3. Cinematography (style)
4. Editing (style)
5. Sound (style)

**CLIPS: CLINT EASTWOODS FLAGS OF OUR FATHER/LETTERS FROM IWO JIMA

 THE CRITICAL APPROACH: INTERPRETATION, SYNTHESIS AND EVALUATION

The study of film appreciation cannot be essentialist academic evaluation does not depend on giving
marks out of 10, but focusing on the choices the filmmaker/s have taken in their creation of the
film and critically interpreting and assessing those choices. There must be a consideration of the
synthesis of elements and how these convey the themes and concerns of the filmmakers. The
questions critics ask themselves are:

Why is a film designed the way it is? Why does the filmmaker make the choices he makes and to
what effect? How are the meanings in the film portrayed in concrete terms through choices in
form and style?

Therefore there will be an interlacing of form and content. If the form changes, then the content will
also change.

The approach to be taken on this course is a three-pronged one:

1. Interpretive: not prescriptive; we will not be making any sort of list of how things
should be but we will seek to interpret the film on its own terms. We will be using the
vocabulary available to us to analyse the film through the viewpoint of a particular
interpretive school (for e.g. authorship theories, psychoanalysis, feminist film theory,
adaptation and world cinema). However, this does not mean that we can simply apply the
terminology of the theory in question haphazardly. Rather, this analysis must be tempered
with considerations of artistic and filmmaking norms as well as the films generative
context;

2. Synthesis: that is analysing the interaction of the various elements and layers which make
up the film, as well as considerations of theory;

3. Evaluative: How does the film exploit the abilities and functions of the medium?
What is the place the film occupies in culture? While there are no set criteria and there
is no single standard of evaluation, a consideration of how the film positions itself and
makes use of the resources available to it will enable us to further understand the text.

Throughout we will delineate the key terms and issues inherent in each theoretical school and we will
be analysing the films in light of these approaches, therefore summarizing the semantic field
appropriate to each interpretive school. A note of warning, however: though we are discussing each
approach separately, in a serious discussion of film these are intermeshed (for example one can
analyse issues in world cinema in light of its auteurs).
 PART 2: FILM FORM

Film form deals with the patterning in film. A key question to ask oneself in this regard is:

How has the filmmaker patterned the film and to what effect?

Many Art or avant-garde films eschew traditional modes of form for more experimental ones while
Hollywood has often been criticised for keeping to the same formal elements time and time again. As
Tina Fey joked at the last Golden Globes ceremony, in a condemnation of the Hollywood industry: if
something works just a little bit, do it again and again and again until were all sick of it.

**CLIP: OLIVER STONES JFK**

SOME KEY PRINCIPLES

But the reality is that the choice of form is not so straightforward: many so-called Hollywood or
big-picture films eschew traditional modes of form while many European or Global film have
now adopted a more traditional mode of storytelling. Everyone and everything is linked and
people are influenced one by the other. Other key questions to think about when discussing film form
are:

How does the film form our expectations? / Does the film make use of conventions, either those
related to genre or advocated by the filmmakers of the past? / how does the form influence our
emotional response? Is there coherence, complexity and originality in the material?

Bordwell (2013) outlines five considerations when thinking about film form:

1. Function: why has the filmmaker chosen this element and what does it mean in context?
What is its purpose?

2. Similarity and Repetition: a filmmaker is also aware of the patterns of similarity and
repetition which is key to the understanding of a film, of its form and how its form interacts with its
content, the meanings it provides. For example, frequently a filmmaker will include two scenes which
reflect each other to illustrate how a character has changed. Therefore, this is a similarity-with-
difference that works. The element of motif is also an important consideration.

3. Difference and Variation: also including the idea of similarity-with-difference as noted

above, the filmmaker usually changes some things within the overall patterning of the film. The
differences can be more overt, however, when you have, for example a protagonist and an antagonist.

