Film and

Cinematography
Film
• also called movie or motion picture, is a visual art used to
simulate experiences that communicate ideas, stories, perceptions,
feelings, beauty or atmosphere by the means of recorded or
programmed moving images along with other sensory
stimulations.
• The moving images of a film are created by photographing actual
scenes with a motion-picture camera, by photographing drawings
or miniature models using traditional animation techniques, by
means of CGI and computer animation, or by a combination of
some or all of these techniques, and other visual effects.
• Films are cultural artifacts created by specific cultures. They
reflect those cultures, and, in turn, affect them.
• Film is considered to be an important art form, a source of
popular entertainment, and a powerful medium for
educating—or indoctrinating—citizens.
• The visual basis of film gives it a universal power of
communication. Some films have become popular worldwide
attractions through the use of dubbing or subtitles to
translate the dialog into other languages.
Cinematography
• Cinematography (from ancient greek κίνημα, kìnema
"movement" and γράφειν, gràphein "to write") is the art of
motion-picture photography and filming either electronically
by means of an image sensor, or chemically by means of a
light-sensitive material such as film stock.
• Cinematographers use a lens to focus reflected light from
objects into a real image that is transferred to some image
sensor or light-sensitive material inside a movie camera.
• These exposures are created sequentially and preserved for
later processing and viewing as a motion picture.
• Capturing images with an electronic image sensor produces
an electrical charge for each pixel in the image, which is
electronically processed and stored in a video file for
subsequent processing or display.
• Images captured with photographic emulsion result in a
series of invisible latent images on the film stock, which are
chemically "developed" into a visible image.
History and Development of
cinema, from the Kinetoscope
in 1891 to today’s 3D revival.
• Cinematography is the illusion of movement by the recording
and subsequent rapid projection of many still photographic
pictures on a screen.
• A product of 19th century scientific endeavor, it has, over
the past century, become an industry employing many
thousands of people and a medium of mass entertainment
and communication.
 • No one person invented cinema. However, in 1891 the
Edison Company in the USA successfully demonstrated a
prototype of the Kinetoscope, which enabled one person at
a time to view moving pictures.

Early • The first to present projected moving pictures to a paying

audience (i.e. cinema) were the Lumière brothers in
cinema December 1895 in Paris.
• At first, films were very short, sometimes only a few
minutes or less. They were shown at fairgrounds and
music halls or anywhere a screen could be set up and a
room darkened.
• The films were accompanied by lecturers, music and a lot
of audience participation—although they did not have
synchronized dialogue, they were not ‘silent’ as they are
sometimes described.
THE RISE OF THE FILM INDUSTRY
• By 1914, several national film industries were established.
Films became longer, and storytelling, or narrative, became
the dominant form.
• As more people paid to see movies, the industry which grew
around them was prepared to invest more money in their
production, distribution and exhibition, so large studios were
established and special cinemas built. The First World War
greatly limited the film industry in Europe, and the American
industry grew in relative importance.
• The first 30 years of cinema were characterized by the growth
and consolidation of an industrial base, the establishment of
the narrative form, and refinement of technology.
ADDING COLOUR

