Friday, March 11, 2011
Cinematography: Editing
Continuity editing is by far the most common form you'll encounter. But directors, many outside of the U.S., developed various alternative editing techniques to better express narrative or intellectual ideas in a film.
Russian director Sergei Eisenstein made enormous contributions to the development of editing for narrative power, most famously in the famous "Odessa Steps" sequence of his film Potemkin (1925).
A film celebrating the liberation of the Russian people from the cruelty of the Tsar Nikolai II, Potemkin tells the story of the 1905 uprising of sailors on the battleship Potemkin. The Odessa steps sequence uses a technique called "montage," in which various narrative strands in a single scene are woven together to create tension and drama. Montage emphasizes dynamic, often discontinuous, relationships between shots and the juxtaposition of images to create ideas not present in either shot by itself.
In this scene, the people wait at the quay to celebrate the return of the sailors on the battleship, when the Tsar's troops suddenly attack.
Russian director Sergei Eisenstein made enormous contributions to the development of editing for narrative power, most famously in the famous "Odessa Steps" sequence of his film Potemkin (1925).
A film celebrating the liberation of the Russian people from the cruelty of the Tsar Nikolai II, Potemkin tells the story of the 1905 uprising of sailors on the battleship Potemkin. The Odessa steps sequence uses a technique called "montage," in which various narrative strands in a single scene are woven together to create tension and drama. Montage emphasizes dynamic, often discontinuous, relationships between shots and the juxtaposition of images to create ideas not present in either shot by itself.
In this scene, the people wait at the quay to celebrate the return of the sailors on the battleship, when the Tsar's troops suddenly attack.
Film: Cinematography
An important aspect of cinematography is the use of camera angle. By combining sets, lighting, and use of the camera, directors can utilize formal elements just as painters can to create emotional responses and deepen the impact of the subject matter.
German directors working in the early 1900s experimented with setting and camera angle in a way that has been lastingly influential. Wiene's Cabinet of Dr. Caligeri and Murnau's Nosferatu (both in 1919) used unusual camera angles and elaborate sets to take advantage of line, light and dark, composition, shape, asymmetry, and the treatment of space to underscore meaning in the films.
Nosferatu is the first film adaptation of Bram Stoker's Dracula. Note the use of light and dark, the use of composition, and the cross cutting to create a sense of menace as Dracula attempts an attack on Jonathan Harker.
Also note how few dialogue cards are necessary, as most of the action of the film is effectively communicated through the use of cinematography and editing.
German directors working in the early 1900s experimented with setting and camera angle in a way that has been lastingly influential. Wiene's Cabinet of Dr. Caligeri and Murnau's Nosferatu (both in 1919) used unusual camera angles and elaborate sets to take advantage of line, light and dark, composition, shape, asymmetry, and the treatment of space to underscore meaning in the films.
Nosferatu is the first film adaptation of Bram Stoker's Dracula. Note the use of light and dark, the use of composition, and the cross cutting to create a sense of menace as Dracula attempts an attack on Jonathan Harker.
Also note how few dialogue cards are necessary, as most of the action of the film is effectively communicated through the use of cinematography and editing.
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
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