On youtube.com, check out some early film comedies.
You may wish to inspect any of the following films from actors/directors:
1. Charlie Chaplin
2. Mack Sennett
3. Keystone Kops
4. Buster Keaton
5. Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle
6. Harry Langdon
7. Harold Lloyd
8. W.C. Fields
9. Florence Turner
If you have time, take a look at any of the actors/directors' work listed on page 3 of your homework. (for example: Mary Pickford, Douglas Fairbanks, Sr., Lon Chaney Sr., Oscar Micheaux (first black director) and the films of Alice Guy Blanche.
Friday, February 27, 2009
Charlie Chaplin
"All I need to make a comedy is a park, a policeman, and a pretty girl." -Sir Charles Chaplin Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin (1889-1977)
• Born in London, UK to theatrical parents
• Chaplin’s childhood was one of extreme poverty and hardship
• Abandoned by an alcoholic father and left with a mentally unstable mother who was unable to support him, he struggled through life in the poor house and on the streets
• He learnt much of his timing and technique in the employment of impresario Fred Karno (1866-1941) whose troupe he left during an American tour in 1913
• Offered a contract by Keystone Films
• After 1914, he convinced Keystone producer Mack Sennett to allow him to direct his own films - often wrote, directed, acted and composed his own musical scores for his films
• In many silent shorts, he established the grammar and ground rules of screen comedy using his physical dexterity and pantomime skills to create expertly choreographed, visually humorous entertainment that mixed irreverence, romance, and pathos (feeling)
• Co-founder of United Artists in 1919
• Married Oona O’Neill (daughter of playwright Eugene O’Neill)
• His left-wing sympathies caused him to emigrate to Switzerland during the 1950’s, McCarthy period
• He published his autobiography in 1964 and was knighted in 1975
• Chaplin died on Christmas day, 1977
• A writer Performer, director, composer and icon, he was a vital figure in the development of the screen comedy Films (incomplete list): Making a Living (1913) Kid Auto Races at Venice (1914) The Champion (1915) The Tramp (1915) The Pawnshop (1916) The Rink (1916) A Dog’s Life (1918) The Kid (1921) The Gold Rush (1925) City Lights (1931) Modern Times (1936) The Great Dictator (1940) Limelight (1952) A King in New York (1957) A Countess from Hong Kong (1967)
• Born in London, UK to theatrical parents
• Chaplin’s childhood was one of extreme poverty and hardship
• Abandoned by an alcoholic father and left with a mentally unstable mother who was unable to support him, he struggled through life in the poor house and on the streets
• He learnt much of his timing and technique in the employment of impresario Fred Karno (1866-1941) whose troupe he left during an American tour in 1913
• Offered a contract by Keystone Films
• After 1914, he convinced Keystone producer Mack Sennett to allow him to direct his own films - often wrote, directed, acted and composed his own musical scores for his films
• In many silent shorts, he established the grammar and ground rules of screen comedy using his physical dexterity and pantomime skills to create expertly choreographed, visually humorous entertainment that mixed irreverence, romance, and pathos (feeling)
• Co-founder of United Artists in 1919
• Married Oona O’Neill (daughter of playwright Eugene O’Neill)
• His left-wing sympathies caused him to emigrate to Switzerland during the 1950’s, McCarthy period
• He published his autobiography in 1964 and was knighted in 1975
• Chaplin died on Christmas day, 1977
• A writer Performer, director, composer and icon, he was a vital figure in the development of the screen comedy Films (incomplete list): Making a Living (1913) Kid Auto Races at Venice (1914) The Champion (1915) The Tramp (1915) The Pawnshop (1916) The Rink (1916) A Dog’s Life (1918) The Kid (1921) The Gold Rush (1925) City Lights (1931) Modern Times (1936) The Great Dictator (1940) Limelight (1952) A King in New York (1957) A Countess from Hong Kong (1967)
