Early Cinema and Cinematic Techniques

Assignment One: Memorable Movies

Make a list of memorable movies that you have seen. 

- Why are these films appealing to you?  

- Classify the films according to genre (structures)   

- Where did the stories for these movies come from?  Where do stories for movies come from today?

- Choosing one of the films from your list, describe the story by organizing the film into a beginning, middle, and end.  What are the possible origins of the film's story?

Assignment Two:  Timeline of Moving Pictures

Timeline to be posted 

Assignment Three:  The First Motion Picture

The first film ever to be shown to an audience was produced by the Lumiere Brothers and premiered in 1885.  The film was called Workers Leaving the Factory.  View the short film, taking note of the camera techniques (e.g. type of shot, focus, effects, sound) used and consider the benefits/limitations of those techniques.

Record your responses in your journal and in the comments section on the Film Viewing page.

Film Shoot #1

Like Workers Leaving the Factory, make a 30 second to one minute film with the camera in a fixed position.  There can be no effects, change of angle, zooming, panning, or sound.  In your journals and on the Film VIewing page, discuss the benefits and limits of the technique used.  Consider any of the applicable questions found at the top of the Film Viewing page in your answer.

Film Shoot #2

Repeat the filiming exercise, shooting continuously for one minute. However, this time you can make some modifications (e.g. angle, lighting, action, pan, zoom, close-up, wide angle).  For a description of various camera shots, click on the Camera Shots  link in the sidebar. 

In your journals and on the Film VIewing page, discuss the benefits and limits of the techniques used.  Consider any of the applicable questions found at the top of the Film Viewing page in your answer.

Assignment Four:  Viewing Early Motion Pictures

Before the advent of dedicated movie houses, films were shown in amusement parks, fairs, exhibitions, opera houses, and vaudeville shows.  Because of the limitations of film and camera technology at the time, many early films were actualities, which means that their subjects were nonfiction, including travel, scenic views, and news.

View the following short films and consider who the audience might be for these films.  After viewing the films, write down your reactions to each film in your journal (they can be brief).  Be sure to record the name of each film.  Choosing two of the films (one actualite and one novelty film), consider the checklist of questions on the Film Viewing page, and answer the applicable questions for those two films in the comment section on the page.  Please include a title for your comments and write one comment per film (for a total of two).. 

The first selection of films are actualities.

The second selection of films are called novelty films.

Assignment Five: Narrative, Magic, and Illusion

Assignment Six:  Film Making Broadens in Scope 

As public interest in film grew, films became broader in scope, depth, length, and complexity as filmmakers honed their craft.  There was also a move by filmmakers to broaden their audience - moving away from lower class audiences to middle class ones - by including subjects such as history, literature and social purpose in their films.

Studios began to develop that could produce and distribute films.  The studios would often pay actors a salary in exchange for exclusive rights (actors could only work for one studio).  The studio system remained until after the Second World War.

Your assignment is to view one of the feature-length films that can be found at one of the following links and complete the questions found on the Film Viewing page.  Also consider how these "epic" films more closely resemble the films we view today (and how they differ).

www.jaman.com/browse/

www.jaman.com/movie/Nosferatu/0dRmntBiVrDU/

Film-and-Video-Studies