4. Development: many filmmakers are very aware on the need for development throughout the
film. Whether its development of character or the express lack of development, this is still a
consideration which needs to be dealt with. Many have equated this to the journey motif (note
Christopher Vogler/Joseph Campbells A Heros Journey outline) which requires a psychological
change to occur to the protagonist by the end of the film.

5. Unity and Disunity: unity refers to the point at which all the relationships in the film are
clear and economically interwoven... We often call a unified film tight because there seems to be
no gaps in its overall form. We feel that every element fulfils particular functions, that we understand
the similarities and differences among elements, that the form develops logically and that no element
is superfluous. However, unity is a matter of degree and there is no perfect unity (Bordwell,
2013) there may be still unanswered questions for example with Hitchcocks famous McGuffins.

NARRATIVE FORM

Most of us who go to the cinema or who watch a film do so because of the story. Indeed, most films
we watch are what we would call narrative films: films which use stories to make sense of the world.
While we do not have the time to go over the detailed principles of narrative form in this course, there
are a few things we need to remind ourselves of when we come to analysing film. A key question is:

How does the filmmaker create an engagement with the viewer? Which creative choices allow
for this engagement with the viewer?

The following are principles we can think about in answering this question:

1. A beginning, middle and an end: In the beginning, a narrative usually presents a series of
changes from an initial situation to a final situation, and by considering how that pattern works, we
can better understand the film. Many screenwriter manuals claim the beginning is where we present
the main characters status quo sometimes the film starts in medias rea and there will always be a
backstory which will be relevant to the plot though it may not be explained straight away. The middle
of the story traces the films causes and effects and there may be different types of changes: 1. A
change in knowledge; 2. Progress in the aim of a goal (e.g. searches, investigation); 3. Time (a
framing situation in the present may initiate a series of flashbacks showing how events led up to the
present situation) including a deadline; 4. Space (for e.g. if the plot is centred on one specific place).
At the end of the film there is usually some sort of resolution this doesnt need to be a happy
resolution. In the climax, there are only a variety of options to choose from in order to resolve the
story this is the point of no return and at this point the circle of cause and effect is usually closed.
This is what usually happens in narrative film though there are some films which leave the ending
open, the plot leaves us uncertain as to what will happen after the end of the film.

2. Cause and effect: What kinds of things can function as causes in a narrative? Characters
can be the instigators of events: this is the most common type of cause and the one which is usually
used in American narrative film. In many screenwriting schools, they advocate the principle: a
character wants something badly and has difficulty getting it. Moreover, in some films there may be
situations in which the causes are hidden or in which the effects are left open-ended (for e.g. in
Truffauts The 400 Blows: we dont know what the effects of the past events are going to be on
Antoines future). Generally, a spectator will try to connect events into causes and effects and will
search for one and then the other causal motivation often involves the planting of information in
advance of a scene (what screenwriters call planting and payoff)

3. Time: this can be divided into three concerns, all of which are determined by the filmmaker:
The first relates to temporal order or how events are sequenced. A plot does not have to move
according to the storys chronological order, therefore it can move out of story order for e.g. when
they use flashbacks or flashforwards. Audiences, in fact, usually figure out the story order from the
plot order, even if the latter is not chronological. But a question we must ask ourselves is: why are the
story events presented in this order? To what effect? This is because a different feeling can be evoked
or strengthened depending on the order of events. Even a simple reordering of scenes can create
complex effects. A second question is how long do the events take? Does the screen duration
expand the story duration? Does the plot use screen duration to compress story time? A third
question we can ask ourselves is: how often do we see or hear an event? This refers to when we see
the event multiple times for a multitude of effects maybe we first see the story early on and then
later on see it with more knowledge. Maybe we see the same event from different peoples
perspective, each time acrewing information about it. This repetition can also be related to an
echoing of a previous line of dialogue, the reappearance of clothing which shows that the character
cannot escape the memory of something else.

4. Space: plot and story order can manipulate space. We can also here make a distinction
between story space (some of which may not be shown for e.g. when a character has a backstory in a
place we never see), plot space (where the events we see on screen happen) and screen space (what
we see due to the framing).

