In the past twenty years, China has witnessed the flowering of an independent documentary cinema characterized by a particular verite aesthetic. Independent Chinese Documentary traces the roots of this style back to the 1980s, and the gradual abandonment of studio-based filmmaking, dominant during the Maoist era, for shooting live and on location. Known in Chinese as xianchang - or being on "the scene" - this documentary practice is partly distinguished by its embrace of the contingent. Through a series of synoptic case studies, this book considers the different ways in which contingency manifests in independent Chinese documentary; the practical and aesthetic challenges its mediation presents for individual film directors; and the reasons for the quality's significance, set against the backdrop of China's ongoing postsocialist transition, and the consequences of this process for the very act of documentary representation itself.

Citing the adage that "those who do not study history are condemned to get it from Hollywood," popular historian Mona Sizer profiles a dozen notorious Texas outlaws and how they have been portrayed on the Silver Screen. From Pancho Villa - who was paid $25,000 by the Mutual Film Company to portray himself - to Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow (portrayed by Faye Dunaway and Warren Beatty), Sizer separates fact from fancy in a fun, rollicking look at the bad guys of Texas Westerns. Sidebars ("How to Rob a Train," "How to Hold Up a Stagecoach," and "The Hollywood Posse") round out this delightful homage to actual and movie bandits alike.

West German cinema of the 1960s is frequently associated with the emergence of a new generation of filmmakers, collectively known by the 1970s as the "New German Cinema." Yet for domestic and international audiences at the time, German cinema primarily meant popular genres such as exotic adventure films, Gothic crime thrillers, westerns, and sex films, which were dismissed by German filmmakers and critics of the 1970s as "Daddy's Cinema." International Adventures provides the first comprehensive account of these genres, and charts the history of the West German film industry and its main protagonists from the immediate post-war years to its boom period in the 1950s and 1960s. By analyzing film genres in the context of industrial practices, literary traditions, biographical trajectories, and wider cultural and social developments, this book uncovers a forgotten period of German filmmaking that merits reassessment. International Adventures firmly locates its case studies within the wider dynamic of European cinema. In its study of West German cinema's links and co-operations with other countries including Britain, France, and Italy, the book addresses what is perhaps the most striking phenomenon of 1960s popular film genres: the dispersal and disappearance of markers of national identity in increasingly international narratives and modes of production.

One of the most dynamic capital cities of the twenty-first century, Berlin also has one of the most tumultuous modern histories. A city that came of age, in many senses, with the cinema, it has been captured on film during periods of exuberance, devastation, division, and reconstruction. "World Film Locations: Berlin" offers a broad overview of these varied cinematic representations. Covering an array of films that ranges from early classics to contemporary star vehicles, this volume features detailed analyses of forty-six key scenes from productions shot on location across the city, as well as spotlight essays in which contributors with expertise in German studies, urban history, and film studies focus on issues central to understanding Berlin cinema. Among the topics discussed are the roles of rubble, construction sites, and music in films set and shot in Berlin, as well as key personalities, including Marlene Dietrich and Leni Riefenstahl. With the help of full-color illustrations that include film stills and contemporary location shots, "World Film Locations: Berlin" cinematically maps the city's long twentieth century, taking readers behind the scenes and shedding new light on the connections between many favorite and possibly soon to be favorite films.

Though the creative community of Reykjavik, Iceland, has earned a well-deserved reputation for its unique artistic output--most notably the popular music that has emerged from the city since the 1980s--Reykjavik's filmmakers have received less attention than they merit. "World Film Locations: Reykjavik" corrects this imbalance, shedding new light on the role of cinema in a country that, partly because of its small population, produces more films per capita than any other in the world. The contributors to this volume trace cinema in Iceland from the 1979 establishment of the Icelandic Film Fund--before which the country's film industry barely existed--through today. In a series of illuminating scene reviews, they show how rapidly the city has changed over the past thirty years. In thematic spotlight articles, they go on to explore such topics as the relationship between Iceland and its capital city; youth culture and night life; the relationship between film and the local music community; cinematic representations of Scandinavian crime; and filmmakers' response to the 2008 banking crisis. Together, these varied contributions show how films shot in Reykjavik have been shaped both by Iceland's remoteness from the rest of the world and by Icelandic filmmakers' sense that the city remains forever on the brink of desolate and harsh wilderness.

