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Books > Arts & Architecture > Performing arts > Films, cinema > General
In the late 19th century, modern psychology emerged as a
discipline, shaking off metaphysical notions of the soul in favor
of a more scientific, neurophysiological concept of the mind.
Laboratories began to introduce instruments and procedures which
examined bodily markers of psychological experiences, like muscle
contractions and changes in vital signs. Along with these changes
in the scientific realm came a newfound interest in physiological
psychology within the arts - particularly with the new perception
of artwork as stimuli, able to induce specific affective
experiences. In Psychomotor Aesthetics, author Ana Hedberg Olenina
explores the effects of physiological psychology on art at the turn
of the 20th century. The book explores its influence on not only
art scholars and theorists, wishing to understand the relationship
between artistic experience and the internal processes of the mind,
but also cultural producers more widely. Actors incorporated
psychology into their film acting techniques, the Russian and
American film industries started to evaluate audience members'
physical reactions, and literary scholars began investigations into
poets' and performers' articulation. Yet also looming over this
newly emergent field were commercial advertisers and politicians,
eager to use psychology to further their own mass appeal and assert
control over audiences. Drawing from archival documents and a
variety of cross-disciplinary sources, Psychomotor Aesthetics calls
attention to the cultural resonance of theories behind emotional
and cognitive experience - theories with implications for today's
neuroaesthetics and neuromarketing.
This book "decodes" 1930s Hollywood movies and explains why they
looked and behaved in the way they did. Organized through a series
of related case studies, the book exposes Classical Hollywood
movies to a detailed analysis of their historical, industrial and
cultural contexts. In the process it utilizes industry data,
aesthetic analysis and the insights of New Cinema History to
explain why and how these movies assumed their familiar forms. The
book represents the summation of Richard Maltby's four decades of
scholarship in the field of Hollywood cinema. The essays presented
here share an assumption that has increasingly informed the
author's critical method over the years: that any historical
understanding of the films of this period requires a deep
contextualization in the social circumstances surrounding both
their production and consumption. In this way, the book introduces
an innovative, overarching research methodology that synthesizes
branches of research that are typically employed in isolation,
including production, distribution, reception, film aesthetics, and
cultural and historical context. Of the book's nine chapters, three
are presented here for the first time, and four have been
substantially revised and extended from their original publication.
This volume brings together perspectives from multimodal stylistics
and adaptation studies for a unified theoretical analysis of
adaptations of the work of Alice Munro, demonstrating the
affordances of the approach in furthering interdisciplinary
research at the intersection of these fields The book considers
films and television programmes as complex multimodal stylistic
systems in and of themselves in order to pave the way for a clearer
understanding of screen adaptations as expressions of modal,
medial, and aesthetic change. In focusing on Munro, Francesconi
draws attention to a writer whose body of work has been adapted
widely across television and film for an international market over
several decades, offering a diachronic overview and insights into
the confluence of socio-cultural contexts, audiences, and dynamics
of production and distribution across adaptations. The volume
complements this perspective with a microanalysis of the
adaptations themselves, exploring the varied creative use of
audio-visual dimensions, including sound, light, and movement. The
book seeks to overcome simplified fidelity-based understandings of
screen adaptations more broadly, showcasing creative multi-layered
approaches to a creator's oeuvre to effect true transformation
across media and modes. The volume will be of interest to scholars
in multimodality, adaptation studies, film studies, and comparative
literature.
This exciting new title investigates the explosion of Shakespeare
films during the 1990s and beyond. It reflects upon the contexts
determining the production of different cinematic ventures, and it
provides an innovative understanding of Shakespeare's constitution
as a guardian of enshrined values and a figure associated with play
and reinvention. Linking fluctuating "Shakespeares" with the growth
of a global marketplace, the dissolution of national borders and
technological advances, this book produces a fresh awareness of our
contemporary cultural moment.
