Film Studies: A Global Introduction

by Glyn Davis, Kay Dickinson, Lisa Patti, Amy Villarejo

Overview

Film Studies: A Global Introduction reroutes film studies from its Euro-American focus and canon in order to introduce students to a medium that has always been global but has become differently and insistently so in the digital age.

Glyn Davis, Kay Dickinson, Lisa Patti and Amy Villarejo’s approach encourages readers to think about film holistically by looking beyond the textual analysis of key films. In contrast, it engages with other vital areas, such as financing, labour, marketing, distribution, exhibition, preservation, and politics, reflecting contemporary aspects of cinema production and consumption worldwide.

Key features of the book include:

• clear definitions of the key terms at the foundation of film studies
• coverage of the work of key thinkers, explained in their social and historical context
• a broad range of relevant case studies that reflect the book’s approach to global cinema, from Italian "white telephone" films to Mexican wrestling films
• innovative and flexible exercises to help readers enhance their understanding of the histories, theories, and examples introduced in each chapter
• an extensive Interlude introducing readers to formal analysis through the careful explication and application of key terms
• a detailed discussion of strategies for writing about cinema

Films Studies: A Global Introduction will appeal to students studying film today and aspiring to work in the industry, as well as those eager to understand the world of images and screens in which we all live.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780415734349
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	04/07/2015
Pages:	546
Product dimensions:	7.50(w) x 10.00(h) x 1.20(d)

About the Author

Glyn Davis is Chancellor’s Fellow and Reader in the School of Design at the University of Edinburgh, UK. He is the co-editor, with Gary Needham, of Warhol in Ten Takes (2013), and the author of monographs on Superstar: The Karen Carpenter Story (2009) and Far from Heaven (2011).

Kay Dickinson is an Associate Professor of Film Studies at Concordia University, Canada. She is the editor of Movie Music: A Film Reader (2002) and the author of Off Key: When Film and Music Won't Work Together (2008).

Lisa Patti is an Assistant Professor in the Media and Society Program at Hobart and William Smith Colleges.

Amy Villarejo is Professor in the Department of Performing and Media Arts at Cornell University. Her books include Ethereal Queer (2014), Film Studies: The Basics, second edition (2013), and Lesbian Rule: Cultural Criticism and the Value of Desire (2003).

Table of Contents

Part 1: Why Are Movies Made? Introduction 1. Cinema As Entertainment 2. Cinema as Self-Expression 3. Cinema as Informative 4. Film and Politics 5. Film as a Commodity Part 2: How Do Movies Get Made? Introduction 6. Starting Points 7. Film Production Practices 8. Film Labour. Interlude on Film Form Part 3: Where Do Movies Go? Introduction 9. Marketing 10. Distribution 11. Exhibition 12. Evaluative Contexts 13. The Longevity of Films Part 4: How Are Movies Experienced? 14. Pleasure and Desire 15. Identification and Identity 16. Transformation Writing about Cinema