Tutorial 4: Narrative Form

Notes from Prof. McCullough's Lecture 9/19/09

NANOOK OF THE NORTH (1922)

- “IMPRESSIONS OF REALITY”
- CREATIVE TREATMENT OF REALITY – DOCUMENTARY TRADITION
- ELEMENTS OF “CINEMA OF ATTRACTION”
- ETHNOGRAPHIC FILM – STUDY OF OTHER CULTURES
- ETHNOCENTRISM – BIASED INTERPRETATIONS
- WHO GETS TO MAKE FILMS? ABOUT WHOM?

- HOW ARE THE ‘FACTS’ TRANSFORMED INTO ENTERTAINMENT?
- AS BAZIN SAYS, “CINEMA IS ALSO A LANGUAGE”
- HOW DID FLAHERTY LEARN THE LANGUAGE OF CINEMA?

WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO POSTULATE CINEMA AS A LANGUAGE?
IT IS TO ASK: HOW IS INFORMATION ORGANIZED IN A FILM?
WHICH IS ALSO TO ASK: WHAT IS THE FORM OF ANY GIVEN FILM?

PRINCIPLES OF FILM FORM:
1) FUNCTION (WHAT IS THE MOTIVATION OF ANY GIVEN ELEMENT?)
2) SIMILARITY & REPETITION (MOTIFS & PARRALLELISM)
3) DIFFERENCE & VARIATION
4) DEVELOPMENT (PROGRESSION & SEGMENTATION)
5) UNITY & DISUNITY

RECOGNIZING FILM FORM, I.E., HOW A FILM IS DESIGNED, ALLOWS US TO ASK FURTHER QUESTIONS ABOUT HOW A FILM CREATES MEANINGS

A COMMON FORM OF FILM DESIGN IS THAT OF NARRATIVE (STORY FILMS)
- “WE CAN CONSIDER A NARRATIVE TO BE A CHAIN OF EVENTS IN A CAUSE-EFFECT RELATIONSHIP OCCURING IN TIME AND SPACE.” (B&T, 75)

CONVENTIONS OF NARRATIVE CINEMA
- EST. BETWEEN ~1900 & 1915
- RICH COMBINATION OF SPECTACLE/ATTRACTIONS & LINEAR STORYTELLING

PRINCIPLES OF NARRATIVE CONSTRUCTION
- CAUSALITY, TIME (ORDER & DURATION OF EVENTS), SPACE
- DISTINCTION BETWEEN STORY AND PLOT, AND BETWEEN DIEGETIC AND NON-DIEGETIC MATERIAL
- STORY = PRESUMED & INFERRED EVENTS & PRESENTED EVENTS
- PLOT = PRESENTED EVENTS & ADDED NON-DIEGETIC MATERIAL

CLASSICAL HOLLYWOOD NARRATIVE & NARRATION

NARRATIVE IS THE STORY; NARRATION IS THE TELLING OF THE STORY

1) TYPE OF NARRATIVE: “HISTORICAL” NARRATIVE
- EXPLAINS CHANGE (ALL AND ONLY THOSE EVENTS NEEDED TO
UNDERSTAND THE STORY EVENTS, HISTORICALLY)
- ORGANIZED AROUND A LINEAR LOGIC AND STRUCTURE; THERE IS A SENSE OF UNITY TO THIS DESIGN (SOMETIMES THOUGHT OF AS REALISTIC OR NORMAL)

2) TYPE OF NARRATION:
- TENDS TO BE ‘INVISIBLE,’ ‘DISINTERESTED’ 3RD PERSON (E.G., “ONE UPON A TIME…”
- IMPLICATIONS OF OBJECTIVITY (I.E., “JUST THE FACTS”)

3) BASIC STRUCTURE: EQUILIBRIUM - CHANGE - (NEW) EQUILIBRIUM
- STORY & CHARACTER MOTIVATION PROVIDED BY CHANGE AND RESTORATION OF EQUILIBRIUM

