Movies and Meaning: An Introduction to Film

Preface. 1. Film Structure. Elements of Film Structure. Structure and the Camera. Structural Design and Creative Choice. The Camera and Human Perception: Cinema's Dual Capability. 2. Cinematography. Collaboration and Previsualization. The Essentials of Cinematography. Cinematography and the Digital Domain. Visual Style and Design Quotations. 3. Production Design. What the Production Designer Does. Basic Tools of Production Design. The Design Concept. Production Design and Special Effects. 4. Acting. Acting in Film and Theater. Categories of Film Performers. Method and Technical Approaches to Performing. The Performer as an Element of Visual Design. Performance, Emotion, and the Viewer's Response. 5. Editing: Making the Cut. What Is Editing? Linear and Nonlinear Systems. Functions of Editing. The Principles of Continuity Editing. Alternatives to Continuity Editing. 6. Principles of Sound Design. Sound in Contemporary Film. Evolution of Film Sound. Types of Sound. Sound Design. 7. The Nature of Narrative in Film. Story and Script. The Turn to Narrative in Early Film History. Elements of Narrative. The Classical Hollywood Narrative. The Viewer's Contribution to Narrative. Film Genres. The Western. The Gangster Film. The Musical. The Horror Film. Science Fiction. The War Film. Film Noir. 8. Modes of Screen Reality. Realism. Expressionism. Fantasy and the Fantastic. Cinematic Self-Reflexivity. 9. Hollywood International. The Global Dominance of Hollywood. International Influence of Hollywood Style. 10. Cinema in Multiple Contexts. Animation. Documentary. Independent Film. International Film. Women in Film. African American Film. 11. Film Criticism and Interpretation. Why Criticism Exists. The Task of the Critic. Modes of Criticism. Creating Criticism. 12. Models of Film Theory. Realist Models. Auteurist Models. Psychoanalytic Models. Ideological Models. Feminist Models. Cognitive Models. Glossary. Index.