This volume includes twenty-five interdisciplinary essays on Paul
Bowles's literary and musical work. The legendary author - a
North-American expatriate writer and composer, and a cult figure
who, according to Norman Mailer "... let in the murder, the drugs,
the incest, the death of the square, the end of civilization" - and
his artistic output, are explored here by leading contemporary
scholars. They seek alternative and multiple perspectives of his
work through the dynamics of music and literature, avant-garde film
and the No wave scene, torture studies and security, Islamic
studies, modernism and surrealism. Following the international
conference "Do You Bowles?" held in Lisbon, in 2010, which
celebrated Paul Bowles's 100th birthday, this collection shows how
Bowles's work engages creatively with his predecessors and a
variety of perspectives, by rethinking modes of consciousness and
of artistic and cross-cultural potential that still inspire todays'
artists and scholars, both as a writer as well as a composer. The
editor set up a webpage dedicated to the book:
http://www.doyoubowles.org/
This book examines major British and American missionary films
during the Golden Age of Hollywood to explore the significance of
race, gender, and spirituality in relation to the lives of the
missionaries portrayed in film during the middle third of the
twentieth century. Film both influences and reflects culture, and
racial, gender, and religious identities are some of the most
debated issues globally today. In the movies explored in this book,
missionary interactions with various people groups reflect the
historical changes which took place during this time.
The magical places that were brought to life for the blockbuster
Harry Potter films make up the backbone of J.K. Rowling's wizarding
world. This book grants a complete, unprecedented look at the
process of adapting those locations for the films. Detailed
profiles of each environment pair never-before-seen concept art,
behind-the-scenes photos and film stills with text highlighting
filmmaking secrets from the Warner Brothers archives.
Over the course of the past two decades, horror cinema around the
globe has become increasingly preoccupied with the concept of loss.
Grief in Contemporary Horror Cinema: Screening Loss examines the
theme of grief as it represented both indie and mainstream films,
including works such as Jennifer Kent's watershed film The
Babadook, Juan Antonio Bayona's award-sweeping El orfanato, Ari
Aster's genre-straddling Midsommar, and Lars von Trier's visually
stunning Melancholia. Analyzing depictions of grief ranging from
the intimate grief of a small family to the collective grief of an
entire nation, the essays illustrate how these works serve to
provide unity, catharsis, and-sometimes-healing.
The horror genre mirrors the American queer experience, both
positively and negatively, overtly and subtextually, from the
lumbering, flower-picking monster of Frankenstein (1931) to the
fearless intersectional protagonist of the Fear Street Trilogy
(2021). This is a historical look at the queer experiences of the
horror genre's characters, performers, authors and filmmakers.
Offering a fresh look at the horror genre's queer roots, this book
documents how diverse stories have provided an outlet for queer
people--including transgender and non-binary people--to find
catharsis and reclamation. Freaks, dolls, serial killers,
telekinetic teenagers and Final Girls all have something to
contribute to the historical examination of the American LGBTQ+
experience. Ranging from psychiatry to homophobic fear of HIV/AIDS
spread and, most recently, the alienation and self-determination of
queer America in the Trump era, this is a look into how terror may
repair a shattered queer heart.
This book speaks to the meanings and values that inhere in close
relations, focusing on 'family' and 'kinship' but also looking
beyond these categories. Multifaceted, diverse and subject to
constant debate, close relations are ubiquitous in human lives on
embodied as well as symbolic levels. Closely related to processes
of power, legibility and recognition, close relations are
surrounded by boundaries that both constrain and enable their
practical, symbolical and legal formation. Carefully
contextualising close relations in relation to different national
contexts, but also in relation to gender, sexuality, race, religion
and dis/ability, the volume points to the importance of and
variations in how close relations are lived, understood and
negotiated. Grounded in a number of academic areas and disciplines,
ranging from legal studies, sociology and social work to literary
studies and ethnology, this volume also highlights the value of
using inter- and multidisciplinary scholarly approaches in research
about close relations. Chapter 11 is available open access under a
Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License via
link.springer.com.
Maggie Gunsberg examines popular genre cinema in Italy during the
1950s and 1960s, focusing on melodrama, "commedia all'italiana,"
peplum, horror and the spaghetti western. These genres are explored
from a gender standpoint which takes into account the historical
and socio-economic context of cinematic production and consumption.
An interdisciplinary feminist approach informed by current film
theory and other perspectives (psychoanalytic, materialist,
deconstructive), leads to the analysis of genre-specific
representations of femininity and masculinity as constructed by the
formal properties of film.