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
D. W. Giffith & Lilian Gish
D. W. Griffith
1. Born in 1875 to Colonel "Roaring Jake" Griffith, a confederate army colonel and Civil War hero
2. In 1897 Griffith set out to pursue a career in acting and writing for the theatre but was unsuccessful
3. He first acted for Edwin S. Porter at the Edison Co.
4. Later he was hired by the Biograph Company (1908) where he wrote and directed over 450 films
5. He directed the first movie shot in Hollywood: "In Old California" (1910)
6. He was called the ÒFather of film techniqueÓ & "the man who invented Hollywood"
7. With cinematographer G.W. Bitzer, he created and perfected the film devices: the Iris shot the flashback crosscutting He directed the very controversial The Birth of a Nation (1915) Based on Thomas Dixon's stage play "The Clansman" Over 3 hours long, the racist epic included a cast of hundreds Contained many new film innovations:
Special use of subtitles It's own musical score with orchestra
Introduction of night photography
Used a "still shot"
Used an "Iris shot"
Used parallel action Used panning and tracking shots
Used close-ups to reveal intimate expressions of actors Used fade outs and cameo-profiles
Used high-angles and panoramic (extreme) long shots
Used cross cutting between two scenes to create excitement and suspense
9. A year later his masterpiece Intolerance (1916) was made as a reaction to the censorship of Birth of a Nation
10. In 1919 he established the film company United Artists with Charlie Chaplin, Douglas Fairbanks, Mary Pickford, and William S. Hart
Overall, Griffith directed over 500 films He retired in 1931 and died in Los Angeles in 1948.
In 1975 his picture was on a post stamp. But by 1999, The Director's Guild of America's National Board renamed the prestigious D.W. Griffith Award (first given in 1953 to such directors as Woody Allen, Stanley Kubrick, John Huston, Alfred Hitchcock, Ingmar Bergman, John Ford, Akira Kurosawa, and Cecil B. DeMille) because of Griffith's racism.
"We do not fear censorship, for we have no wish to offend with improprieties or obscenities, but we do demand, as a right, the liberty to show the dark side of wrong, that we may illuminate the bright side of virtue - the same liberty that is conceded to the art of the written word - that art to which we owe the Bible and the works of Shakespeare."
D.W. Griffith (1915)
"If in this work we have conveyed to the mind the ravages of war to the end that war may be held in abhorrence, this effort will not have been in vain." - D. W. Griffith (1915)
1. Born in 1875 to Colonel "Roaring Jake" Griffith, a confederate army colonel and Civil War hero
2. In 1897 Griffith set out to pursue a career in acting and writing for the theatre but was unsuccessful
3. He first acted for Edwin S. Porter at the Edison Co.
4. Later he was hired by the Biograph Company (1908) where he wrote and directed over 450 films
5. He directed the first movie shot in Hollywood: "In Old California" (1910)
6. He was called the ÒFather of film techniqueÓ & "the man who invented Hollywood"
7. With cinematographer G.W. Bitzer, he created and perfected the film devices: the Iris shot the flashback crosscutting He directed the very controversial The Birth of a Nation (1915) Based on Thomas Dixon's stage play "The Clansman" Over 3 hours long, the racist epic included a cast of hundreds Contained many new film innovations:
Special use of subtitles It's own musical score with orchestra
Introduction of night photography
Used a "still shot"
Used an "Iris shot"
Used parallel action Used panning and tracking shots
Used close-ups to reveal intimate expressions of actors Used fade outs and cameo-profiles
Used high-angles and panoramic (extreme) long shots
Used cross cutting between two scenes to create excitement and suspense
9. A year later his masterpiece Intolerance (1916) was made as a reaction to the censorship of Birth of a Nation
10. In 1919 he established the film company United Artists with Charlie Chaplin, Douglas Fairbanks, Mary Pickford, and William S. Hart
Overall, Griffith directed over 500 films He retired in 1931 and died in Los Angeles in 1948.
In 1975 his picture was on a post stamp. But by 1999, The Director's Guild of America's National Board renamed the prestigious D.W. Griffith Award (first given in 1953 to such directors as Woody Allen, Stanley Kubrick, John Huston, Alfred Hitchcock, Ingmar Bergman, John Ford, Akira Kurosawa, and Cecil B. DeMille) because of Griffith's racism.
