Hitchcock Historical and Institutional Influences

Hitchcock Historical and Institutional Influences

1. What are the institutional factors that may be important?
a. as a production of a specific producer (i.e. Walt Disney), institution (Disney Studios), specific economic factors (Studio Film), or a political background? (U.S. politics 1959)
2. What is the film’s historical significance?
a. as a document of its time?
b. as a part of history of film?
c. as a representation or reaction to the studio system?

Psycho, by Alfred Hitchcock, is a very interesting film that is famous for being one of the best slasher horror films to ever be made. This film has influenced countless people and entertained a wide variety more. During the making or preproduction of the film, many studios would choose to not fund the film Hitchcock had great visions of. But Hitchcock was known to be a great filmmaker, “Indeed, he was flawless as an editor. In the distinctive rhythm of his cuts, alternately tightening and slackening, and quickening to a climax, we become intimately aware of his physical presence” (464). They thought that including the techniques he proposed for the film, including all of the slasher aspects of the bloodshed and murders, were immoral and extremely gruesome. They believed that audiences would not enjoy the film because it had many aspects to it that were considered controversial. “Even though the villain's body count is only two, the film's "whodunit" plot structure, knife-wielding and mentally disturbed killer, twist ending and 'stalking' camera technique proved influential on films to come” (461) This quote shows how big a role this film played and the technique within it. After going to many big studios and proposing his ideas for his film, he was given a chance. But this deal was only for the screening and distribution of the film and not the actual making or production of the film. The studio was called Paramount Studios Inc. and they assisted Hitchcock in these affairs. The profits were distributed so that the studio gains sixty percent of the revenue made from the profits. Hitchcock finally had a chance and he was a very influential figure in the industry, “They honed their craft by close study of his work, consulting the Truffaut interviews as a kind of bible of filmmaking.” (464)  Politics in the United States were becoming very difficult at this age when talking about film. Censorship laws and bans etc. forced out some genres and films that would have otherwise been huge successes in the industry. The government wanted to filter anything that might cause controversy including nudity, sexual appeal, violence, bloodshed, or incorrect ideologies portrayed within the film. This film has truly left its mark on the future for filmmaking. Slasher films such as Scream or Halloween series all have elements from this era of film and the techniques used then are still used in films that we know very well today.

Hitchcock Genre and Audience

Hitchcock Genre and Audience

1. What tradition or genre is it in?
2. What are the features determining genre or elements that tell us what type of film this is?
3. What other work might it be connected to?
4. Who made this? Why?
5. What can we tell about its’ creators?
6. How does it fit within the director’s other work?
a. Does it share significant narrative or thematic concerns?
b. Does it share particular visual or technical elements?
7. What is the film’s theme?
8. What is the target audience? How does it address its audience?

The film Psycho was a film directed by Alfred Hitchcock in 1960. The film was a suspense thriller and horror film. The genre it would belong to is known as the slasher genre that revolved around violence and gruesome events. The features in this film that determine genre or elements that highlight the type of film it is are highlighting the characters roles, music, relating events, sound effects, chase sequences, motifs, and lighting. Music can add a sense of suspense and drama especially when dealing with films of this genre. Sound effects also add to the nature of the film. The chase sequence when the woman is being chased, or is escaping, to flee to Arizona is very well thought out. In this scene she is being very worried and cautious about her actions. Motifs such as the blade or knife and also birds can add a sense of the genre because we associate them with the type of film being made. Lighting is extremely key in films of this genre although it does not have color and is only black and white. Low lighting can create a mood or tone or even atmosphere by adding an aspect of fear or something of that sort as a build up to scenes in the future. Symbols such as the birds (birds are in the first hotel scene and represent the womans name which is Crane and also talk about other characters in the story) also help to propel the plot and provide backstory if used correctly. These elements are definitely connected to other works of the same genre. The music and tone and suspense leads to a dramatic conclusion and it impacts the feeling of the film. Hitchcock was known to incorporate many suspenseful techniques in his films. He was always wanting to show the audience what he wanted to show in his thrillers and really bring them into the story to captivate them. But to fully appreciate all of his tricks and clues and hints in the story the viewer must see the movie more than just one viewing but many so they can notice all it has to bring in terms of foreshadowing and hinting and what may come in the future. Hitchcock was truly a pioneer in the industry and he incorporated his own ideas and tactics to the films he made while also respecting the techniques that were already being used in other films of the same genre. The target audience would be anyone that could handle the slasher type of films as there are many scenes involving violence and bloodshed. Younger audiences might not have had the ability to enjoy the film because it is in the horror genre. It was mainly made for young adult audiences.