In the context of changing constructs of home and of childhood
since the mid-twentieth century, this book examines discourses of
home and homeland in Irish children's fiction from 1990 to 2012, a
time of dramatic change in Ireland spanning the rise and fall of
the Celtic Tiger and of unprecedented growth in Irish children's
literature. Close readings of selected texts by five award-winning
authors are linked to social, intellectual and political changes in
the period covered and draw on postcolonial, feminist, cultural and
children's literature theory, highlighting the political and
ideological dimensions of home and the value of children's
literature as a lens through which to view culture and society as
well as an imaginative space where young people can engage with
complex ideas relevant to their lives and the world in which they
live. Examining the works of O. R. Melling, Kate Thompson, Eoin
Colfer, Siobhan Parkinson and Siobhan Dowd, Ciara Ni Bhroin argues
that Irish children's literature changed at this time from being a
vehicle that largely promoted hegemonic ideologies of home in
post-independence Ireland to a site of resistance to complacent
notions of home in Celtic Tiger Ireland.
Truffaut shot to fame in 1959 with his first film "Les 400 Coups,"
a semi-autobiographical narrative shot in the low-budget
neo-realist style of the emerging "Nouvelle Vague." He went on to
make twenty-three films in twenty-six years, films which have
entertained, provoked debate and caused controversy. This fresh
appraisal of his work provides a useful socio-political
contextualization and gives an overview of his films and
film-making methods, shedding new light on key aspects such as
sexual politics, the construction of masculinity, the exploitation
of genre and the tension throughout the films between the
"absolute" and the "provisional."
Syria is now one of the most important countries in the world for
the documentary film industry. Since the 1970s, Syrian cinema
masters played a defining role in avant-garde filmmaking and
political dissent against authoritarianism. After the outbreak of
violence in 2011, an estimated 500,000 video clips were uploaded
making it one of the first YouTubed revolutions in history. This
book is the first history of documentary filmmaking in Syria. Based
on extensive media ethnography and in-depth interviews with Syrian
filmmakers in exile, the book offers an archival analysis of the
documentary work by masters of Syrian cinema, such as Nabil Maleh,
Ossama Mohammed, Mohammed Malas, Hala Al Abdallah, Hanna Ward, Ali
Atassi and Omar Amiralay. Joshka Wessels traces how the works of
these filmmakers became iconic for a new generation of filmmakers
at the beginning of the 21st century and maps the radical change in
the documentary landscape after the revolution of 2011. Special
attention is paid to the late Syrian filmmaker and pro-democracy
activist, Bassel Shehadeh, and the video-resistance from Aleppo and
Raqqa against the regime of President Bashar al-Assad and the
Islamic State. An essential resource for scholars of Syrian
Studies, this book will also be highly relevant to the fields of
media & conflict research, anthropology and political science.
This book is an exploration of the changes in Russian cultural
identity in the twenty years after the fall of the Soviet state.
Through close readings of a select number of contemporary Russian
films and television series, Irina Souch investigates how a variety
of popular cultural tropes ranging from the patriarchal family to
the country idyll survived the demise of Communism and maintained
their power to inform the Russian people's self-image. She shows
how these tropes continue to define attitudes towards political
authority, economic disparity, ethnic and cultural difference,
generational relations and gender. The author also introduces
theories of identity developed in Russia at the same time, enabling
these works to act as sites of productive dialogue with the more
familiar discourses of Western scholarship.
Film is often conceived as a medium that is watched rather than
experienced. Existing studies of film audiences, and of media
reception more broadly, have revealed the complexity of viewing
practices and cultures surrounding cinema-going and its exhibition
spaces. Experiencing Cinema offers the first in-depth study of
participant engagement with a range of experiential media forms
derived from cinema culture. From sing-a-long screenings to
theatrical extravaganzas, a broad spectrum of alternative
film-going practices and immersive spaces are explored and analysed
in this original audience study. Moving from intimate community
gatherings to blockbuster urban venues, from isolated farmhouses to
Olympic stadia, Experiencing Cinema considers the lure and value of
these popular events. Often attracting a diverse, intergenerational
range of participants, from early-adopter urban hipsters to DIY
rural communities, the growing demand for participatory cinema
within the contemporary marketplace is analysed alongside broader
debates circulating around the move away from traditional tiered
seating and increased audience mobility and the de-centring of the
film text.
