Film History Research Articles

The director’s approach to film text in movies following the rule of three unities

The purpose of the research. To identify the director’s tools for conveying the authorial understanding of history. To prove that the director’s authorial vision in working on film history does not always depend on the script written by the playwright. The article explores the directorial interaction with the film text in fiction films and identifies two forms of director’s engagement with film dramaturgy and examines the distinction between the “theatrical” approach to working with film text and the authorial interpretation of the story. The object of the research is films with realized unity of time, place, and action, serving as examples of the space for potential directorial authorial approach.
 The methodology. In the article the following scientific methods are applied: research (to collect information about the chosen topic), deductive method (to identify certain stylistic features of films with the rule of three unities), comparative method (to identify the features of the director’s work), and generalization method (to write conclusions).
 The results. In conclusion, films with embodied unity of place, action and time serve as a vivid basis for illustrating the interaction of the director with the cinematic context: working on such projects requires the ability to create a complex cinematic context and tell a story within limited possibilities without violating the artificially defined canon of the three unities. Through the analysis of selected cinematic contexts and the identification of the director’s toolkit used in them, authorial experiments with local narratives were divided into two groups. The first group included films in which the director works in a theatrical manner and simply transfers the action from the script to the screen, while the second group includes films with an existing authorial interpretation of the story, where the rule of the three unities is complemented by the director’s concept. Studying the director’s approaches of the second group allowed for the identification of four main tools for narrating a complex cinematic context, which complement or even contradict the script content: 1) the director-author’s chamber view (“camera-pen”) — to convey the directorial intonation of attitude towards characters and emphasize his authorial meanings and accents; 2) the chamber view of the character-author to convey his thoughts, attitude towards other characters, motivations, internal events, emotions, experiences, etc.; 3) audiovisual expression of the character’s state and associations through associative editing, to narrate the character’s perception of events; 4) a special, non-mediated cinema-theatrical actor’s existence to narrate complex characters and human relationships. None of these tools is usually inherent in the screenplay of the film, therefore, their application does not affect storytelling but only complements it with new meanings.
 The scientific novelty. It is the first comprehensive study of the director’s aspect of interaction with the film text, depending on the author’s intention.
 The practical significance. Prospects for further research are related to the following aspects of the evolution of cinema art, which require scientific attention: the methodology of directorial interaction with text and subtexts; directorial innovations in “screenlife” films, where the rule of the three unities is observed; director’s approaches to the cinematic adaptation of theatrical plays, and so on. Overall, the analysis of directorial tools is a dynamic and relevant process in light of the development of cinema industry technologies and the desire to experiment with formats and meanings of authorial expression.

Era of the Individual Viewer? Taste, Value, and Creative Media Work in India’s Streaming Industries

How do key players in Bombay’s screen industries—producers, directors, writers, and business developers—understand, imagine, and navigate the dizzying new world of streaming platforms in India? Tracking the emergence of symbiotic relationships between new streaming platforms and established media professionals, I discuss how a restructuring of industry dynamics is elemental to the processes of cultural legitimation of new streaming tastes and the reconfigurations of the relationships between texts, industries, and audiences. Through case studies of a few prominent creative professionals associated in various capacities with global and local streaming platforms, I sketch the multiple linkages between contemporary streaming cultures and the structural histories of both film and television in the subcontinent. Ultimately, this article argues that media workers’ self-reflexivity and theorizations about the industry-in-digital transit help us not only grasp the heterogeneity of this moment, but also trace notions of value and taste in Bombay’s emerging digital media ecologies.

