This written assignment required me to look at how I could apply history to my academic and professional career. As a film major I decided to look at some of the ways that history can be used in film.
Written Assignment #1
If you could make any film, what would it be? How would you make it? People ask me questions like this almost every time I tell them I want to be a filmmaker. I have asked myself these questions and many others. It makes me wonder how I can use what people have already tried in the past to help me become a better filmmaker. Looking at the history of film along with studying historical events can help my gain a stronger voice in the vast film industry. In a world where film is dominated by remakes, sequels, and book adaptations, it is important to consider telling stories that people might not have heard a thousand times. Filmmaking is about telling a story, about showing people the things you want them to see. Some films offer simple, almost mindless entertainment, while other films invoke deep thought or emotion in the audiences that go see them. Some film directors are starting to realize that the audiences who go see their films are intelligent people and they try to offer more than just entertainment for the masses. Even a few of the superhero films being released today are offering an intellectual point of view.
One of the ways that I can use history as a filmmaker is to look at events that have occurred. Since its invention film has been used to tell stories from the past. Filmmakers want to put their own mark on historical events and tell those stories in their own way. Many of these films have won awards for the way that historical events were depicted. For me, it isn’t about winning awards, it is about connecting audiences with certain events and the people who were involved. Ensuring accuracy or showing other historical opinions through my films will help me achieve that. Historical inaccuracies in films can transport people out of the story which might be disruptive to the experience. These inaccuracies don’t stop films from becoming successful or even winning awards. According to whatculture.com the most historically inaccurate Oscar winning films are The King’s Speech, Disney’s Pocahontas, Midnight Express, JFK, Shakespeare in Love, The Bridge over the River Kwai, Elizabeth: The Golden Age, Braveheart, Gladiator, and Pearl Harbor.
One powerful way that filmmakers use history is to depict stories that come from darker points in history. They show some of the challenges that the characters faced and how they were able to overcome them. Sometimes the film director is addressing issues that have affected humanity throughout history and why those issues are still relevant. Nearly every social issue has been addressed on film at least once or twice. A large portion of these films focus on racial or social intolerance. A few examples are 12 Years a Slave, Django Unchained, Glory, and Schindler’s List. Another popular subject for films is to focus on the many wars that have been fought throughout the centuries and the reasons why each war was fought. Some films show the stories we all know, while others offer details that aren’t common knowledge. Some of these war films include The Patriot, War Horse, and Saving Private Ryan.
As a film student, I have come to realize that a film’s genre doesn’t mean that it can’t use events from our past. Even Fantasy films can have a basis in history. While preparing to make the Lord of the Rings trilogy, Peter Jackson used history to understand war techniques and weaponry. Some specific examples are the various catapults seen in the films, the use of black powder to breech a stone fortress, and tossing severed heads over the city walls in order to scare the soldiers and townspeople. Fantasy films can also be used to address issues affecting our culture. James Cameron’s Avatar blends together Fern Gully and Dances with Wolves to address issues like deforestation, cultural prejudice, and cultural destruction. Many zombie films use the undead as a synonym for political oppression, nuclear holocaust, and media brainwashing. Films about viral epidemics not only depict the social fear of diseases like what we saw with swine flu, but also serve as a reminder that these types of things happened in the past.
As technology has evolved, the film industry evolves with it. From silent films to Technicolor to computer animation, studying the history of film will help me understand what techniques have worked in the past and what haven’t. It will help me decide what kind of filmmaker I would like to be. As I think about the film directors I most admire, I have to look at what types of techniques they use to achieve the look of their films. Christopher Nolan, who directed Inception and the Dark Knight trilogy, has stated that he tries to do as much on camera as possible because it looks more genuine. He also thinks that 3D film is a waste of money and time. Both computer effects and 3D film are being utilized by many other filmmakers who see no issues with using those techniques. It is all a matter of personal preference. If we compare computer effects to more traditional methods (miniatures, on camera effects, etc), we can see how each one can be used and what each type offers. Traditional methods offer realism in the sense that you are seeing the performers’ real reactions to a situation. Computer animation, on the other hand, allows filmmakers to create circumstances that would be unsafe for everyone involved if it were attempted during filming. Most of film history has used analog film to capture the footage for movies, but within the last 20 years filmmakers have been making the switch to digital film. Digital film offers a crisper, higher quality image while analog appears grainy. Digital also cuts the cost of having to use and store hours of footage in a warehouse because the film can be stored on a hard drive. One of the most recent additions to film capture is the use of 3D cameras. Many computer animated and action films are now being offered for 3D viewing. Personally I don’t think that 3D is worth the cost for the production company or the audiences buying tickets to these films. Of all the 3D films I have paid to see, the only one that was enhanced by the 3D effect was James Cameron’s Avatar. Seeing how other filmmakers have used the tools available to them has helped me start to think about which methods I would rather use when I begin to make films.
