film Chapter 2 History and Historiography: Hollywood and Beyond

Historiography

the writing of history; the study of of the methods and principles through which the past is viewed according to certain perspectives and priorities

Periodization

a method of organizing film history by groups of years defined by historical events and/or during which movies share thematic and stylistic concerns

Canon

an accepted list of essential great works in a field of study

Early Cinema

the period of rapid change in how films were made and seen that stretches from 1895 to the rise of of the feature film form in around 1915

race movies

Early 20th century films that featured all-African American casts and circulated to African American audiences in the North and South

Hays Office

Colloquial name for Hollywood's bureau of self-censorship, the Motion Picture Producers and Distributors of America, as administered by its first president (1922-45), Will Hays.

HUAC Hearings

-investigated treason cases against Hollywood Ten

Poetic Realism

a film movement in 1930s France that incorporated a lyrical style and a fatalistic view of life

blaxploitation

a film genre that featured African Americans in an impoverished urban setting.

Auteur Theory

an approach to cinema first proposed in the French film journal Cahiers du cinema that emphasized the role of the director as the expressive force behind a film and saw a director's body of work as united by common themes or formal strategies

Media Convergence

The process by which formerly distinct media, such as cinema, television, the Internet, and video games, and viewing platforms such as television, computers, and cell phones become interdependent.

orphan films

films that do not have copyright holders; this category can include everything from amateur films, training films, and documentaries to censored materials, commercials, and newsreels