This document discusses surrealism as an international film style. It begins by defining world cinema as films from non-English speaking countries. It then contrasts looking at film as a commercial product versus an art form. When viewed as art, films can experiment more with style and communicate messages to audiences. Surrealism was the first film movement to develop from an existing art movement. An art movement is a style with a shared philosophy followed by artists over some time. Modern art rejected realism and focused more on abstraction and concepts. Surrealism extended these ideas of non-realism in art into film.

1. A2 Film Studies
Unit FM4 Varieties of Film Experience
Issues and Debates
Section A: World Cinema
b) International Film Styles
SURREALISM

2. World Cinema
In order to understand surrealism as an example
of an international film style we need, first of all, to
have an understanding of what we mean by world
cinema.
How would you define world cinema?
It’s a term used in English-speaking countries to
refer to the films and film industries of non-
English-speaking countries. The word ‘world’ has
often been interchanged with ‘foreign’.

3. Film as Art 1
 In AS Film Studies you studied films (American and
British films) as commercial products. You focused
on how they are produced, distributed and exhibited
for the primary purpose of making profit.
 You also looked at the significance of the all-
important audience to film distributors who have to
skillfully market star personnas and freshen up old
genres to keep pleasing them.

4. Film as Art 2
 In A2 Film Studies and particularly in this topic we will
be looking at film as art rather than film as a
commercial product.
 Our starting point is to understand what we mean by
art. How would you describe art?
 The expression of human creative skill, often in a
visual form, producing works that are appreciated
primarily for their beauty or emotional power.

5. Film as Art 3
 It’s very difficult to describe art precisely. Different
people have very fixed ideas about what it is or
should be.
 However, the best way to think about film as art is to
think of films where film makers have been more
interested in the process of crafting film and on
experimenting with form and style rather than
commercial appeal.

6. Film as Art 4
 Additionally, looking at film as an art form rather than
a commercial practise, helps us to focus on the ways
that film makers use the medium of film to
communicate messages to audiences and the idea
that some films can be so powerful in their effect on
audiences that they can change the way they think –
and even bring about social or political change.

7. Film as Art 5
 Historically, art (painting, drawing etc) existed before
film was invented so what is so exciting about
surrealism is that it was the first film ‘movement’ to
develop out of an art ‘movement’.
 What is an art movement?

8. Film as Art 6
 An art movement is a tendency or style in art with a
specific common philosophy or goal, followed by a
group of artists during a restricted period of time,
(usually a few months, years or decades). Art
movements were especially important in modern art
(1870s onwards and esp. first part of 20th Century)
when each consecutive movement was considered
as a new avant-garde.

9. Film as Art 7
 The most significant development in art happened in
the 1870s when impressionism emerged as a
shocking and radical style of art.
 The period between the 1870s and 1960s is now
referred to as ‘modernist’ and modernism was
characterised by shocking departures from long-
established rules and conventions.
 Modern art was characterised by a rejection of
traditional realist art – the kind of art in which
subjects, objects and places were depicted as
realistically as possible.

10. Film as Art 8
 So, modern art (and modernism generally) was pre-
occupied with non-realism.
 Non-realism can also be referred to as abstract or
conceptual.
 Abstract art uses metaphors and symbols to suggest
ideas and concepts.
 The invention of photography was one of the
influencing factors in the move away from realism (in
art) towards non-realism. Can you think why this
would be?

11. Realism and Non Realism
 Before we can understand surrealism (in art and film)
we first need to understand the difference between
realism and non-realism.
 This is because surrealism is an extension of the
idea of non-realism.
 To achieve this understanding we will look at two
paintings. Then we will be ready to understand
surrealism in its historical context – as a type of art
(then film) that evolved during the modernist period
(when the concept of ‘reality’ itself was being
questioned).