“Supertext” as a Form of a “Strong” Fiction Text Existence

The emergence and existence of a systemic-structural texts’ unity, defined as a center of translation attraction and formed by a “strong” text of fiction and its secondary versions of various semiotic nature, are considered in the article. The study is addressed to the hypothesis of formation of a “supertext” within the boundaries of the above mentioned center, which has polylingual, polycode, multimodal and polyauthory parameters. Being a multidimensional information object, a “supertext” unites the variations of the original information in translation, which increases the limits of its translatability and degree of its translatedness. The formation and functioning of a center and the corresponding “supertext” are defined as a prolonged, continuous and limitless semiosis, described primarily through the interpretation and adaptation. As a complex semiotic object, a “supertext” is formed as interpretations continuum of a “strong” original information potential, which makes it possible to reveal its aesthetic resources and contribute to its preservation in spatio-temporal coordinates of culture. The hypothesis of “supertext” is considered on the material of a “strong” text of W. Shakespeare’s tragedy “Hamlet, Prince of Denmark”, which is world culture heritage, and its numerous secondary versions generated for more than 400 years. In accordance with the Jakobsonian types of translation, main attention is paid to the interlingual and intersemiotic versions of the original. A brief history of play’s Russian translations covering the period of the 18th-21st centuries is given. As one of the most filmed literary texts, “Hamlet” has numerous screen adaptations, revealing their close connection with the world cinema history. There are cases of the Shakespeare’s text retranslation (In the broad sense of the process of original information reinterpretation by means of one foreign language or one semiotic system), as well as shifts in the ontological categories of primacy and secondarity related to verbal, nonverbal and not only verbal secondary texts belonging to the center of translation attraction. The analysis of “Hamlet” as a “supertext” presupposes its consideration in the trajectories of description and prescription and can contribute to the emergence of the history and theory of “supertext” as an object of translation semiotics.

A Kingdom of Possibility

A Kingdom of Possibility

‘Dreary and sarcastic images under the Marshal’s Baton.’ The Yugoslav 1960s Cinema, the Canon and the International Gaze: from subversion to Balkanism and popular-cultural re-evaluation

The article inquires into how an international success of the 1960s auteur films influenced the Yugoslav cinematic canon. Through scrutinizing an array of reviews and articles appearing in the Yugoslav press of the period, it reconstructs an ‘international gaze’: a semi-imaginary, yet authoritative instance for which the Yugoslav film-maker, the Yugoslav critic and the Yugoslav film historian needed to perform. This ‘gaze’ encompasses three mutually intertwined gestures: it deals in political ‘subversion’ and makes it into a means of cultural self-­fashioning; it is underpinned by Balkanist exoticizations, and it severs what it regards as modernist-critical works from their popular-cultural context. The article claims that an analysis of the effects which the ‘international gaze’ produces changes the perspective on the ‘dissident’ Yugoslav auteur as means of canonization. Furthermore, it inquires into how the ‘international gaze’ can create blind spots in the critic’s perspective and how the period’s non-canonized films (a privileged example being Dragoslav Lazić’s popular comedy Sirota Marija/Poor Mary, 1968) can fill-out these blind spots by turning the tables and making both the canonized works of the 1960s and the ‘international gaze’ that helped canonize them into objects of their own critique.

Borrowed soundtracks: adopting the global history approach to the study of connectedness in film history

ABSTRACT In this article, my goal is to reveal the importance and potential of global history, an approach that is generally neglected in media and film history literature. The main characteristics of global history are de-centralizing history, taking a wide spatial and temporal perspective, avoiding Eurocentric and nationalist optics, and explaining patterns of causalities behind connections. I begin by explaining global history before presenting the differences between global history and similar approaches used in film and media studies literature. Then, I focus on a potential case study, the phenomenon of foreign music used as soundtracks in Turkish domestic films between the 1950s and the 1980s. I demonstrate how the ‘borrowed soundtracks’ creates a hitherto unstudied connectedness between disconnected audiences from different countries or societies. I consider the soundscapes of the films as a space of aural encounter, and I argue that global history would enable us to understand the emotional, cultural, and economic layers of this indirect connectedness.

