Introduction: Jonze Between the Lines

Kim Wilkins,Wyatt Moss-Wellington

doi:10.3366/edinburgh/9781474447621.003.0001

Abstract

Wilkins and Moss-Wellington describe Spike Jonze’s emergence as a unique voice in American filmmaking at the turn of the millennium, analysing the way his work crosses boundaries between philosophy and genre entertainment, commercial and subversive imperatives, independent and Hollywood modes of production, short work and features. After broadly surveying Jonze’s career and articulating its importance within film studies, the ensuing chapters are introduced.

Highlights

The work is licenced to the University of Nottingham Ningbo China under the Global University Publication Licence: https://www.nottingham.edu.cn/en/library/documents/researchsupport/global-university-publications-licence.pdf
Readers may expect a collection with the title “The Films of Spike Jonze” to present a fairly traditional auteurist study
Claiming films to be “of Spike Jonze” identifies Jonze as an author, and as such echoes the enthusiasm established by the young Cahiers critics whose politique des auteurs celebrated those “[men] of the cinema” whose work could be elevated to the status of high art.[1]

Summary

Introduction

Rather than delimiting Jonze’s creative identity to “director” (or even a “filmmaker”) he is a creative with more in common with the contemporary “slashie” workers who “straddle industries and disciplines, defining themselves by several professions.”[7] Jonze has always worked between the lines of commercial and subversive imperatives, philosophy and genre entertainment, independent and Hollywood modes of production, short work and features.

Results

Conclusion