Communication Ch 7

feature films

longer story films, usually over 1 1/2 hours

major film studios

like Fox or Disney integrate all aspects of production and distribution

star system

the film studios’ use of stars’ popularity to promote their movies

motion picture code

1930 (Hay Code) was a self-regulation of sex on screen by the motion picture industry

talkies

motion pictures with synchronized sound for dialogue

film noir

comprised the “dark” moody American films of the 1940s; often focused on detectives or similar themes

studio system

in Hollywood emphasized key stars as a way to promote studio films

B movies

cheaply and quickly made genre films

vertical integration

when a company with the same owner handles different aspects of a business (within the same industry), such as film production and distribution

theatrical films

films released for distribution in movie theaters

Gross

the total box office revenue before expenses are deducted

concentration of ownership

integration of many aspect of media into 1 company creates concerns about political control and loss of diversity

first-run distribution

film production made specifically for movie theaters

* most films target 15 to 24 year olds

independent (indie) film

refers to films not made by the major studios

rear-projection

effects have images projected behind performers who are in the foreground

front projection

lets actors be photographed in front of an image so that they appear as part of it

compositing

merging several layers of images that were shot separately

mattes

background paintings or photographs that are combined with performers in the foreground

postproduction

includes editing, sound effects, and visual effects that are added after shooting the original footage

nonlinear editing

uses digital equipment to rearrange scenes to make the master copy

digital video

is recorded, edited, and often transmitted in digital form as used by computers

conglomerates

big businesses or corporations that own seemingly unrelated holdings. They are made up of diverse parts from across several media industries and are involved in multiple areas of business activity

windows

separate film release times for different channels or media

MPAA (Motion Picture Association of America)

a trade organization that represents the major film studios

MPAA ratings

part of a movie rating system instituted in 1968

Who invented most of the major components of the camera?

Thomas Edison

Who(s) discovered the principle of projecting light through transparent filmstrips?

The Lumière brothers

In the classic 1933 King Kong, what was developed from mechanical models?

special effects

Film has been improved by increasing the number of frames or images per second, making the image wider, and adding _____

color

Studios rose on the basis of this ____ system, using the starsí popularity to promote their movies

star

The _____ system consisted of production companies that employed the complete set of facilities and people required to makes and distribute movies.

studio

Main Hollywood studios were United Artists, Paramount, MGM, Fox Warner Brothers, Universal, Columbia, and ____.

RKO

The major film producers are the old time studios …

Columbia, Fox, MGM, Paramount, Universal and Warner Brothers

_______ film companies work alone or with majors

Independent

_____ independent filmmakers or “indies” usually produce fewer films and for much less money that the majors - often a few million dollars.

Individual

____ films are still primarily distributed by the majors

Indie

Who is D. W. Griffith and what controversial thing did he do?

* film director
* controversial drama “Birth of a Nation”
* outdoor battle scenes, close-ups, and cuts
* featured anti-Black Ku Klux Klan members as its heroes
* used by the Klan as a recruiting film

The Jazz Singer in 1927?

* started the talking pictures
* acting became less overstated and stylized
* actors’ voice
* sound effects and music

What are the basic current genres in film?

* comedy
* drama
* action
* horror
* science fiction
* classic
* family
* western
* animation
* foreign

As small theaters closed all over America in the 1950s, the film industry began to realize that it couldn’t ____ television

beat

Independent producers gained more of a role in producing movies, and film studios began to spend much time producing TV _____.

series

Increase in movies with explicit language, sex, and violence in the 1960s. What did the MPAA instituted?

A ratings system to give people an idea of what they might encounter in a film

Some critics argue that as a form of industry self-censhorship, ratings violate freedom of ____ for filmmakers

speech

Others argue that the ratings system draw the interest of _____ views.

younger

The restrictions on teenage viewing of films rated R and NC-17 are often not enforced by theaters, because teens are the ____ moviegoers.

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