"We do not fear censorship, for we have no wish to offend with improprieties or obscenities, but we do demand, as a right, the liberty to show the dark side of wrong, that we may illuminate the bright side of virtue - the same liberty that is conceded to the art of the written word - that art to which we owe the Bible and the works of Shakespeare."
D.W. Griffith (1915)
"If in this work we have conveyed to the mind the ravages of war to the end that war may be held in abhorrence, this effort will not have been in vain." - D. W. Griffith (1915)
Hepworth Manufacturing Co.
Cecil Hepworth (1874 –1953)
How It Feels to be Run Over (1900)
Explosion of a Motor Car (1900)
Rescued by Rover (1905)
• Hepworth was an English film director, producer and screenwriter, he was among the founders of the British film industry and continued making films into the 1920s.
• His father was a famous magic lantern showman.
• He became involved in the early stages of British filmmaking, working for both Birt Acres and Charles Urban, and wrote the first British book on the subject in 1897.
• With his cousin Monty Wicks he set up the production company Hepworth and Co. — later renamed the Hepworth Manufacturing Compnay, then Hepworth Picture Plays.
• In 1899 they built a small film studio in Walton-on-Thames. The company produced about three films a week, sometimes with Hepworth directing.
• Rescued by Rover (1905) was a huge success at the box office, starring a collie in the title role. The film is now regarded as an important development in film grammar, with shots being effectively combined to emphasise the action. Hepworth was also one of the first to recognize the potential of film stars, both animal and human, with several recurring characters appearing in his films.
• The company continued making popular films into the 1920s.
• The company went public to fund a large studio development but lost money and closed.
• Tragically, all of Hepworth's original film negatives were melted down.
How It Feels to be Run Over (1900)
Explosion of a Motor Car (1900)
Rescued by Rover (1905)
• Hepworth was an English film director, producer and screenwriter, he was among the founders of the British film industry and continued making films into the 1920s.
• His father was a famous magic lantern showman.
• He became involved in the early stages of British filmmaking, working for both Birt Acres and Charles Urban, and wrote the first British book on the subject in 1897.
• With his cousin Monty Wicks he set up the production company Hepworth and Co. — later renamed the Hepworth Manufacturing Compnay, then Hepworth Picture Plays.
• In 1899 they built a small film studio in Walton-on-Thames. The company produced about three films a week, sometimes with Hepworth directing.
• Rescued by Rover (1905) was a huge success at the box office, starring a collie in the title role. The film is now regarded as an important development in film grammar, with shots being effectively combined to emphasise the action. Hepworth was also one of the first to recognize the potential of film stars, both animal and human, with several recurring characters appearing in his films.
• The company continued making popular films into the 1920s.
• The company went public to fund a large studio development but lost money and closed.
• Tragically, all of Hepworth's original film negatives were melted down.
Monday, February 23, 2009
a viewing guide to early cinema and directors
On the link to your left, please view and take notes on the following film makers:
1. Birt Acres
2. Cecil Hepworth
3. R. W. Paul
Then go to YOUTUBE.COM and take a look at these films:
1. Edwin S. Porter's: The Life of an American Fireman (first documentary - 1903
2. Rough Sea at Dover by Birt Acres
3. Alice in Wonderland (1903) by Cecil Hepworth
4. Anything by R. W. Paul
5. Anything by George Melies
1. Birt Acres
2. Cecil Hepworth
3. R. W. Paul
Then go to YOUTUBE.COM and take a look at these films:
1. Edwin S. Porter's: The Life of an American Fireman (first documentary - 1903
2. Rough Sea at Dover by Birt Acres
3. Alice in Wonderland (1903) by Cecil Hepworth
4. Anything by R. W. Paul
5. Anything by George Melies
Edwin S. Porter & George Melies
Edwin S. Porter
The Great Train Robbery (1903)
The Dream of the Rarebit Fiend (1906)
• Porter started as a projectionist and mechanic
• Became director and cameraman for Thomas Edison the Edison Manufacturing Co.