5. Range and Depth of Information: The choice to be made here is how wide is the
information presented going to be: are we going to see a multitude of events, across a huge expanse of
space and time through different characters or a more restricted world view? Therefore, is the
narration going to be omniscient (unrestricted) we know more, we see and hear more than any of
the characters can? Or are we going to be restricted to what one character knows? If its the latter,
this can be beneficial because it allows for surprise, curiosity and suspense though the former would
allow us a wider view of history. However, restricted and omniscient narration are not watertight
categories they are a matter of degree and usually each film will be on a continuum between these
two poles. In order to analyse this one must ask: Who knows what when? This goes for both the
characters and us the audience. Hitchcock, for example, was an advocate of a little knowledge allows
for more suspense so it creates dramatic irony. Moreover, one can ask oneself, whether the story is an
objective one or subjective and how far between these two extremes can we go. Does the
filmmaker make use of the point-of-view shot? Does he employ sound perspective? Is there
perceptual or mental subjectivity? Usually perceptual and mental subjectivity is not used for the
entire film but may be intercut at points in the objective narration.

6. The Narrator: apart from the range and depth of knowledge, a filmmaker may also make use
of a narrator. This narrator may be a character part of the diegesis (part of the story world) or may be
non-diegetic (outside of the story world). A key question to ask ourselves is: what purpose does the
narrator serve?
 PART 3: FILM STYLE

**CLIPS: PAUL THOMAS ANDERSONS BOOGIE NIGHTS/JOE WRIGHTS ATONEMENT

Film style creates the look and feel of the film and may be responsible for:

1. Shaping the viewers expectations

2. Furnishing motifs through the film which will be linked to thematic patterning
3. Supporting the films overall form
4. Directing our attention, clarifying or emphasizing meanings and shaping our emotional
response

MISE-EN-SCENE

How does the filmmaker use a combination of setting, lighting, costume, makeup and the
performers to convey his content?

The term mise-en-scene comes from the French putting in the scene and consists of various
elements which operate as a unified whole in order to create the effect wanted by the director, for him
to portray his content if form changes then the content changes as well.

Therefore, this controls what appears in the frame of the film and includes the following:

1. Setting: A filmmaker may shoot on location (for e.g. the Malta shoots of Agora, Gladiator
etc.) or in a studio, which allows things to be more controllable. In a studio, the filmmaker/s may
alter the portrayal of the setting in a realistic or unrealistic manner. Setting, as Bordwell points
out, may also overwhelm the actors so they seem like a real small element in the drama; the overall
design of a setting can shape how we understand story action (Bordwell, 2013). Colour may also
be used as a motif, as well as props and the use of digital effects.

2. Lighting: this can be used to highlight a certain part of the picture, allowing for the
creation of textures and shapes. The lighting itself can be hard with sharp shadows or soft, with
diffused edges. Moreover, the source of the lighting can seem realistic or not. The colour of the
light is also important. Frequently the cinematographer will place gels in front of the lamps to create
specific effects or to balance out the colours in a scene rarely does a lamp go up without these
filters: this coloured light may be realistic or unrealistic but it would, generally, serve a function in
some cases the colour of the light can reflect the emotions of the characters.

3. Costume and makeup: Costumes can help the narrative elements of the film or they can
be used purely for their graphic qualities . Costume and setting are intimately related and allow for
the overall vision of the picture. The look, shape and colour of the costume within the overall
picture can help us determine the emphasis the filmmaker would like to make. Makeup too can be
used for several reasons: to make actors look more like the historical figures they are playing, in
superhero or fantastical films, to accentuate the actors expressions, enhance eye behaviour.
Nowadays with digital technology often this is used in conjunction with motion capture in which they
actually plaster on the figure of the fantastical creature onto the raw image.

