Short Answer Questions

Question

1. As a method of organizing film history, what does periodization refer to?

Periodization is the organization of film history into historical segments that help identify movies’ shared thematic and stylistic concerns. Within each historical segment, one can identify key social events that defined film history as well as formal shifts that illuminate the stylistic standards of that time.

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2. Describe the period of “early cinema” (1895–1913). What are the primary industrial, cultural, and stylistic aspects that define the films of this period?

The early cinema period is characterized as the period of rapid development and experimentation that preceded Hollywood’s dominance and the more defined patterns of classical Hollywood cinema. In the United States, massive industrialization attracted large numbers of immigrants and rural Americans to urban centers, where the movie industry found many of its subjects and audiences. Audiences were initially attracted to the cinema to marvel at this new technology of projecting moving images. Stylistically, early cinema was characterized by the shift from single to multiple shots and the beginnings of continuity editing and variations in camera distance in the early elaboration of narrative form.

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3. What were the primary features and qualities of German expressionist cinema, which arose during the Weimar era?

The art movement of expressionism (in film, theater, painting, and the other arts) turned away from realist representation and focused on the unconscious and irrational sides of human experience. Weimar-era German expressionist movies, such as The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920), challenged the realist drive of traditional film by concentrating on the darker sides of human experience and representing irrational forces through the use of distorted and expressive lighting, set, and costume design.

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4. In the aftermath of World War II, a number of international postwar cinema movements arose, such as the French New Wave. What were some of the historical, cultural, and stylistic features that connected these movements?

After World War II, in response to the political and social changes and challenges that affected societies worldwide, new international film movements arose, revitalizing the medium and raising awareness of film’s role in national and cultural life. Despite the variety among different international postwar cinemas, these new waves tended to share two common characteristics that set them apart from prewar cinema: (1) they rejected ”classic” filmmaking institutions and genres and (2) they used film to express a personal vision.

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5. The most-popular Indian cinematic style, which is produced in Bombay and is often referred to as Bollywood, is characterized by what primary features?

In the 1970s, India overtook Hollywood as the world’s largest film producer, driven largely by the hundreds of Hindi-language films produced annually by studios in Bombay (now Mumbai). These films (often referred to as Bollywood films) are a dominant cultural form notable for their rootedness in Hindu culture and mythology and their elaborate song-and-dance numbers. With an episodic narrative form based in theatrical traditions that accommodate musical numbers, many Hindi films highlight star performances.