• Influenced by the story films of Georges Méliès
• Porter made important films such as Life of an American Fireman (1903) and The Great Train Robbery (1903). The latter was perhaps the cinema’s first Western.
• The GTR was groundbreaking for its use of "cross-cutting" in editing to show simultaneous action in different places. The film was also shot out of sequence.
• In these films and others, Porter helped to develop the modern concept of continuity editing. (The goal of continuity editing is to make the work of the editor as invisible as possible, and shots should flow together naturally to appear continuous.)
• He is often credited with discovering that the basic unit of structure in film was the shot rather than the scene (the basic unit on the stage), paving the way for D.W. Griffith's advances in editing and screen storytelling.
• Porter left Edison in 1909 to form his own production company which he eventually sold in 1912.
• He died on April 30, 1941 in New York City.
George Melies
A Trip to the Moon (1902)
• Georges Melies, a professional magician by training. In 1895, Méliès saw a demonstration of the Lumière brothers' Cinematographe in Paris, the first public display of motion pictures. After unsuccessful attempts to purchase a system from the Lumières, Méliès rushed home to build his own camera-projector.
• Little over a year later, Melies was filming his own creations. He discovered that he could use stop-motion photography to render trick visual effects. Melies was also the first to use techniques such as the fade-in, the fade-out, and the dissolve to create the first real narrative films.
• He started his own film company: The Houdin Theater.
• Melies made over 500 films, but his most famous, Voyage dans la lune, Le (1902) (Voyage to the Moon) made him a fortune.
• Melies, trained in classic theater, conceived all of his films in terms of fully played-out scenes.
• Just before WWI his film career was over. He tried briefly to revive the Theatre Houdin, but died penniless at 77.
The Great Train Robbery (1903)
The Dream of the Rarebit Fiend (1906)
• Porter started as a projectionist and mechanic
• Became director and cameraman for Thomas Edison the Edison Manufacturing Co.
• Influenced by the story films of Georges Méliès
• Porter made important films such as Life of an American Fireman (1903) and The Great Train Robbery (1903). The latter was perhaps the cinema’s first Western.
• The GTR was groundbreaking for its use of "cross-cutting" in editing to show simultaneous action in different places. The film was also shot out of sequence.
• In these films and others, Porter helped to develop the modern concept of continuity editing. (The goal of continuity editing is to make the work of the editor as invisible as possible, and shots should flow together naturally to appear continuous.)
• He is often credited with discovering that the basic unit of structure in film was the shot rather than the scene (the basic unit on the stage), paving the way for D.W. Griffith's advances in editing and screen storytelling.
• Porter left Edison in 1909 to form his own production company which he eventually sold in 1912.
• He died on April 30, 1941 in New York City.
George Melies
A Trip to the Moon (1902)
• Georges Melies, a professional magician by training. In 1895, Méliès saw a demonstration of the Lumière brothers' Cinematographe in Paris, the first public display of motion pictures. After unsuccessful attempts to purchase a system from the Lumières, Méliès rushed home to build his own camera-projector.
• Little over a year later, Melies was filming his own creations. He discovered that he could use stop-motion photography to render trick visual effects. Melies was also the first to use techniques such as the fade-in, the fade-out, and the dissolve to create the first real narrative films.
• He started his own film company: The Houdin Theater.
• Melies made over 500 films, but his most famous, Voyage dans la lune, Le (1902) (Voyage to the Moon) made him a fortune.
• Melies, trained in classic theater, conceived all of his films in terms of fully played-out scenes.
• Just before WWI his film career was over. He tried briefly to revive the Theatre Houdin, but died penniless at 77.
Sunday, February 22, 2009
The Academy of Motion Pictures - History
The Academy Awards®, known as the Oscars®, are the oldest, best known and famous film awards. The awards have been presented annually (the first ceremony was held in May, 1929) by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), based in Beverly Hills, California (founded in 1927).