During the 2010s in Turkey, LGBTQ activists, groups, and
individuals persisted against social, political, and legal
adversity. Erasure during the Gezi Park Protests in 2013, a Pride
parade ban in Istanbul in 2016, and indefinite ban on all LGBTQ
events in Ankara in 2017 directly aimed at ending the activities,
visibility, and existence of LGBTQ organization in the two biggest
cities in Turkey. This work examines the ways in which LGBTQ
activists engaged in talkback against these restrictions that
impacted the lives of LGBTQ individuals and how said individuals
endured such adversity. Focusing on the elements of discourse used
by LGBTQ activists, this work argues oppositional discourses need
to address as well as remedy the various elements of normative
discourses-constructions of space, time, and affect-in order to be
deemed a talkback, instead of merely perpetuating the normativities
of oppressive discourses.
This thrilling interactive scrapbook takes readers on a tour of
iconic spells and charms, from Expelliarmus to the Patronus Charm,
and even the three Unforgivable Curses. Covering everything from
protective enchantments and useful jinxes to dangerous spells, it
transports us into the magical world of Harry and his friends. With
detailed profiles of each spell, hex, charm or curse, and
information about key enchantments seen in the films, this is the
ultimate guide to the magic practised at Hogwarts School of
Witchcraft and Wizardry and far beyond. Cast with the correct wand
movement and incantation, the amazing spells seen throughout the
Harry Potter films are conjured up in a way that is sure to delight
wizards and Muggles alike. Gorgeously illustrated with dazzling
concept art, behind-the-scenes photographs and fascinating
reflections from actors and film-makers, the scrapbook gives
readers a spellbinding insight into bringing charms and spells to
the big screen.
This Open Access book uses the concept of 'euphoria' to investigate
when, why and how marginal gender, sex and sexuality groups have
positive experiences of their diverse variations even within
repressive and disordering contexts. Drawing on data from multiple
online surveys including a study of 2,407 LGBTQ+ people and a study
of 272 people with intersex variations, it names and offers a new
ecological framework for understanding participants' influences on
and barriers to euphorias, asserting the subversive possibilities
of being euphorically queer, as opposed to euphoric and queer. The
author argues that it is the particularities of negative internal,
socio-cultural and institutional contexts for a marginal group or
groups that contributes towards the possibilities that shape their
potential euphoric feelings and experiences. Ultimately, she calls
for a more expansive focus in gender and sexuality studies to show
the complex effects of dysphoria and repression on the
possibilities of pleasure and joy.This book will be of interest to
scholars across Gender, Sexuality and Queer Studies.
Before Alien Covenant, David was stranded alone on the Engineers'
planet and - left to his own dark devices - he began to push the
boundaries of creation. Delve into this exclusive collection,
containing two books, to gain an insight into the android's descent
into madness. The in-universe sketchbook contains over two hundred
illustrations from the set and will take you inside the mind of
David. It features the complete arc of his journey from the studies
of flora and fauna, to his more sinister experiments on creatures,
and the disturbing demise of Dr Elizabeth Shaw. The companion book,
Developing the Art of an Android, holds an interview with Dane
Hallett and Matt Hatton - the artists behind all of the beautifully
grotesque sketches. Alien Covenant: David's Drawings will satisfy
every serious fan's hunger for details of the most intriguing
character from the Alien prequels.
The Female Gaze in Documentary Film - an International Perspective
makes a timely contribution to the recent rise in interest in the
status, presence, achievements and issues for women in contemporary
screen industries. It examines the works, contributions and
participation of female documentary directors globally. The central
preoccupation of the book is to consider what might constitute a
'female gaze', an inquiry that has had a long history in
filmmaking, film theory and women's art. It fills a gap in the
literature which to date has not substantially examined the work of
female documentary directors. Moreover, research on sex, gender and
the gaze has infrequently been the subject of scholarship on
documentary film, particularly in comparison to narrative film or
television drama. A distinctive feature of the book is that it is
based on interviews with significant female documentarians from
Europe, Asia and North America.
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