4) PRINCIPLE AGENTS: PROTAGANIST/HERO IS CENTRAL ELEMENT
- EXTERNAL & PSYCHOLOGICAL (INTERIOR) MOTIVATIONS
- CHARACTER REACTIONS TO CHANGE INFLUENCE OUR UNDERSTANDING OF THEM AND THEIR WORLD

5) EVENT-CENTRED STRUCTURE
- GOAL-ORIENTATION (E.G., DEADLINE)
- CAUSALITY IS PRIME UNIFYING PRINCIPLE (ACTION V. REFLECTION)

Tutorial 3: Making Meaning

Buster Keaton Film in Roncesvalles

Buster Keaton's "Seven Chances" - Sunday October 18th - 4PM @ The Revue Cinema (400 Roncesvalles)

This may interest all of you. I'm sure it will be fun. Thanks Lewis for bringing this to my attention.

Below is a membership card for one show which gives you a $2 discount. Click on it, print it out and bring to the show:

Response Paper

FA/FILM 1401 6.0 Introduction to Film (For Non-Majors) Fall/Winter 09-10 - McCullough

RESPONSE PAPER ASSIGNMENT SHEET

Due Oct. 27/28, in tutorials

- This is worth 10% of your final grade

- Late penalty: 5% per day off the graded result (not including weekends)

A response paper is a short essay that is focused on specific information and reflection on particular issues. For this assignment you will be evaluated on the quality of your writing as well as the quality of your discussion of the following question. The question must be answered clearly, with references to relevant readings and screenings, and you should endeavour to organize your response paper as a critical essay. That is, the best essays will show evidence of an ability to synthesize a coherent response. When substantiating your argument you should make explicit reference to scenes in the films, mentioning techniques and formal qualities that illustrate your point. You should also refer to the readings, citing your sources accurately in footnotes, endnotes, or a bibliography (you should use a style guide with which you are familiar). For help with citation styles, please refer to the Scott Library website and search for on-line help with essay writing. If you have difficulty with writing you should consult the Centre for Academic Writing at 416-736-5134.

Your response paper should be ~5 pages (1250-1500 words, each page numbered not incl. the cover page), double-spaced, ~3 cm margins, 12 pt font, black ink on white paper, stapled in the upper left, with a cover page that includes: Title: RESPONSE PAPER; Course Title & Number: INTRODUCTION TO FILM, FILM 1401; Tutorial Number; Tutorial Leader’s name; Your Name & Student Number; Date.

Academic Honesty:

Any thesis or research which you borrow from another writer should be cited in a footnote, endnote or by other acceptable form of reference to source material. Theft of intellectual property is dealt with harshly by the university and can lead to academic penalty. Among other things, the Senate Policy on Academic Honesty discusses offences such as cheating; submission of one piece of work in satisfaction of two assignments without prior consent; impersonation; plagiarism and other misappropriation of the work of another; abuse of confidentiality; falsification or forgery of documents; obstruction of the academic activities of another; and aiding or abetting academic misconduct. If you are unclear about these definitions, please consult the course director or visit this location: http://www.yorku.ca/secretariat/legislation/senate/acadhone.htm

Note: If you miss handing in work at a tutorial, you should submit the work (prior to 4pm of the due date) to the assignment drop box, which is located on the wall beside 223 CFT. Please put your tutorial leader’s name clearly on the cover page, and verify later that they have received it. Due to the large number of students in the course, no email submissions are accepted.

Please answer the following question in a 5 page response paper:

Discuss narrative elements in Robert Flaherty’s Nanook of the North (US, 1922) indicating how its formal structure creates meaning for its audience. How can the concept “the cinema of attractions” help us understand the structure of Nanook, Cops (US, 1922, Buster Keaton) and Wizard of Oz (US, 1939, Victor Fleming)?

Tutorial 2: Cinema of Attractions