Photography between Publicity and Politics

Georgina Karvellas was one of the few women photographers documenting apartheid South Africa for several decades. She produced work for the fashion and music sector next to striking documentary work with a clear stance against the government’s segregationist policy. Inscribing Karvellas into the histories of photography, film and art, this article highlights the intersections of her work between commercial and political photography as well as between issues of gender, race and class through a careful reading of the various frameworks into which it has been placed and the reasons for them. As she worked at a time when the freedom of movement of South Africa’s majority population was severely restricted, a particular focus is on Karvellas’s transnational approach and the question to what extent her choice of commercial photography might have closed doors for her, such as inclusion in the artistic canon, while giving her greater freedom in crossing borders.

О восстановлении утраченного кинонаследия на примере фильма Дзиги Вертова «Годовщина революции»

In 2018, the author of this article discovered in the Russian State Documentary Film and Photo Archive and restored Dziga Vertov’s debut film Anniversary of the Revolution (1918), which film historians had considered lost up until then. The event aroused great interest among the press, the festival audience, the student audience, and the academic community in both Vertov himself and the film. After numerous screenings of the film in Russia and abroad, a large number of interviews appeared which touched upon various aspects of Dziga Vertov’s life and work, film storage practices, archival research methods, the principles of film restoration, the ethics of the researcher’s intrusion into other people’s material, as well as the financial and technical sides of the matter. The questions in those interviews were often repeated. In this article, the author systematizes and summarizes the information in the answers to the questions, scattered across individual materials. Why did this film disappear at some point? Why was the film not stored complete? How was the restoration of the film going? What is this film, the first work of the world-famous documentary filmmaker? The value of the film is that it provides a new visual source for the study of Russian history, as well as makes an important contribution to the study of the history of Russian and world documentary filmmaking.

In Translation: Gabriel Navarro, Latina/o Film Critic

ABSTRACT: Gabriel Navarro (1894–1950) was critic and entertainment editor for La Prensa (San Antonio) and La Opinión (Los Angeles) during the 1920s and 1930s. In an extensive body of film reviews, columns, and film-related fiction, Navarro considered questions of fandom, stardom, representation, and the racial hierarchies that structured the US film industry. He offered his readers behind-the-scenes accounts of Hollywood, advocated for Mexican immigrant audiences and talent, and argued for culturally sensitive representation. Navarro's work opens new ways of thinking about Latino/a/es in US film history and offers new perspectives on the historical relationships between mainstream media and marginalized audiences.

Myth and reality in the work of Italian neorealists

The object of research is Italian neorealism of the 1940-1950s. The subject of research is the work of neorealist directors Roberto Rossellini, Cesare Zavattini, Giuseppe de Santis, Vittorio de Sica, Alberto Latuada. Features of neorealism are also inherent in the early work of directors Luchino Visconti («Obsession» 1943, «Earth Trembles» 1948), Federico Fellini («The Road» 1954, «Nights of Cabiria» 1957), Piero Paolo Pasolini («Accatone» 1961, «Mama Roma» 1962), Michelangelo Antonioni «People from the Po River» 1947). Neorealism develops under the influence of French poetic realism, as well as, under the influence of verism, especially, the work of L. Pirandello. The focus of the neorealists was a person in interaction with society, the environment. The purpose of this study is to consider the features of realism and neorealism, to consider the space created by directors. This study uses various research methods - phenomenological, intertextual, comparative, hermeneutic, content analysis in their combination and complementarity. The scientific novelty of this study lies in the opposition of mythological and real space in the films of Italian directors, as well as in the application of an integrated approach. The main conclusion of this study is the thesis that myth and reality in the work of Italian neorealists interact with each other. Despite the documentary approach to filming, neorealists create their own, special reality, turn to history and myth. The concept of "neorealism" is quite complex, many of its representatives called themselves realists. The focus of neorealism becomes a person in interaction with society, with the environment. As the principles of neorealism, one can single out chorality, that is, the interaction of people. A separate feature of neorealism is the appeal to fantasy. F. Fellini and M. Antonioni open a new chapter in the history of Italian cinema.

