Melies, Porter, Hepworth; Styles of Film; The Pre-Arranged Scene Assigment; Review Review

Melies and Porter both found a way to edit and arrange film to create a narrative story. With these two film directors we begin to expand the novelty and artistic quality of the medium. Across the pond in Britain, Cecil B. Hepworth continued the tradition.

If we were to reduce all films to a continuum, we would have realism on one end of the continuum and formalism on the other. The Lumiere Brothers, and many of Edison's films, are considered actualities and are little more than moving snapshots of real life in real settings shot on location in real places. Viewers were fascinated by these films partly because they had never seen a picture move, but also because the events the films captured were spontaneous and true. It don't get more real than this! The most real films are often considered to be documentaries--documents of real people, places, or events.

On the other side of the continuum is formalism. Formalist films are often avant-garde or metaphorical. Melies' films are perfect examples of this kind of film. Melies used trick photography, whimsical and fantastic subject matter that went beyond reality, and arranged his scenes deliberately for effect. While the camera stays at a safe viewing distance (long shot), the entire film is manipulated to create an effect on the viewer. When a director does these things (tricks like dissolves or stop motion or careful editing) he is beginning to lose the spontaneity of capturing real life, as all is "staged" and "un-real".

Today most films are considered the mid-range between realism and formalism. This mid-range is called classicism and most fiction films fall into this category.

As we watch these films, please record the title, name of director, and a 1-3 sentence description.

A TRIP TO THE MOON (1902), Directed by George Melies
THE GREAT TRAIN ROBBERY (1903), Directed by Edwin S. Porter
Rescued by Rover (1905), Cecil B. Hepworth
That Fatal Sneeze (1907), Cecil B. Hepworth

After screening the films, please complete the following:

George Melies outlined a narrative story by numbering scenes he would need for a film. See the chapter on Melies (handout) for examples. This arrangement served as a creative outline for most early filmmakers. Much of the plot, acting, and filming was completely improv, but directors had a general idea of the film they wanted to make.

1. Work alone or with one partner.
2. Create your own pre-arranged scene break-down for a film of your own. You may wish, like Melies, to choose a favorite story or fairy tale, or create your own sci-fi or fantasy story or like Porter base your story on an event taken from News headlines, or from your own imagination.
3. Create a short film with up to 10 distinct scenes. You should give a very short description of each scene that includes the following information:

A. Where does the action/filming take place?
B. What is the central action or event in the scene?
C. What characters are involved in the action?
D. How does one action lead to a reaction (cause and effect, or i.e., PLOT) and/or resolution? And E. What type of shot would you use for the scene: Close-up, Medium shot, Long Shot, Tracking Shot, Pan, (extreme close up or long shot?) -- Use the storyboard handout to sketch a quick sketch of your scene.

Reviews of a film script: if you did not attend last class, or you didn't complete (or need to revise) your film review, please do so today. Final drafts of the assignment for a grade are due Friday by the end of class.

• Give your review a title.
• Titles of films are italicized.
• When writing about a film, do your research first. Find out the year it was produced, who wrote the script, directed the film, and other important details from IMDB.COM. Use this information to help make your writing/review specific and detailed. Don't be lazy and skip this step!
• Many of you watched a film and wrote a review of a film you saw before, but did not read. Read the script so that you can write the paragraph about writing STYLE and the film's writer. Consider how the film is WRITTEN or reads differently than viewing the film. What have you learned about WRITING a film script from this assignment? That should be part of your review. 
• Start off your review with an attention-grabbing hook. Like a teaser or trailer of a film...
• Some films influenced films that came after them. Other films were influenced by film. If you have written about one of these, add details from your RESEARCH.
• Write about novels and films in the present tense. This is called the "literary present"--assume that the film IS still alive, not in the past. See this explanation for more help.
• Correct grammar and punctuation in your review. Stop being sloppy when writing. Learn the rules of Standard Written English and use them until you die. Help with grammar/punctuation can be found online and here.
• Write your essays and reviews for this class using MLA format. It is the expectation. Look here for help in formatting an MLA formatted review. Also refer to my handouts.
• End your essay with a good, creative concluding statement.
• Check the previous post for details about the assignment. Make sure you have completed all parts of the assignment for full credit.
• Final drafts are due Friday by the end of class.

Upcoming Test:
We will also have our first test covering film from the 1880's-1910's. Please study and bring your notes with you to class.

HOMEWORK: Read the chapter handout on Edwin S. Porter. The prearranged scene outline is also due next class, along with a test (bring your notes!--remember: you should have read the first two parts from this website: http://www.filmsite.org/pre20sintro.html) and your revised review.