Watch at least 3 films from Edison, Lumiere Brothers, and Melies on your own. Go to the Internet Archive, select "Moving Images" from the drop down menu and search for each director. All of the Edison films can be found at the Library of Congress and can be accessed here. Please be sure to tell me the name of the film and who made it and answer the following questions:
- Do you notice anything particular about the film’s presentation of cinematic space—what you see on the screen? Lots of landscapes or close-ups? Moving or static camera? How does this differ from films you watch today?
- Do you identify with the camera lens? What does the filmmaker compel you to see? What is left to your imagination? What is left out altogether?
Film 1 - "Le Thaumaturge Chinois" by Georges Méliès
ReplyDeleteThis film was like a stage show, where Méliès used the technology for film editing to make it seem like the magician is actually conjuring stuff. It filmed by a static camera facing the stage, and makes viewers feel like they're Part of the audience. This is very different from most of today's films, because it is not very immersive, and is just as detached as seeing something live onstage.
I identify with the camera lens as a member of the audience. Méliès wants to fool us into thinking the magician is really doing these (like a real magician onstage) so he leaves out when they place the new items on the stage.
Film 2 - "Le Squelette Joyeaux" by the Lumière Brothers
This film is very similar to the previous one. It is another depiction of a stage act, except this time with stop-motion film.
I identify with the camera lens in the same way as the previous film, the viewers are placed in the audience again.
Film 3 - "The Stenographer's Friend" by Thomas Edison
This film is much more similar to modern films than the previous two. This one has multiple different camera views, and close-ups. Most of it is shown from above, so we can see what is going on in the rooms.
I didn't identify as much with the camera lens in this film, because most of it is shown from the top of the room, but when the salesman is demonstrating the phonograph, we are placed right around it with them to see it. We are also placed next to the woman when she uses the phonograph to listen to what she needs to type, and it shows how much happier she is with a simplified job.
George Melies - “A Trip to the Moon”
ReplyDeleteThis film's presentation of space is very concrete, it doesn’t move the camera ever it changes the scene. As you go the setting changes and it seems like the camera never shifts or moves along with a character. Very straight forward viewing. You don’t see this today, we move the camera to highlight key features the camera almost never stays still and if it does it’ll cut to another angle to show movement.
I guess I would identify with the camera lens because that's all we see, we don’t identify with any characters because there isn’t any personal connections it’s more of a broad point of view looking at the story as a whole.
Lumiere Brothers - “Workers Leaving the Factory”
This is simple and depicts real life view so we only get one shot and it is a very short real life shot. The camera moves a little so we know that a person is holding the camera not a stand, and that helps you know that this is a film of what life used to be like. It is similar to today when someone would take a video out in public simple straight forward.
I easily identify with the camera lens in this one because we look straight at random people going through everyday activities.I guess something left to our imagination here is where they are leaving from, but since it is history the film is very straightforward. Something that could be left to our imagination is the sound of them bickering as they all leave the building.
Thomas Edison - “Frankenstein”
This video really utilizes their editing, it moves angles at some points and even views things almost first person perspective when, Doctor Frankenstein reads the letter. You do see a lot of landscapes and full scenes in this film though. There is a bit of variation and it shows a close up view of the monster. You see the use of colors which is really interesting.
I really identify with the camera lens in this one because it moves around so much you almost feel like connected in the film almost, really connected firmly to what you are seeing. You Identify more with the characters of this especially when it shows a first person perspective.
Thomas Edison- Boxing Cats
ReplyDeleteThis early film created inside the Black Maria and showed two cats boxing each other in a homemade ring. The camera does not move as the film is one close up shot of the cats. This film is primitive and does not follow a real narrative, as it was an early Edison.
I do identify with the lens on a small scale, as the scene is not moving at all. You never become emotionally attached, possibly because you are not given the time to.
George Melies- A Trip to the Moon
A landmark film considering effects and genre, this picture uses early special effects to transport audiences on an early science fiction movie. Melies uses his background as a magician to envision this film, and slave over the new techniques created with the film. "A Trip to the Moon" is comprised of mainly landscape shots in which the camera does not movie.
Due to the new effects and movement within the background and frame, identifying with the lens is an easy feat. This movie is one of my favorite early short films as it creates the narrative science fiction.
Lumiere Brothers - Workers Leaving the Factory
This movie is a single shot landscape of a shift letting out at a factory. An early documentary, the story is simple but tracks the everyday lives of these women.
The one shot is obviously crafted by the brothers and the lens gives a window into the time period of this movie. I identify with the tired workers who are excited to leave (and be a part of early cinema).
Keller
ReplyDelete1. The first film I watched was A Christmas Carol Directed by Thomas Alva Edison. The presentation of cinematic space in this film was very static and the camera was always the same distance away from the actors to allow other actors to come into the scene and be seen, and all shots looked like they were taken inside of a studio. The films we watch today include many shots of landscapes, close-ups and the camera moves every 10-15 seconds to give the audience every characters perception. I did identify with the camera lens but this film did not have the amount of verisimilitude as most films do today, of course, and I think that might be due to the lack of cinematic language. The filmmaker compels the audience to look at the intense emotion of the characters, which is due to the lack of sound which is left to our imagination. Cinematic language and point of view are definitely left out, as well as the manipulations of space and time.