Analysis of Ukrainian Animation Film Art

Ukraine, as a country with profound cultural heritage, exhibits rich and diverse characteristics in its cultural development. This paper focuses on the development status of Ukraine in the field of animated filmmaking, aiming to conduct in-depth discussions and exchanges. Although Ukraine's film industry possesses certain strengths and has even won awards at international film festivals, its performance in the specialized field of animated filmmaking seems to have not reached a level commensurate with its overall cultural strength, leaving certain gaps and deficiencies. By reviewing the history of Ukrainian cinema and animated filmmaking art, analyzing the early development of Ukrainian animated art, and combining it with the analysis of the current situation of Ukrainian animated films, this paper explores potential paths for its development.

Proximities of Violence

Jonathan Glazer’s The Zone of Interest (2023) takes an unorthodox approach to Holocaust cinema, studying the everyday life of the Commandant of Auschwitz and his family in their home just outside the wall of the camp, while never directly representing the violence inside. Voyeurism, extended takes, and unstable points of identification create an ethical crisis for the viewer, who is left questioning the mechanics, and the limits, of empathy. The film offers a sensory bounty: tactile images, pastoral greenery, and heightened sounds. These surface-rich images in particular function in dialogue with a history of Holocaust cinema, complicating already vexing questions of cultural memory and political framing. And the pointed focus on the administration of fascism within the home exposes both the domestic implementation of a “blood and soil” ideology, and the ways in which intimacy and proximity can both uphold and erode the frameworks of war.

Part II–(Re)imagining Cinematic Histories of Africa: African Women, Cinema, and the Tale of Kadidia Pâté

Abstract: "Le dit du cinéma africain" (The Tale of African Cinema), by the inimitable griothistorian Amadou Hampâté Bâ, is an extraordinary tale of Mali's early encounter with cinema, revealing an equally fascinating story of an early instance of an African woman and cinematic spectatorship. In his tale, he recounts in her own words, his mother Kadidia Pâté's first experience with cinema. This enchanting and edifying rendezvous with the moving image provides us not only with a unique introduction to the histories of African women's encounter with cinema but also to the trans-global nature of these cinematic experiences. As Toni Cade Bambara reminds us, as early as 1897, "operators for Lumière, Meliès, and Edison were presenting, in various countries, programs of flickers shot from all over the world." And in the case of Mali in this tale, movies imposed on the inhabitants who refused to look. This section relates her extraordinary story.

Transnationalising Malay Cinema: P. Ramlee in Hong Kong

This article investigates P. Ramlee's little-known attempt at transnationalising Malay cinema in the early 1960s. Using biographical records, newspaper reports and film magazines, I trace the star's earliest direct contact with Hong Kong cinema, his plans to make Malay films in Hong Kong, the controversy that ensued, and the outcomes of these grand plans. Situating this episode in its historical context, this article unsettles standard narratives of P. Ramlee, and Malay and Malaysian film histories. It demonstrates that, as opposed to the seemingly inevitable ethnonational route, and in contrast to the hypernationalist characterisation of P. Ramlee today, a transnational model was once envisioned through P. Ramlee as a potential future for Malay cinema in the face of tumultuous geopolitical changes. It also brings to light the complex role that labour activism played in shaping post-studio era development of Malay cinema, and the roots of Malaysian national cinema.

Конструирование образа прошлого в кино: кейс сериала «Слово пацана»

The article examines the problem of historical accuracy in cinema on the example of the popular Russian TV series “A hoodlum’s promise – blood on the asphalt”. In the context of the popularity of movies covering real historical events, the author gives a sociological interpretation of the artistic techniques used in the series aimed at constructing the image of the past. Based on their analysis, the authors identify the criteria that allow us to judge the plausibility and correspondence of the image of the past embodied in the film to the historical reality. These include: 1) the degree of authenticity of reconstruction of material culture of a particular time pe-riod; 2) authentic representation of mentality of a particular time period; and 3) filmmaker’s understanding and interpretation of historical processes, events, etc. It is emphasized that the modern trend is to move away from documentary authenticity in historical films, but it is also stressed that the key importance in this regard is the author’s intention, in some cases designed to convey to the viewer a certain social idea expressed by the skill of filmmakers.