"Except for the early years of the institution, the awards honored films made during the previous 12-month calendar year. Films also had to be over 40 minutes long to qualify as feature-length. Until 1954, the Oscars were presented mostly on a Thursday evening. From 1955 to 1958, they were presented on a Wednesday. From 1959 until 1998 the Oscars were, with a few exceptions, presented on a Monday night. Only since 1999 has the Awards ceremony taken place on a Sunday (traditionally in March). In 2004, the ceremony was moved even earlier to improve ratings and to be more relevant to the awards 'season'.
Comments About the Awards Themselves:
The establishment of the Academy (and its awards system) has had a major effect and influence upon the film industry, due to the enormous boost a nomination or award (for a film or actor) creates, by giving prestige and bottom-line profits to a studio or performer.
Studios have often engaged in expensive marketing and advertising campaigns to sway votes. The Academy has, with limited success, tried to limit the influences of pressure groups and promotion, box office gross receipts, and studio public relations and marketing on voting results. It has also attempted to limit votes for melodramatic sentimentality, atonement for past mistakes, personal popularity, and "prestige" or epic scale, but those influences have often had a decided effect upon the outcome of some of the poll results.
Unfortunately, the critical worth, artistic vision, cultural influence, and innovative qualities of many films are not given the same voting weight. Especially since the 80s, moneymaking 'formula-made' blockbusters with glossy production values have often been crowd-pleasing titans (and Best Picture winners), but they haven't necessarily been great films with depth or critical acclaim by any measure." See Tim Dirk's site for "The Worst Academy Awards Oscars" for more information.
"Like any other awards, recognitions, or "best" lists, the top nominees and winners do not necessarily reflect or objectively measure the greatest that cinematic history has to offer. Many of the most Deserving Films of All Time (see Films Without Awards) did not win Academy Awards® (and in some cases were not even included in the nominees). In addition, Top Box-Office Films aren't always guaranteed awards success either. And certain Film Genres (notably westerns, science fiction, and comedy) as well as independent films are not represented in balanced numbers throughout Oscar history." - Tim Dirks
Post your comments here about the award winners for 2008.
"Except for the early years of the institution, the awards honored films made during the previous 12-month calendar year. Films also had to be over 40 minutes long to qualify as feature-length. Until 1954, the Oscars were presented mostly on a Thursday evening. From 1955 to 1958, they were presented on a Wednesday. From 1959 until 1998 the Oscars were, with a few exceptions, presented on a Monday night. Only since 1999 has the Awards ceremony taken place on a Sunday (traditionally in March). In 2004, the ceremony was moved even earlier to improve ratings and to be more relevant to the awards 'season'.
Comments About the Awards Themselves:
The establishment of the Academy (and its awards system) has had a major effect and influence upon the film industry, due to the enormous boost a nomination or award (for a film or actor) creates, by giving prestige and bottom-line profits to a studio or performer.
Studios have often engaged in expensive marketing and advertising campaigns to sway votes. The Academy has, with limited success, tried to limit the influences of pressure groups and promotion, box office gross receipts, and studio public relations and marketing on voting results. It has also attempted to limit votes for melodramatic sentimentality, atonement for past mistakes, personal popularity, and "prestige" or epic scale, but those influences have often had a decided effect upon the outcome of some of the poll results.
Unfortunately, the critical worth, artistic vision, cultural influence, and innovative qualities of many films are not given the same voting weight. Especially since the 80s, moneymaking 'formula-made' blockbusters with glossy production values have often been crowd-pleasing titans (and Best Picture winners), but they haven't necessarily been great films with depth or critical acclaim by any measure." See Tim Dirk's site for "The Worst Academy Awards Oscars" for more information.
"Like any other awards, recognitions, or "best" lists, the top nominees and winners do not necessarily reflect or objectively measure the greatest that cinematic history has to offer. Many of the most Deserving Films of All Time (see Films Without Awards) did not win Academy Awards® (and in some cases were not even included in the nominees). In addition, Top Box-Office Films aren't always guaranteed awards success either. And certain Film Genres (notably westerns, science fiction, and comedy) as well as independent films are not represented in balanced numbers throughout Oscar history." - Tim Dirks
Post your comments here about the award winners for 2008.
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