This document discusses the concept of film stardom, including the difference between actors and stars. It explains that stars develop a recognizable screen persona through their films, promotion, and publicity. Stars can represent social types like the good guy or tough guy, but also have more complex, specific images. Studying a film in terms of its star and their character involves looking at whether the film selectively highlights parts of the star's image, if the image is a perfect fit for the character, or if the star's persona creates problems for the character construction.

1. FILM
STARDOM

2. • What is star?
• What does it mean to study film
stardom critically?

3. What is the difference between an actor and
a star?

4. Stars develop a
recognizable and
memorable
screen persona.

6. “The star phenomenon depends upon
collapsing the distinction between the star-as-
person and the star-as-performer.”
- Richard Dyer, Stars (1979)

7. Where do we get information
about stars?
• Films
• Promotion
• Publicity
• Commentary (Criticism & Fandom)

9. Stars as Types
Social type: an idealized concept of how
people are expected to be or act

10. The Good Guy

11. The Tough Guy

12. The Independent Woman

13. The Glamour Girl

14. Stars as Specific Images
“Stars embody social types, but star
images are always more complex
and specific than types. Types, are,
as it were, the ground on which a
particular star’s image is
constructed.”
- Richard Dyer, Stars

16. What is involved in studying a film in
terms of a star and the character she or
he plays?

17. 1. Selective use of star image
The film brings out certain features of a
star’s image and ignores others.
• Which features of the star’s image does
the film bring out?
• How does it bring them out?
• Which features does it ignore?

18. Tom Hanks in Road to Perdition (Sam Mendes, 2002)

19. 2. Perfect fit
All aspects of a star’s image fit with all traits
of a character.

20. Vince Vaughan in Wedding Crashers (2005)

21. 3. Problematic fit
The star’s powerful, already present persona
creates problems for the construction of
character.

22. John Wayne as Ghengis Khan in
The Conqueror (1956)