Book Review: New Perspectives on Early Cinema History: Concepts, Approaches, Audiences by Mario Slugan and Daniel Biltereyst (eds)

Book Review: <i>New Perspectives on Early Cinema History: Concepts, Approaches, Audiences</i> by Mario Slugan and Daniel Biltereyst (eds)

Cinematographic language: possibilities for work in early childhood education

The present article addresses the application of cinematographic language in educational practices aimed at Early Childhood Education. The central objective is to highlight the relevance of structured planning for the integration of this language, considering children as active participants in all stages related to this practice. In this perspective, the work is divided into stages. The first stage provides a brief history of cinema and its incorporation into education, with a focus on Early Childhood Education. The second stage discusses the importance of planning educational practices in Early Childhood Education. The third stage presents a real possibility of working with cinema based on interviews with teachers. In this way, it seeks to contribute to the broadening of understanding regarding the intersection between Early Childhood Education and Cinema, offering concrete possibilities for effective planning led by teachers from a Municipal Early Childhood Education Center. This planning aims to encompass meaningful proposals grounded in cinematographic language. The research methodology is qualitative, employing semi-structured interviews as a tool for data collection, directed towards teachers and children involved in the investigated educational context.

American indie cinema between DIY cultures and global Hollywood: Exploring the paradigm of Slacker

A landmark of the 1990s independent cinema and emblem of Generation X, Slacker (1991) is a significant event in the genealogy of Austin, Texas DIY scenes, with a long-lasting impact on the city's film industry and cultural history. The article applies research on DIY to the realm of American independent cinema, using Richard Linklater's iconic film to define indie cinema as a complex idea, linking the global media industries to cult performers emerging from intense subcultural contexts. After touching upon the history of American independent cinema, the film's content is read against its production networks, suggesting the historical role of DIY media ecologies in the value chain of Hollywood. The flexible career pathways emanating from Slacker chart various fates that creative labour undergoes in today's media industries. This methodological perspective reinforces a relational approach to the study of independent cinema, suggesting possible lines of inquiry for future research.

Ion Creangă’s creation in the vision of director Ion Popescu-Gopo

The Romanian director Ion Popescu-Gopo (1923-1989) remained in the history of world cinema as the creator of the Little Man, which became his brand in the field of animation. But his creation is rich enough, including not only animated films, but also fiction films. He is the only director, who in the years ‘60-’80 dared to interpret the stories of the classic of our literature Ion Creangă, starting with The Story of Harap Alb (The White Moor, 1965), The Story of the Pig,(The Story of Love, 1976), The Old Man’s Daughter and the Old Woman’s Daughterl (Maria, Mirabela, 1982),The Bag with Two Coins (The Wager, 1984). The director re-reads the writer’s stories from a modern cinematic perspective, experimenting not only with the ideational message, but also with the production techniques, combining the actors’ play with animated images (Maria, Mirabela or The Wager).

Alfred Andersch, the Cinéma des Auteurs, and the Poetics of Screenwriting

This essay presents a little-known chapter in the film history of the Federal Republic of Germany. Alfred Andersch, founding member of Gruppe 47 and influential broadcast editor, was one of the few authors who was intensively involved with film. The essay reconstructs Andersch’s attempt to associate film and literature and thereby develop an alternative concept to the European cinéma des auteurs. To this end, the essay discusses not only Andersch’s critical writings but also a number of documents from his estate. Andersch’s film theory is evaluated in light of the contemporary literary debate on the medium. His screenplays for the adaptations of his novels Die Rote and Die Entwaffnung are used to examine the conclusions Andersch drew regarding film aesthetics in his own poetics of screenwriting. In sum, the essay reconstructs Andersch’s attempt at a literary response to the crisis of West German film around 1960.