Live Cinema and Its Techniques

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Description

From probably the most masters of twentieth-century cinema, an indispensable and entertaining guide to a visionary new form of moviemaking that may be appreciated by the avid film buff and general movie lover alike.

Keenly aware that advancements in digital tools have literally revolutionized every technological aspect of cinema over the last twenty-five years, Francis Ford Coppola is convinced that this same transformation will profoundly alter the way films are conceived and directed, bringing changes as momentous as those when moviemaking shifted from the silent era to “talkies.” Already this kind of prototype exists in sports, where advanced digital technology and multiple cameras all filming at once have produced live sporting events of ordinary sophistication that are often viewed on one’s television screen. But the time is not far off, Live Cinema and Its Techniques demonstrates, when a director or a collaborative team of filmmakers working across the internet will create “live” movies that will be sent instantly via satellite for viewing during the world.

Yet the creative demands posed by airing live sporting contests, as impressive as the final product is, pale in contrast with the ambitions of “cinematic auteurs,” who are inspired by great directors, like Serge Eisenstein, Max Ophuls, or Alfred Hitchcock, among many others. As daunting as the challenge is, the process of integrating the highest artistic standards of previous generations into the medium of “live cinema” can, Coppola explains, be achieved, thus creating an entirely new art form for the so-called “screen.” Tapping into his own encyclopedic knowledge of twentieth-century film history, Coppola threads his vision of this burgeoning cinematic medium with autobiographical and historical vignettes gleaned from the past, recalling his own boyhood obsession with film and his early fascination with the “Golden Age of Television,” when 1950s viewers were treated to live productions of classics, like Days of Wine and Roses and Requiem for a Heavyweight.

Especially exciting is the exhilaration and drama that results from retraining actors and the use of a multitude of cameras to create a film that has the in-the-moment energy of a live event. Having already tried out this new medium with “proof-of-concept workshops” at Oklahoma City Community College and at UCLA, Coppola has created an invaluable guide for students and teachers alike. Filled with discussions of how to rehearse actors, how to select scenery and location, and how to overcome theatrical, as well as technical, obstacles, Live Cinema and Its Techniques reveals how the spontaneity of this new genre can in the end transport filmmaking into a new era of creativity still not possible today.

Featuring chapters on:

  • A Short History of Film and Television
  • The Actors, Acting, and Rehearsal
  • The Question of Style in the Cinema
  • Obstacles and Other Thoughts on Live Cinema No Matter What They May Be
  • Equipment: Now and in the Near Future

20 illustrations

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