The title of Li Yu's film "Lost in Beijing" evokes the experience of many first-time visitors to China's bustling capital. The city's sprawling structure and rapid redevelopment--embodied by the high-rise apartments taking over historic districts--render Beijing's streets hard to navigate and its culture is just as difficult to penetrate. "World Film Locations: Beijing" is a revealing and engrossing introduction to both. In a series of spotlight essays and illustrated scene reviews, a cast of seasoned scholars and fresh new voices explore the vast range of films--encompassing drama, madcap comedy, martial arts escapism, and magical realism--that have been set in Beijing. Unveiling a city of hidden courtyards, looming skyscrapers, and traditional Hutong neighborhoods, these contributors depict a distinctive urban culture that reflects the conflict and tumult of a nation in transition. With considerations of everything from the back streets of "Beijing Bicycle" to the forbidden palace of "The Last Emperor" to the tourist park of "The World," this volume is a definitive cinematic guide to an ever-changing and endlessly fascinating capital city.

Explore the homeworld and vast dominion of Star Trek's most formidable race, the Klingons, in this thrilling travel guide. nuqneH! Bored of standard vacations to places like Risa or Wrigley's Pleasure Planet? Want to discover a unique and ancient culture not bound by standard niceties and social mores? Then Qo'noS and the vast Klingon Empire are for you! This one-of-a-kind travel guide will give you all the information you need to plan, enjoy, and survive your trip to the very heart of Klingon territory, from an overview of Klingon history to tips on what to wear (fur and leather are very popular) to a glossary of important phrases like "mamI' DaneH'a'? nItebHa' mamI' DaneH'a'?" (Would you like to dance with me?). Every major location in the Klingon Empire is covered in-depth, with tips on where to eat (you've not lived until you've eaten Klingon skull stew), how best to get to and from your chosen destination, and what to do if you find yourself challenged to a bat'leth battle to the death.Locations include the homeworld Qo'noS and its famous locales such as the First City, the Caves of No'mat the Hamar Mountains, and the city of Krennla, plus neighboring moons Corvix and Praxis, and many, many more must-see areas. The book also features exclusive maps and illustrations that bring to life the Klingon Empire and form the perfect reference guide for any visitor. So what are you waiting for? Qapla'!

This is the first collection of more than 1,800 films dealing with Hispanic topics, themes, and characters arranged chronologically from 1898 to 1935, with indepth annotations, cross-references and four separate indexes. This is a study of Hollywood's treatment of Hispanics worldwide, those living in South, Central and North America, the Philippines and Spain. Employing a historical framework, the author has organized the work for those interested in assessing the effects that motion pictures have had on the viewing public in establishing and perpetuating accepted stereotypes. The role of censorship, the Production Code Administration, the Motion Picture Society of the Americas, the Latin American market, and Hollywood's version of Hispanic history are fully covered. The Black Legend of Hispanic barbarity has existed in literature since the sixteenth century. The early film makers, and later Hollywood, merely transferred the Black Legend to the silver screen and continued the accepted point of view created since the first conflict between England and Spain for supremacy in the Caribbean. This work also shows the relationship between film and foreign policy, how films have frequently justified and glorified North American intervention in the affairs of the Latin nations throughout the Americas. Each entry includes a brief scenario which details the film's Hispanic connection: a stereotype, a historic interpretation, a specific nation, associated behavior or attitudes, a list of the Hispanic actors and actresses. Reviews, bibliographic citations and archival locations are provided.

This book examines cinematic practices in Bollywood as narratives that assist in shaping the imagination of the age, especially in contemporary India. It examines historical films released in India since the new millennium and analyses cinema as a reflection of the changing socio-political and economic conditions at any given period. The chapters in Historicizing Myths in Contemporary India: Cinematic Representations and Nationalist Agendas in Hindi Cinemas also illuminate different perspectives on how cinematic historical representations follow political patterns and market compulsions, giving precedence to a certain past over the other, creating a narrative suited for the dominant narrative of the present. From Mughal-e-Azam to Padmaavat, and Bajirao Mastani to Raazi, the chapters show how creating history out of myths validate hegemonic identities in a rapidly evolving Indian society. The volume will be of interest to scholars of film and media studies, literature and culture studies, and South Asian studies.