4. Staging and performance (including acting and movement): This consists of various
elements: the realistic (or non-realistic) performance of the cast; the use of motion and
performance capture and the interaction of these elements with films formative principles such as
editing.
5. The interaction of these elements.: All of these elements need to be put together in space
and time but how?

a. Space: these elements of mise-en-scene are used to create coherence in time and space. The
filmmaker guides the viewers eye towards what is most relevant in the frame through these elements,
as well as arousing curiosity and suspense and giving the shot emotions. In directing cast, we can use
a spatial cue called overlap in which those items closest to us mask the things which are further
away; we can also get a feeling of the distinct planes of space. Considerations of space can be
divided into two. The first is screen space: is the shot balanced (symmetry) or has the filmmaker
created an unbalanced shot to various effects? Filmmakers may also use contrasts in terms of light
and dark and also in terms of colour. Colour contrasts may be small involving a limited palette (or
even, a monochromatic colour design, where the filmmaker only emphasizes a single colour) or a
richer colour palette. Movement also helps direct our attention (used in conjunction with camera
movement). For example if everything is still in the frame but there is one element of movement or
there is lots of movement in the frame but there is one element which is still. Secondly, there is the
element of scene space that is the use of depth cues in order to alert us to the volume and planes of
the film:

A film suggests volume by shape, shading, and movement...Planes are the layers of space
occupied by persons or objects. Planes are described according to how close or far away from the
camera they are: foreground, middle ground, background...one of the most basic depth cues is
overlap. In the three-point lighting approach, edge-lighting accentuates the overlap of planes by
emphasizing the contour of the object, thus sharply distinguishing it from the background.
(Bordwell, 2013)

Colour differences can also create overlaps with cooler colours used for the background and brighter
colours for the foreground. Therefore, a filmmaker may want to emphasize the depth of the image
and, on the other hand, may want to minimise it to create a flatter image. Another depth cue is
movement and another is aerial perspective which indicates that those items closest to us are more
in focus than the items far away from us. Yet another is size diminution figures and objects further
away from us are seen to get proportionally smaller. Moreover, one can take linear perspective into
consideration (when two parallel points converge in the distance) which can either be centred or off-
centre. One may also use shallow-space composition (the mise-en-scene suggesting little depth and
the closest and most distant planes seem only slightly separated) or deep-space composition (in
which significant distance seems to separate planes)

b. Time: this can refer to the speed of the movement of the objects in the shot, which can be
used to guide our eye. Moreover, a deep-space composition can create anticipation in the background
over what is going to happen in the foreground. Any movement from background to foreground is
strong since it arouses our expectations.
 CINEMATOGRAPHY

How does the filmmaker use the photographic image, framing and the duration of the shot to
convey meaning?

There are creative choices even associated with the shot itself with the idea of cinematography
(writing in movement) which depends on a large extent on the photographic nature of the image.

One can look at three aspects of cinematography:

1. The photographic image: this is related to the qualities of the image itself. The way in
which contrast is created (is the image of a higher or lower contrast, or somewhere in between?);
the use of exposure (usually a filmmaker will go for a balanced exposure; yet there are some who
use an unbalanced look to achieve a specific effect). Exposure is also affected by filters or gels
which are placed over the lamps during filming: for e.g. you can get diffusion filters or filters which
alter the range of tonalities in different ways. This tonality can also be altered in the editing suite,
when the colourist works together with the cinematographer and the director to set the look for the
film. Other questions include: has the filmmaker used fast or slow motion? Does the speed of
motion alter within the image itself and does this serve as a motif? Have they used high-speed
photography or made use of a freeze-frame to allow the audience to stop and think? What sort of
lenses have been used? Has the filmmaker used a wide-angle lens or a telephoto lens? Moreover,
what is in focus? Every lens has a specific depth of field: a range of distances within which objects
can be photographed in sharp focus, given a certain exposure setting...All other things being equal, a
wide-angle lens has a relatively greater depth of field than a telephoto lens does. You can also
selectively focus whats in shot therefore choosing to focus on only one plane and letting the other
planes blur. This guides the viewers eye so we pay attention to only that part which is in focus,
though this can help with suspense. With films like Citizen Kane, many filmmakers made use of the
concept of deep focus, therefore allowing for all planes to be in focus. Moreover, the filmmaker
can use racking focus (or pulling focus) to switch attention from foreground to background or the
other way around. Other questions one can ask are: has the filmmaker made use of any special
effects? Has he made use of superimposition (placing one image on top of the other) or composites?
(in which separately photographed images are blended in a single composition)