2. The second film I watched was entitled, Le Royaume des Fées directed by Georges Méliès, this film’s presentation was much like A Christmas Carol, for each scene the camera stayed in place while the actors moved. Most films today move very often throughout each scene. Again all shots seem to be taken in a studio but there are a lot of special effects throughout the film that were not seen in Edison’s film, making chariots and people appear to be swimming under water with fish and lobsters passing by them, and painted scenery that makes it seem as if a small studio is as big as an entire kingdom or an ocean. The audience does identify with the camera lens, but as a viewer not as a character like in Saving Private Ryan, the audience isn’t emotionally connected, just physically connected with the film. The filmmaker compels you to see all of the beautiful colors and the magical special effects they used to make the film so mystical. Left to the audience’s imagination is
3. The final film I watched was a short film Directed by the Lumiere Brothers (Louis Lumiere) called Le Squelette Joyeaux. This film also had a fixed cinematic space like the films I previously spoke about, and the camera never moves. Films we watched today, as I previously mentioned, move very often and show the audience many different perspectives. I do not really identify with the camera lens in this film, I am just simply viewing it. The filmmaker compels me to see the comical effect of this film as the skeleton is flailing around the screen, to make laughter out of an otherwise scary situation. What is left for the viewers to imagine are simple questions as to why and how, also viewers can imagine the setting because it is not present in this film. Things left out are the setting, lighting, camera movement, and different aspects of cinematic language.
1 La Pêche Aux Poissons Rouges |Lumiere|
ReplyDelete"Fishing For Goldfish" shows an infant child, supported by a man, wading her hands in a bowl of goldfish. The film uses a static camera and a closeup of the two characters. It is a very short 42 seconds. Most of Lumiere's works are very short documentary films like this, so I don't identify with the lens, but the child and man appear very happy.
2 Le Voyage Dans la Lune |George Melies|
"A Trip to the Moon" is a rather surrealist film about astronomers taking a trip to the moon. The film begins with a static, open room lined with people. Most of the film is similar: open landscapes with numerous people. The characters use extravagent uniforms, and the sets are very complex. Most films today use moving camera, but similarly uses different sets. The filmmaker compelled me to notice these extravagant sets. The use of transitions is rather advance, with the use of fade ins and fade outs, as well as differentiating between background and foreground. The use of special effects truly inspired imagination as smoke was used to convey mass change, like the dissapation of the aliens or the casting of the rocket.
3 Frankenstein |Edison|
"Frankenstein" is based off of the work by Mary Shelly about a scientist gone mad as he reanimates life, only to create an evil form. In lack of sound during the early ages of movies, the use of text screens were implemented for the audience to understand the progression of plot. The film uses numerous sets with a static camera, most of which used open frames. The use of a concrete plot by use of text screens is a similarity to todays films. However, now we use audio. The change of tint was also noticeable as it changed the mood and action. The "normal" world appeared white, while victor's madness was portrayed orange, and the overcoming of love on the monster was portrayed in blue. this helped identify with the camera lens as it gave us a sense of emotional change. The use of special affects created an anticipated mood in the beginning and a sense of realization at the end.
1. "Annie Oakley" (Thomas Edison)
ReplyDeleteThis short one-shot film shows in the frame the subject, sharpshooter Annie Oakley; her assistant; and her targets against a plain black background. The camera is static, which, along with the lack of a story or context, makes the movie feel like it was a demonstration of what the camera could record. I don't really identify with the camera because the composition of the shot it much like an old photograph, and the graininess makes it look very dated.
2. "Demolition of a Wall" (Lumiere Brothers)
This short film features three workers pulling down a wall and breaking it apart with pickaxes. The camera is static and seems to focus on the wall more than the workers. A cloud of dust is kicked up when the wall falls, which reminds me of modern action special effects. It is a candid shot, and also seems to be a demonstrative film. I do identify with the camera, because the way the whole scene is visible gives the impression of being a pedestrian watching the men at work.
3. "A Trip to the Moon" (George Melies)
By far the most advanced film of the three I chose, "A Trip to the Moon" resembles a silent play. The camera is always static, offering one perspective but displaying the whole scene. It has a coherent plot, as well as multiple scenes, but the scenes resemble stage settings/props. I identify with the camera, as it serves as a frame for the narrative and showcases the action.
Thomas Edison - The Magician
ReplyDeleteIn this silent film, the presentation of cinematic space is an open shot, of a magician, who the viewer can tell is a magician by the title and his costume. He is presented as a magician in a room, he is in the center of the room, telling the viewer he is supposed to be the object of the film. The camera is static, and by the absence of movement in it, the viewer can assume it is probably done on a tripod, so pretty different from the multiple movement cameras in movies today. It is a little hard to identify with the camera lense in this short film, as it only concentrates on the magician and his “magic tricks”. The camera shows the viewer everything, only cutting to give the illusion that a magic trick is happening, but it is thinly veiled because of the poorly edited cutting from scene to scene.
The Lumiere Brothers - Workers Leaving The Factory
This short video really emphasizes the brothers understanding of editing and the single landscape shot during the entire thing really shows the primitive quality of these types of films. I identify with the camera lense because it is sort of showing the viewer something they see every day: people walking. As a general human, most people watch other people going about their daily activities, and this is what the video conveys.
George Melies - A Trip To The Moon
This film was the far most advanced of the two others I watched, the overall longest, most involved plot line, and the best quality. This video sort of resembles a sort of play, having certain costumes and planned out movements and characters, it makes the viewer feel as if they are in an auditorium, watching a silent play, which is contributed to the static camera. It is easy to relate to the camera lense in this film, as it loosely resembles a science fiction novel or film that one would see today. This gives off an air of familiarity, and helps the viewer, even today, when movies are much more progressed, to relate to what is going on and get hooked into the story line.