Russia's interactions with the West have been a perennial theme of Slavic Studies, and of Russian culture and politics. Likewise, representations of Russia have shaped the identities of many western cultures. No longer providing the 'Evil Empire' of 20th American popular consciousness, images of Russia have more recently bifurcated along two streams: that of the impoverished refugee and that of the sinister mafia gang. Focusing on film as an engine of intercultural communication, this is the first book to explore mutual perceptions of the foreign Other in the cinema of Russia and the West during, and after, communism. The book's structure reflects both sides of this fascinating dialogue: Part 1 covers Russian/Soviet cinematic representations of otherness, and Part 2 treats western representations of Russia and the Soviet Union. An extensive Introduction sets the dialogue in a theoretical context. The contributors include leading film scholars from the USA, Europe and Russia.

British comedy cinema has been a mainstay of domestic production since the beginning of the last Century and arguably the most popular and important genre in British film history. This edited volume will offer the first comprehensive account of the rich and popular history of British comedy cinema from silent slapstick and satire to contemporary romantic comedy. Using a loosely chronological approach, essays cover successive decades of the 20th and 21st Century with a combination of case studies on key personalities, production cycles and studio output along with fresh approaches to issues of class and gender representation. It will present new research on familiar comedy cycles such as the Ealing Comedies and Carry On films as well as the largely undocumented silent period along with the rise of television spin offs from the 1970s and the development of animated comedy from 1915 to the present. Films covered include: St Trinians, A Fish Called Wanda, Brassed Off, Local Hero, The Full Monty, Four Lions and In the Loop. Contributors: Melanie Bell, Alan Burton, James Chapman, Richard Dacre, Ian Hunter, James Leggott, Sharon Lockyer, Andy Medhurst, Lawrence Napper, Tim O'Sullivan, Laraine Porter, Justin Smith, Sarah Street, Peter Waymark, Paul Wells

This is a comprehensive book about fan films, covering the secret history of the burgeoning movement creating the cinema of tomorrow.Who would risk his life swinging six stories above the ground without a net, just for a homemade Spiderman movie? What would drive a young couple with a newborn baby to spend their life savings on a Star Wars film that has been seen by 4 million people - but from which they can never profit? And why would Steven Spielberg praise three nobodies for a home movie they made as teenagers in the Eighties? They're fan filmmakers, creating the cinema of tomorrow: quick, bitesized movies, starring world-famous characters from Superman to Captain Kirk to Lara Croft. The flicks are fun, free and totally illegal.Now, thanks to Internet sites like YouTube and file sharing technologies like Bit Torrent, this controversial filmmaking movement is starting to rise to the surface. Likewise, Hollywood is taking notice: However, there is no comprehensive book about fan films. There's no tome devoted to the controversies surrounding this unlawful brand of filmmaking and how they're already changing today's media. There's no guide that tells you which movies to search out - and which ones to leave hidden under their rocks. "Homemade Hollywood: The Fan Film Phenomenon" can be that book.

The biography of the original Mr. Cool, Steve McQueen. The actor who perhaps, first epitomised the Action Hero; a complex man, prone to casual affairs and violence, yet capable of helping those more unfortunate than him.

Sin and redemption. The ridiculous and the sublime. The carnivalesque excess of the Strip and the barrenness of the desert surrounding the city. Visited by millions of fortune seekers - and starry-eyed lovers - each year, Las Vegas is a city with as many apparent contradictions as Elvis impersonators and this complexity is reflected in the diversity of films that have been shot on location there. A copiously illustrated retrospective of Vegas's appearances on the big screen, this new volume in Intellect's World Film Locations series presents synopses of scenes from a broad selection of films - from big-budget blockbusters like Oceans Eleven to acclaimed classics Rain Man, Casino and The Godfather to cult favourites like Showgirls and Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. Insightful essays throughout explore a range of topics, including the Rat Pack's Las Vegas, the cinematised Strip, Las Vegas as a frequent backdrop for science fiction and the various film portrayals of iconic pop-cultural figures like Elvis and Frank Sinatra. Rounding out this information are film stills juxtaposed with photographs of the locations as they appear today.

