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Film Theories

Terms in this set (30)

formalism
method of analysis that considers a film's form, or its structure, to be primary. meaning is to be found in the work itself
close readings
formalist approaches to specific film texts, exemplified by isolating, naming, and considering the effects of individual elements and their interrelationships
textual analysis
technique exemplified by charts listing all the shots of a sequence to be analyzed as well as such variables as camera distance or movement
code
a rule, structures a particular act of communication
classical film theory
aims to explore the essence of the cinema and provides conceptual frameworks for understanding film's relationship to reality, the other arts, individual viewers, and society at large
photogenie
a particular quality that distinguishes the filmed object from its everyday reality
realism
imitation of reality in the arts
Auteur theory
theory which asserts that a film bears the creative imprint of one individual (typically the director)
metteur en scene
label of a director that conveys technical competence without a strong individual vision
cinephilia
love of cinema and an exhaustive knowledge of films released throughout the previous several decades
structuralism
looks for common structures rather than originality
modernism
favors a more fragmented human subjectivity, a foregrounding of style, and an open-ended narrative
postmodernism
mixes and matches different kinds of narratives and formal approaches
ideology
a systematic set of beliefs that is not necessarily conscious
poststructuralism
questions the rational methodology and fixed definitions that structuralists bring to their various objects of study and includes many areas of thought, from psychoanalysis to postcolonial and feminist theory. a position of critique, asking us to reconsider the truths and hierarchies we take for granted
psychoanalysis
a set of psychological and psychotherapeutic theories and associated techniques
psychoanalytical film theory
film theory that is interested in viewer identification as well as psychoanalytic reading of the characters
mirror stage
an infant comes to recognize themselves as a human individual
apparatus theory
explores the values built into film technology through the particular context of its historical development
cultural studies
scrutinizes aspects of cinema embedded in the everyday lives of individuals or groups at particular historical junctures and in particular social contexts
reception theory
focuses on how a film is received by audiences, rather than on who made a film or on its formal features or thematic context
cultural identity
the identity or feeling of belonging to, as part of the self-conception and self-perception to nationality, ethnicity, religion, social class, generation, locality and any kind of social group that have its own distinct culture
dominant reading
an audience's reaction from the position the film slots them into
negotiated reading
an audience's reaction that accommodates different realities
oppositional reading
an audience's reaction that rejects the framework in which a dominant message is conveyed
stars
performers who become recognizable through their films or who bring celebrity to their roles
cognitivist film theory
understands our response to film in terms of rational evaluation of visual and narrative cues
referentiality
the idea that filmic images refer to actual objects, events, or phenomena
soviet montage theory
a group of Russian soviet directors developed a set of theories about filmmaking that highlighted the importance of editing
feminist film theory
film theory that studies representations of gender in film
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