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The Silent Era and German Expressionism
- 1. The Silent Eraand German Expressionism
- 2. What is asilent film?? “a film with no synchronized recorded sound, especially with no spoken dialogue. In silent films for entertainment the dialogue is transmitted through muted gestures, mime and title cards.” – Wikipedia This era lasted from 1894 to about 1920, before the technology for synchronised dialogue was available They were simplistic and usually only lasted a few seconds Onscreen intertitles (or “titles”) were used for narration, present key dialogue and comment on the action for the cinema audience, often featuring illustrations or abstract decoration.
- 3. Social impact Silent filmsappealed to mass audiences of the illiterate working-class as no words were used to tell the stories within them. In 1900 it became more of a middle-class pastime as films based on bourgeoisie novels became popular, and these appealed the middle class values. Up until 1914, the USA, Italy and France were home to the biggest film industries, but after Italy and France were devastated in WWII, America took advantage and began patenting the technology for filmmaking.
- 4. Actors were expectedto perform their own stunts – studios would save money by hiring willing actors rather than an actor and a stunt double The Hollywood industry was born when production companies moved to Los Angeles between 1907-1913 As early films didn’t have sound, musicians would provide the music as the film played – depending on the size of the theatre Brazil would show “operettas” with live singers and in Japan films played with an orchestra and narrator in the background Buster Keaton
- 5. German Expressionism This refersto a series of silent films influenced by the art movements of expressionism and constructivism. German filmmakers working for the Berlin-based mega-studio Ufa created a series of films from 1919– 1933, until Hitler came to power. These films sought to express their characters through mise-en-scene as well as melodramatic gestures and movement. Silent film actors emphasized body language and facial expression so that the audience could better understand what an actor was feeling and portraying on screen. As a result, silent films acting is often seen by modern-day audiences as simplistic or “campy”.
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