All too often, highly fictionalized cinematic depictions of the past are accepted as the unassailable truth by those unfamiliar with the "real" account. This book profiles sixty movies that portray actual moments in history, and compares the mythologized account of each event to what really happened. Movies chronicled include The Ten Commandments, Spartacus, A Man for All Seasons, Gladiator, Gandhi, Apollo 13, The Thin Red Line, Dances with Wolves, Braveheart, The Last Emperor, All the Presidents Men, Mutiny on the Bounty, Gone with the Wind, Bonnie & Clyde, Patton, and Elizabeth. Sanello also contrasts several historical figures with their filmed treatments, including Julius Caesar, Henry V, Christopher Columbus, Joan of Arc, Sir Thomas More, Jesus Christ, Catherine the Great, Sigmund Freud, and Harry Houdini. Lavishly illustrated with sixty film stills, Reel v. Real shows how a happening's genuine details are frequently reshaped and distorted by Hollywood's bottomless appetite for over-the-top flamboyance and melodrama.

"Europe and Love in Cinema" explores the relationship between love and Europeanness in a wide range of films from the 1920s to the present. A critical look at the manner in which love--in its broadest sense--is portrayed in cinema from across Europe and the United States, this volume exposes constructed notions of "Europeanness" that both set Europe apart and define some parts of it as more "European" than others. Through the international distribution process, these films in turn engage with ideas of Europe from both outside and within, while some, treated extensively in this volume, even offer alternative models of love. A bracing collection of essays from top film scholars, "Europe and Love in Cinema" demonstrates the centrality of desire to film narrative and explores multiple models of love within Europe's frontiers.

Artistic media seem to be in a permanent condition of mutation and transformation. Contemporary artists often investigate the limits and possibilities of the media they use and experiment with the crossing, upgrading and mutilation of media. Others explicitly explore the unknown intermedial space between existing media, searching for the hybrid beings that occupy these in-betweens. This issue of Theater Topics explores the theme of mutating and adapting media in its relation with theatre and performance. Bringing together international scholars and artists, this book provides a comprehensive overview of the subject. Throughout, Bastard or Playmate? is responsive to the cross-disciplinary use of key concepts such as remediation, digitization, interactivity, corporeality, liveness, surveillance, spectacle, performativity and theatricality. The book guides readers new to the area of intermediality, as well as experienced researchers into one of the most dynamic fields of scholarship. Bastard or Playmate? Adapting Theatre, Mutating Media and the Contemporary Performing Arts is the fifth issue of the series Theater Topics. This series contains publications about research in and about theatre, each issue giving a comprehensive overview of research concerning a specific topic. This issue contains contributions by Katia Arfara, Edwin Carels, Jeroen Coppens, Nancy Delhalle, Tom Engels, Christophe Van Gerrewey, Eva Heisler, Evelien Jonckheere, Sarah Kenderdine and Jeffrey Shaw, Elise Morrison, Marco Pustianaz, Frederik Le Roy, Anna Teresa Scheer, Klaas Tindemans, and Nele Wynants.

Part of the Directory of World Cinema series, this title includes contributions from some of the leading academics in the field. It features film recommendations from a range of genres for those interested in watching more cinema from these regions. It also features comprehensive filmography as an index. Given the prevalence of important new wave cinemas across Eastern Central Europe in the post-war, post-Stalinist era (Poland, Hungary, Czechoslovakia and Yugoslavia), this new volume of the Directory of World Cinema series charts the trends of these national cinemas. In the decades since the 1970s, the continuing popularity of filmmakers from these countries (including Krzysztof Kieslowski, Bela Tarr, Istvan Szabo and Jiri Menzel), coupled with a recent international surge in the visibility of the cinemas of Serbia, Slovakia and Romania, means that these countries in East Central Europe are a central focus in the directory. Introductory essays of this title establish key players and explore important genres such as war, comedy, surrealism and art cinema while reviews and case studies analyse individual titles in considerable depth. For the film studies scholar, or for all those who love cinema and want to learn more, Directory of World Cinema: East Europe will be an essential companion.