2. Framing: this determines how we see the action. The shape of a film screen is the rectangle
but a filmmaker may decide how to show this and how to use the film frames aspect ratio (the ratio
of frame width to frame height, for example widescreen formats) The frames shape can also be
changed through other devices, such as the use of the iris, and split-screen imagery. In thinking
about framing, one must also consider what is onscreen and offscreen space. For example, the
filmmaker can imply the presence of things out of frame...sound can offer potent cues about offscreen
space. This can create suspense or surprise (for e.g. a simple shadow over the frame makes us curious
to see who this person is). The filmmaker also has a number of choices when it comes to angles
(straight, high or low); the level of the frame can be horizontal or canted, (tipped to one side).
Moreover, the height of the camera is a separate consideration from the angle of the camera (for e.g.
in Ozus work) and some angles require that you position the camera higher than in other angles.
Furthermore the distance from the subject also has an effect (therefore the choice between extreme
long shot, long shot, medium long shot, medium shot, medium close up, close up and extreme close
up). Framing can be used in creating the point-of-view shot and can indicate motifs throughout the
film.
3. Movement: this refers to the various camera movements which the filmmaker can choose to
make within the frame: for e.g. there can be a pan, or a tilt, a tracking shot or a crane shot. The
filmmaker may also make use of Steadicam, a camera attached to a man who follows the characters,
giving a more immediate effect, but still not as immediate as the hand-held camera, which creates a
bumpy, sometimes disorienting ride. One must also note the difference between a zoom and a
tracking shot in order to feel the difference in choice: why would a filmmaker choose to track in
rather than zoom in? The speed of this movement is also important and can contribute to the tone of
the piece. Mobile framings may also be motifs through the entire film.

4. The Duration of the Take: Yet another aspect of filmmakers choice lies in the duration of
the image - this can also be linked to camera movement: for e.g. by the time the camera comes round
full circle, day turns into night. The long take allows the filmmaker to bring out specific values in
particular scenes and allows us to pick up on certain details in the shot and make certain associations.

EDITING

How does the filmmaker use editing to create a response/tell the narrative?

Editing opens film up to a whole new range of diverse expressive qualities and areas of choice. The
filmmaker has a number of choices which he can avail himself of. However, despite some critics
claims that editing is what makes film art, there are many films, as weve seen above, which are
artistic but contain long takes. However, editing can be used to create an affective response in the
viewer. When discussing editing one must also specify whether the transition is a cut (an
instantaneous join between one picture and the other) a fade-in/fade-out (these refer to when the
picture gradually fades in from black e.g. at the beginning of a film and fades out to black, for e.g. at
the end of a film); a dissolve (when one image slowly becomes another) and a wipe (shot B replaces
shot A by a line moving across the screen).

The choice of each of these is determined by what the filmmaker wants us to see and how he or she
wants us to react to the unfolding narrative (or non-narrative) on the screens. For example editing can
allow the filmmaker to control our attention and to emphasize the action in the scene, allowing for the
events to gain significance.