Silent to Studio Golden Years

Part 1: Explore how the inclusion of sound in the movie pictures impacted the Movie Industry. Detail how it happened, who was affected, what was lost.

The inclusion of sound impacted the movie industry in several ways. In the beginning large studios opposed the idea of including sound in their films. The public was accustomed to silent films and didn’t want change. Sometimes stars voices didn't fit their roles and studios spent a lot of money to invest in their silent stars and couldn't possibly have them talk in movies. There were issues with capital, spending to build sound facilities, and the cost of making them was costly. There was a large risk in changing the status quo of the industry. There could be many failures if they added sound and since they were already making tons of money with their silent films, they saw no reason to change it. Warner Bros studios was the first to make a feature length film while incorporating sound called The Jazz Singer. The other major film studios were worried and started to do the same and soon they were making films with sound. These large studios and the audiences and the actors were all affected.

Part 2: The 20 years between 1930 and 1950 are generally recognized as the studio years. Describe what the pros and cons were of this factory system.

The studio years were a period when  MGM, 20th Century Fox, RKO, Warner Brothers, Paramount, Universal, and Columbia dominated the film industry. The movie industry had three economic divisions known as the production, distribution, and exhibition or films. Throughout this great era of film, studios would build large and elaborate sound stages. They created land for for movie sets in the southern region of California. The studios became very efficient and productive and it was a successful era in the industry. They made sure their stars were their only and this eliminated competition from others if you had a well-producing set of actors for your films. Each studio also became famous for excelling in its own genre of film.

Resources:
http://cybercollege.com/frtv/frtv003.htm
http://www.studyblue.com/notes/note/n/20s-hollywood-and-soundthe-studio-system/deck/171388

5 Types of Writing

5 Types of Writing

In this article written by Karen Gocsik, she explains differences in how we interpret and react to film and its analysis. The article highlights the five ways in which you can write about film, the first being formal analysis. This type of analysis requires people to look at all the different aspects of the film and then relate them back individually to the overall picture or message of the film and how they help the overall film. When we look at the individual parts we can make sense of why the director chose to incorporate this in his film and how it helps the plot as well as what role it plays in the story being told. The next type of writing is called film history. This is essentially talking about a period in time and every film that is made has this aspect to it. The film reflects ideals of history and tells the story from this viewpoint. The next type of writing is ideological papers. This means that the film has a set of specific beliefs and ideology, hence the name. It has to do with the idea or ideas being presented or promoted and how well the film attempts to do this. The next type of writing is cultural studies of films that have aspects of a certain culture or country that it was made in. This is varied due to the many types of cultures around the world so it is interesting to see how others portray information and life. One cultures have different values, different kinds of people, and can have a totally different ideology than those of other cultures. Last but not least is discussion of the auteur which is taking the ideas that the director wanted to present and his overall vision for the film.

Shot from Gone With the Wind highlights Film History 

This ideology is representative of Culture  Studies and Ideology from a specific place 

Annotating a Film Sequence

Annotating a film sequence requires using language and diction in order to completely understand what is occurring in a specific sequence of shots. This is labeling the shots in a sequence and effects such as dissolves. Through this, you can learn keep track of the shots and look at them as a whole series and change them and add aspects that will enhance the overall product. This is beneficial to the editor and director that require this knowledge to be successful.


Thinking Beyond the Frame

Thinking beyond the frame is really looking at the effect of the film, history of the film and context, and realizing what the true vision of the director was. It is looking at why the director chose to do what he did while also being conscious of how it is being interpreted by many different kinds of people, its cultural impact, and how it relates to its genre which can highly add to your knowledge through analytical reasons for its production.