A New Type of Film Essay

"Star Wars" was arguably the first in a new breed of high concept, high budget sci-fi action films. It was directed by George Lucas and originally released in only a few cinemas in 1977. However, the buzz around the film grew, and it is now one of the highest grossing films of all time, and along with its sequels, prequels and re-mastered re-releases, has a large cult following. I feel this is because of Lucas` ability to engage the audience through careful use of sound and camera technique;

After watching and analyzing the action adventure film, Indiana Jones - “Kingdom of the Crystal Skull” (2008) and the Sci-Fi thriller, The Matrix (1999) many cinematic elements attracted my attention. With three very distinct and ingenious directors, (Spielberg and the Wachowskis siblings) these two films exemplified extraordinary uses of lighting, framing, editing and sound techniques unique to its own genre.

The technical evolution of film industry is one notable feature of modern civilization. The innovation of combining motion pictures with recorded sound. Black-and-white film gradually replaced by the colour motion picture film and the visual effect involve the integration of live-action footage and computer generated imagery to create a scenes which look realistic, but would be dangerous, costly or impossible to be recorded and the popularization of three-dimensional cinema. The developments of technique contribute the film industry to get closer to people’s perception, however, in the real life. The observation of objects would change if we look from different distance and angle. And this experience of perception cannot be done in film.

If asked the question what influential production occurred “A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away,” what would one say? Perhaps, the most reasonable and immediate response would be non-other than the creation of the legendary, genre-changing, American epic space opera of the late 1970s: Star Wars. Under the initial artistic directions of George Lucas, the multi-million dollar films of Star Wars, including the original trilogy, prequel trilogy, and future sequel trilogy, have transformed the stagnant mold of what movie making is, and still tend to push the envelope on the advancements of new electronical mannerisms. The impact of this

The 1977 scientific fiction film ‘Star Wars’ introduced huge advancement in special effects from aliens to spaceships to planets, each and every element of a young cinematographer George Lucas gave a new edge of visual effects in Cinema. The film also spawned a new special effects house, Industrial light and Magic, which are one of the most popular visual effects studios today. Dykstra and Lucas used extremely detailed miniatures, animation and a pioneering system of computer-controlled motion photography to create special effects (SFX) that still look fresh today. Star Wars was the first big-budget blockbuster to rely on realistic action scenes and explosions, and essentially invented the techniques to achieve this. Dykstra destroyed the Death

Entertainment is an integral part of people’s lives in these modern times. There are several different ways that people pass the time, such as playing video games or reading books. However, movies are the best forms of entertainment; they are a convenient way to relax, are always open to interpretation, and can tell more powerful stories with the help of well-executed cinematography and other elements.

The documentary, Frame by Frame shows tribute to the power of photojournalism. In Anand Gopal's book, No Good Men Among the Living, he states the Taliban, "instituted a regime of draconian purity the likes of which the world never witnessed."

Leander Haussmann’s film Sonnenallee (1999) has been the subject of much criticism, this criticism centred on the issue of ostalgia. (Allan, 2000; 11) Critics have dismissed the film as being an exercise in ostalgia, some having gone so far as to claim that in its representation of life in the GDR that it is downright ‘dangerous’. (Dale, 2000; 11) What this criticism betrays, however, is a very particular hypocrisy. It is symptomatic of a colonial mentality existing between East and West, the West in its criticism of Eastern remembrance seeking to define its identity by dictating how it could remember its past. Ostalgia then is not about documentarian reconstruction; a faithful memory of life in the GDR as it was, but a response to the present,

Some films are often accused as being more about style than substance. Why is this accusation made and is it justified? Focused on ‘The Grand Budapest Hotel’ as the main text. Many people argue that films are becoming increasingly more ‘Style over Substance’ based. However, others argue that this is an ‘empty criticism’ which is justified by the fact that there are a multitude of successful films which have used both tools in conjunction e.g. The Matrix, Pulp Fiction, The Grand Budapest Hotel, Psycho, Django Unchained, Inglourious Basterds and Taxi Driver.

Alice in Wonderland released in 2010 is an amazing visual film. The movie clip I have chosen is called, “Reunited”. This clip is focused on the reunion of Alice and the Mad Hatter after she thought the Mad Hatter was dead, due to the red queen wanting to take off his head. Mia Wasikowska plays the role of Alice Kingsleigh, Johnny Depp plays the role of the Mad Hatter, and Anne Hathaway plays the role of the white witch. The cinematography is just amazing in this film; from the makeup, to the costumes, to the amazing visual artistic experience. The film itself is nothing without all of the visual effects.

In today’s world, film has made use of the advancement of digital technology to help with editing. Innovations in film technology has without a doubt shaped the film industry into what is it today. This has given filmmakers great advantages from cameras to sound recording devices, to editing. Because of this technology everything has gone digital making it not only easier to access, easier to edit with (computers, software etc.), but it also makes it more affordable.

Movies have been another form of media to bring little dreams into big realities,through cameras,acting, and many different special effects. Special effects have played a special part of the filmmaking process and has evolved through the years using a combination of improved practical effects, and computer generated effects to provide a visually stimulating movie experience. Special effects can only do so much, however successful movies have been comprised with a proper balance of all the elements of a movie, such as story,acting, and also the concept as well. The movie industry currently relies too heavily on special effects rather than plot and other elements which compromises the cinematic integrity;therefore to protect the film industry,future special effects should be used to compliment a film’s thematic direction.

Henry Jenkins describes convergence as ‘a situation where multiple media systems coexist and where media content flows fluidly across them’ (2006: 282). An important part of the information transferred across platforms are the techniques utilised in creation. Digital technologies have no doubt had a large impact on moving images and how they are developed and produced in the modern world. There has been the introduction of inexpensive consumer digital recording devices, and the ability to create a video with mobile phones rather than needing a separate dedicated device. This has led to growth in the creation of amateur moving images on platforms such as YouTube in a variety of forms. As well as inspiring the creation of new areas of production, digital advances have enabled further evolution in more traditional areas. Early cinematic pioneers dabbled with in-camera trickery in order to create fantastical scenes and amaze viewers, and this principle carries forward to today. Matt Reeve’s Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (2014) is a good example of the intriguing applications of digital technology in order to achieve these old goals in a potentially better way. As with the introduction of any new way to achieve a goal, the opportunities available to content creators have multiplied with the growth in the variety of digital techniques. The power particular innovations in technology can have in their contribution is perhaps underlined by the impact they have had in less revered

The paper would have evaluated digital filmmaking practices and the new range of techniques that modern technology has brought about, giving reference to the rise of importance in editing since the development of red-one and the response to this of various filmmakers, Lars Von Trier etc. New aesthetics would have also been explored, looking at films such as Inland Empire (Lynch, 2006) and Trash Humpers (Kornine, 2009) and the

In this technique, called motion-control cinematograph, the computer’s precise control allows a camera shooting live action in one studio to move at the same speed as a camera shooting a model in a second studio that serves as background for the live action” (par. 2). “Star Wars” revolutionized the way special effects were created and proved them to be a potential box-office gold mine. George Lucas, who directed “Star Wars,” created his own special-effects studio, Industrial Light & Magic, which became a leading innovator and was responsible for a series of groundbreaking special-effects techniques.