Some key aspects we can look at when talking about editing are the following (please note: this is not
a comprehensive overview of editing but an overview of some key principles we can apply to our
analysis of film):

1. Editing based on graphic/rhythmic qualities: the first (graphic editing) is the choice of
editing related to what can be seen in the image itself: patterns of light and dark, colour, line
and shape, volumes and depths, movement and stasis. These qualities can be compared in both
shots. The filmmaker may choose to have graphic continuity/ a graphic match or decide not to have
such continuity. Usually, most filmmakers opt for something in-between. The director will usually
want to have the same look throughout the scene, if it all takes place in one locale. However there
may also be graphic discontinuity or, indeed, the filmmaker may opt to clash the pictorial qualities
of the image in a graphic discontinuity. The second (rhythmic) is loosely related to Eisensteins
Metric montage, but does not depend solely on the number of frames in the image. Rather, this
refers to the rhythm of the editing and allows us to get a sense of the films rhythm. The filmmaker
may adjust the lengths of the shot in any way he chooses, depending on the feeling he is trying to
elicit. At points, the filmmaker may also choose to stress a single moment by inserting flash frames, a
few frames of bright white to provide an accent to the sequence (for e.g. in gangster films, superhero
adaptations).

2. Continuity Editing: the continuity style aims to transmit narrative information smoothly
and clearly over a series of shots. Filmmakers using the continuity system have to make sure they
dont cross the line and usually make sure eyelines match, they frequently make use of the
shot/reverse-shot pattern and match on action (carrying a single movement across a cut).
Crosscutting in terms of continuity editing can also serve various functions: one of these is the point
of view cut which gives us an eyeline match that presents something as seen by the person looking.
The shot is more or less optically subjective. Usually the format is as follows: we see a shot (shot A)
of the person looking; shot B would be of the thing hes looking at with a return to shot A to see
his/her reaction. However, if this ABA structure is altered, the filmmaker can create surprise and
suspense in the audience, as well as a degree of uncertainty. A crosscut can also allow different events
to be portrayed at more or less the same time, allowing the audience to know more than the
characters themselves. It gives an unrestricted range of knowledge, links the different actions
together thematically and shows how these different events are related and thus can help build
tension. It can also build expectation which is delayed due to the crosscuts to another point and space,
thus increasing suspense which may or may not ultimately result in fulfilment. Continuity editing also
usually presents story events chronologically and events are portrayed only once. Moreover, story
time is rarely expanded or compressed. Indeed, there is usually temporal continuity in which an event
which takes five minutes will last 5 minutes of screen time. At times, the filmmaker will want to skip
over some seemingly unimportant moments and he will do so with elliptical cutting. For example
in 2001: A Space Odyssey, Stanley Kubrick skips over millennia to get to the moments he wants to
investigate the most. Linked to this, the director may also use one form of ellipsis: montage
sequences, usually without dialogue, which will show us events in a short space of time (for e.g. in the
documentary sequence of JFK).

3. Spatial and temporal discontinuity: some filmmakers opt to cross the line in order to create
disconcerting effects or even to give different perspectives to the same event. They can also make use
of jump cuts, when you cut two different shots of the same subject and there is little noticeable
difference between them. Filmmakers may also use nondiegetic inserts in order to parallel two
different things and create links between them (Eisensteins intellectual montage). The editing may
also extend story duration to underscore narrative points. Eisenstein himself was an advocate of
discontinuities in editing to produce various effects. He sought to go beyond the continuity system
and in fact made a lot of use of intellectual montage, thinking that the clashes would promote
thinking on behalf of the spectator..

SOUND

How are speech, music and noise selected and combined for specific purposes?

Sonic information will pull us into the story and can have various effects on the viewer. Sergei
Eisenstein referred to the importance of sound and image in what he called the synchronization of
senses (making a single rhythm or expressive quality bind together sound and image). Sound
refers to all diegetic and nondiegetic audio elements which can include dialogue, diegetic music,
sound effects (noise) as well as narrators and nondiegetic music. Sound can also come offscreen
which creates expectations in the audience and can shape our sense of how things will progress.
Sound can be external diegetic sound (coming from anywhere in the setting) or internal diegetic
sound (coming from inside the mind of the character) or a combination of the two. Some films play
with the distinction between diegetic and non-diegetic sound to various effects. Sound operates under
various functions:

1. It can shape our understanding of the visuals

2. It directs our attention to a specific thing in the visuals
3. It allows for anticipation and forms expectations (for e.g. if we hear a door opening offscreen,
were curious to find out who has come into the room)
4. It can contradict the visuals, presenting a sort of commentary on what were seeing
5. Lack of sound: silence: can create tension which is then released if a loud sound follows

Sounds are chosen and can be manipulated. A sound can be repeated at a different volume and
pitch; sounds can be superimposed one on top of the other or they can be separated and placed one
after the other. Moreover, sounds can be mixed or combined: the soundtrack is not a mass of
discrete elements placed one next to the other but various elements are layered in a pattern, linking
everything into an organic whole. Moreover, filmmakers have to choose whether to overlap the
dialogue across a cut (dialogue overlap) which is neatly linked to continuity editing. This also goes
for noise and other sound effects. However, the filmmaker may choose to cut when the dialogue is
finished, allowing or a breather between the end of the line and the cut. This allows for more
importance to be given to the dialogue in question. In modern filmmaking sound is placed in layers:
the mix can be quite dense with an intense mix of dialogue, noise and music or it can be sparse with
an occasional sound against a background of total silence. The contrast between the sounds can be
stark or there can be blending between the sounds. Moreover, the filmmakers may associate a
particular sound with a particular aspect of form for e.g. with the introduction of a character. A
musical theme can be associated with a different place, situation or idea. Moreover, he may create
musical motifs which traces the development of the story, especially if they are changed throughout
the narrative to signal a change in situation or within the characters themselves. The way the
filmmaker employs sound perspective may also tell us something about the story. This can be used
very effectively when it comes to perceptual (the audio parallel to the POV shot) or mental
subjectivity (for e.g. with the use of internal diegetic sound). Sound perspective may be suggested
with volume: a loud sound is presumed to be close to us but a soft one is presumed to be more distant.
However, once again this can be played with in terms of echoes for example. This can also suggest
the characters movement through space.

Sound may also be used to create rhythm which can be found in sound effects as well as in speech:
Rhythm involves, minimally, a beat, or pulse; a tempo, or pace; and a pattern of accents, or stronger
and weaker beats. In the realism of sound, all of these features are naturally most recognizable in film
music, since there beat, tempo and accent are basic compositional features. (Bordwell, 2013)
Usually, a filmmaker will also link image and sound and the rhythm of one will reflect the other:
for e.g. a quick tempo associate with quick cuts and movements; a slow tempo linked to longer shots.
Of course, there can be discontinuity between the two to achieve certain effects. Usually the
filmmaker will use a combination of the two within one film in order to reset our expectations. The
filmmaker can also reset our expectations by producing a sound which is not faithful to the
object (fidelity) it seems to be coming from. At times this can be used to comic effect. However, it
may also be used in subjective or more serious story lines.

Sound also allows us to represent story time: sometimes the time portrayed on the soundtrack
reflects the time of the image and sometimes it does not. A distinction must also be made between
synchronous sound and asynchronous sound (that is sound which is in sync with the image and
sound which is off by a specific time, even just a millisecond off) Moreover, sound can be
simultaneous with the sound of whats going on in the image or nonsimultaneous (therefore, we
hear a sound earlier or later than we see the image on the screen). Moreover, the filmmaker may opt to
use a sound bridge, that is the sound from a previous scene lingers briefly while the image is already
presenting the next scene. There may, in principle, also be a sound flashforward though this is very
rarely used. A sound bridge bringing forth the sound from the next scene is also sometimes used.

Relevant Readings

Parts I & III in. Braudy, L and Marshall C. (eds.). (2009). Film Theory and Criticism . (7th Ed.).
Routledge, New York

Additional Relevant Readings

Arnheim, R. (1957). Film as Art. (12th Ed.). London: University of California Press.

Bazin, A. (2005). What is Cinema: Volume 1&2 (H. Gray Trans, & Ed..) California:
University of California Press. (Original work published 1967).

Bordwell, D. (2013). Film Art. (10th Ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill International Group.