• Color was first added to black-and-white movies through

tinting, toning and stenciling.
• By 1906, the principles of color separation were used to
produce so-called ‘natural color’ moving images with the
British Kinemacolor process, first presented to the public in
1909.
• The early Technicolor processes from 1915 onwards were
cumbersome and expensive, and color was not used more
widely until the introduction of its three-color process in
1932.
ADDING SOUND
• The first attempts to add synchronized sound to projected
pictures used phonographic cylinders or discs.
• The first feature-length movie incorporating synchronized
dialogue, The Jazz Singer (USA, 1927), used the Warner
Brothers’ Vitaphone system, which employed a separate
record disc with each reel of film for the sound.
• This system proved unreliable and was soon replaced by an
optical, variable density soundtrack recorded
photographically along the edge of the film.
CINEMA’S GOLDEN AGE
• By the early 1930s, nearly all feature-length movies were
presented with synchronized sound and, by the mid-1930s,
some were in full color too.
• The advent of sound secured the dominant role of the American
industry and gave rise to the ‘Golden Age of Hollywood’.
• During the 1930s and 1940s, cinema was the principal form of
popular entertainment, with people often attending cinemas
twice weekly.
• In Britain the highest attendances occurred in 1946, with over
31 million visits to the cinema each week.
THE ASPECT RATIO
• Thomas Edison had used perforated 35mm film in the
Kinetoscope, and in 1909 this was adopted as the industry
standard.
• The picture had a height-to-width relationship—known as the
aspect ratio—of 3:4 or 1:1.33.
• With the advent of optical sound, the aspect ratio was
adjusted to 1.37:1.
• Although there were many experiments with other formats,
there were no major changes in screen ratios until the 1950s.
COMPETING WITH TELEVISION
• In 1952, the Cinerama process, using three projectors and a wide,
deeply curved screen together with multi-track surround sound, was
premiered. It gave audiences a sense of greater involvement and
proved extremely popular.
• Specialist large-screen systems using 70mm film have also been
developed. The most successful of these has been IMAX, which today
has more than 1,000 screens worldwide.
• For many years IMAX cinemas have showed films specially made in
its unique 2D or 3D formats, but they are increasingly showing
versions of popular feature films which have been digitally remastered
in the IMAX format, often with additional scenes or 3D effects.
CINEMA MAKES A COMEBACK
• While cinemas had some success in fighting the competition
of television, they never regained the position and influence
they once held, and over the next 30 years audiences
dwindled. By 1984 cinema attendances in Britain had sunk
to one million a week.
• Although America still appears to be the most influential
film industry, the reality is more complex. Many films are
produced internationally—either made in various countries
or financed by multinational companies that have interests
across range of media.
Film Criticism
• is the analysis and evaluation of films. In general, these works can be divided
into two categories: academic criticism by film scholars and journalistic film
criticism that appears regularly in newspapers and other media.

• Film critics working for newspapers, magazines, and broadcast media mainly

review new releases. Normally they only see any given film once and have
only a day or two to formulate their opinions.
• Despite this, critics have an important impact on the audience response and
attendance at films, especially those of certain genres. Mass marketed action
, horror, and comedy films tend not to be greatly affected by a critic's
overall judgment of a film. 
Different Types of Movies
• 1) Action – These types of movies are high octane, big budget movies that show many physical stunts. In
these movies, it’s usually a fight between the good guys and bad guys, i.e. Fight Club

2) Adventure- Do you like thrilling stories that take you to wondrous places? They are similar to action films
but the action may be less and more weight will be given to experiences. Indian Jones movies belong to this
category.

3) Comedies- They are loved by young and old for the feel good content. A comedy can be based on innocent
humor, exaggerations, facial expressions or downright crude jokes. Meet the Fockers is an example.

4) Crime and Gangster Films- Such films trace the lives of fictional and true criminals, gangs or mobsters.
Serial killer films may be included here, i.e. Gangs of New York.

5) Drama films- They are sensible movies with a strong plot. Dramas depict true stories or real-like
situations. The character development is note-worthy, i.e. Little Women.
• 6) Epics/ Historical films – An epic involves elements like war, romance and adventure. The sets are created
carefully to reflect the time period. Ben Hur is a classic example. Historical movies tend to pay homage to a
legend or hero.
•

7) Horror- You either love them or hate them. These films expose our fears and give rise to
nightmares. For some, horror films provide catharsis but others can barely sit through a movie,
due to the violence and gory scenes. i.e Jaws.

8) Musicals/ Dance films – These are entertaining films that are based on full scale scores or song
and dance. They can either be delightful, light-hearted films for the while family (i.e. The Sound
of Music) or contain a dark aspect (Sweeney Todd) that is explored through music.

9) War films- These are very true to real life and often depict the waste of war. Attention is given
to acts of heroism, the human spirit, psychological damage to soldiers and the pain of families
waiting at home. i.e. Flags of Our Fathers.

10) Westerns- This genre is central to American culture and to its film industry. They speak of
the days of expansion and the trials with Native Indians. The plots and characters are very
distinctive. Remember Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid?

11) Animation- Computer graphics and special affects are the backbone of these films which are
enjoyed by the young and old. i.e. Finding Nem

12) Thrillers- They differ from Horror because they are more provocative than scary. i.e. The
Bone Collector

13) Sci-Fi – If you like futuristic scenes, movies like Star Wars will intrigue you. They can be
classified as adventure films too.
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