Film Studies Vocabulary Flashcards

A set of vocabulary flashcards related to key concepts and figures in film studies, covering terminology from genres, film movements, and critical theories.

Universal Studios

Key player in 1930s horror cinema; produced iconic monster films like Dracula and Frankenstein.

Francois Truffaut

French New Wave director known for defining auteur theory and emphasizing director's personal vision.

Pauline Kael

Influential American film critic who challenged auteur theory, arguing that film is collaborative.

Maya Deren

Pioneering experimental filmmaker known for 'Meshes of the Afternoon,' exploring subjectivity and dreams.

Dziga Vertov

Soviet filmmaker known for 'Man with a Movie Camera,' promoting the 'Kino-eye' to expose social truths.

Psycho

Foundational slasher film introducing spectacle horror and complex gender themes.

Direct cinema

Documentary style aiming for unobtrusive observation using handheld cameras, emphasizing authenticity.

Reflexive mode

Documentary approach that foregrounds the filmmaking process, highlighting its constructed nature.

Fetishistic scopophilia

Visual pleasure where the male viewer fetishizes the female body to overcome castration anxiety.

Giallo

Italian horror-thriller subgenre combining murder mysteries with stylized violence and eroticism.

Third Cinema

Politically engaged film movement from the Global South resisting Hollywood and advocating for collective expression.

Male gaze

Concept in feminist film theory describing how cinema structures spectatorship around masculine desire.

Impact aesthetic

Cinematic style marked by fast editing, loud sound design, and extreme visuals, popular in blockbusters.

Associational form

Poetic film structure that creates meaning through the juxtaposition of disparate images.

Colorblind ideology

Belief system that ignores racial differences and systemic inequalities in mainstream media.