The Language of Film

by Edgar, Robert; Marland, John; Rawle, Steven

• ISBN13: 9781472575241
• ISBN10: 1472575245
• Edition: 2nd
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2015-10-22
• Publisher: Fairchild Books

Summary

An effective filmmaker needs to have a good understanding of how film language works, and more importantly, how to actively influence an audience's thoughts and feelings and guide their gaze around the screen.

Packed with examples from classic and contemporary cinema, The Language of Film reveals the essential building blocks of film and explains how the screen communicates meaning to its audience. You will learn about fundamental theories and concepts, including film semiotics, narrative structures, ideology, and genre, as well as how elements such as shot size, camera movement, editing technique, and color come together to create the cinematic image.

With insightful case studies and discussion questions, dozens of practical tips and exercises, and a new chapter on film sound, this new edition of The Language of Film is a must-have guide for aspiring filmmakers.

Author Biography

Robert Edgar is Senior Lecturer in Film and in Creative Writing at York St John University, UK where he specializes in the practice of Screenwriting. John Marland is Senior Lecturer in Film and Literature at York St John University where he has both taught and developed undergraduate courses in Scriptwriting. Steven Rawle is a Senior Lecturer in Film Studies at York St. John University, UK, where he teaches film form and the politics of global cultural production at undergraduate and postgraduate levels.

Table of Contents

Introduction

Chapter 1 - Semiotics: Images; The Visual Mind; Reading the Signs; Making Meaning; Codes and Filters; Case study: Seven (d: David Fincher, US); Chapter 1 Summary.

Chapter 2 - Narrative: Theories of Storytelling; Structuralism; Theories of Structure; Genette's Narrative Discourse; Case Study: The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (dir: Ben Stiller); Chapter 2 Summary.

Chapter 3 - Intertextuality: Text; Quotation; Allusion; Cult Film; Genre; Case Study: Citizen Kane (dir: Orson Welles); Chapter 3 Summary.

Chapter 4 - Ideology: Ideological Analysis; Realism; Ideology and Genre; Case study: Dead Man's Shoes (dir: Shane Meadows); Chapter 4 Summary.

Chapter 5 - Frames and Images: The Shot; Distance, Height and Framing; Mise en Scene; The Mobile Camera Frame; Time and the Long Take; Case Study: Hero (dir: Yimou Zhang); Chapter 5 Summary.

Chapter 6 - Sound: Film: An Audio-visual Medium; Sound Properties; Diegetic and Non-diegetic Sound; Off-screen Space and Audio; The voice; Music; Case study: Berberian Sound Studio (dir: David Strickland); Chapter 6 Summary.

Chapter 7 - Constructing Meaning: Continuity Editing; Discontinuity Editing; Montage; Pacing; Space; Case study: Psycho (dir: Alfred Hitchcock); Chapter 7 Summary.

Conclusion
Film language glossary
Acknowledgements and credits