Another way that I can use history as a filmmaker is that of documentary films. Some documentary films are focused on events that happened years ago and others deal with things that are happening right now. Even the documentaries that focus on current events are still historical because one day, the events being shown will be considered a part of history. One event that comes to mind is the September 11th attack on the World Trade Center. I remember watching the events unfold as the happened along with the rest of my tenth grade history class. At the time it was a current event, but there are kids in elementary and middle school who only know it as a historical event because they hadn’t even been born at that time. Another time in our history is World War II. My grandparents were children at the time it was happening, but to me it is just a historical event. Though I understand how important it was, I don’t know how much it affected every aspect of life at that time.
As a film student, I understand why history is important to my career. The information we discuss in class might help provide new insights into events that might have been depicted in a past film that will give me a better understanding of what really happened. The information will help me see that a popular historical film might not contain as much historical fact as people believe. Through reading the text and participating in class discussions, I might discover something about our history that hasn’t been the subject of a film. This could help me create an original movie that will break the industry’s cycle of reusing ideas and themes. Another way this class could help me is the offer new opinions or points of view about a topic or social issue that hasn’t been addressed by the film industry yet. I plan to approach this class and the information presented with the mindset of a filmmaker looking for ideas to improve my story-telling methods. I will need to keep an open mind and consider the things that go beyond the information that is presented to me. History is not just a series of facts, names, and dates. History could be considered as just an opinion and not everyone shares those opinions. How we see history depends on our culture, heritage, where we live, what we’ve been taught, and how we view the world. History is constantly changing and evolving. It is more than just the past, it is also the present and future.
One of the ways that I can use history as a filmmaker is to look at events that have occurred. Since its invention film has been used to tell stories from the past. Filmmakers want to put their own mark on historical events and tell those stories in their own way. Many of these films have won awards for the way that historical events were depicted. For me, it isn’t about winning awards, it is about connecting audiences with certain events and the people who were involved. Ensuring accuracy or showing other historical opinions through my films will help me achieve that. Historical inaccuracies in films can transport people out of the story which might be disruptive to the experience. These inaccuracies don’t stop films from becoming successful or even winning awards. According to whatculture.com the most historically inaccurate Oscar winning films are The King’s Speech, Disney’s Pocahontas, Midnight Express, JFK, Shakespeare in Love, The Bridge over the River Kwai, Elizabeth: The Golden Age, Braveheart, Gladiator, and Pearl Harbor.
One powerful way that filmmakers use history is to depict stories that come from darker points in history. They show some of the challenges that the characters faced and how they were able to overcome them. Sometimes the film director is addressing issues that have affected humanity throughout history and why those issues are still relevant. Nearly every social issue has been addressed on film at least once or twice. A large portion of these films focus on racial or social intolerance. A few examples are 12 Years a Slave, Django Unchained, Glory, and Schindler’s List. Another popular subject for films is to focus on the many wars that have been fought throughout the centuries and the reasons why each war was fought. Some films show the stories we all know, while others offer details that aren’t common knowledge. Some of these war films include The Patriot, War Horse, and Saving Private Ryan.
As a film student, I have come to realize that a film’s genre doesn’t mean that it can’t use events from our past. Even Fantasy films can have a basis in history. While preparing to make the Lord of the Rings trilogy, Peter Jackson used history to understand war techniques and weaponry. Some specific examples are the various catapults seen in the films, the use of black powder to breech a stone fortress, and tossing severed heads over the city walls in order to scare the soldiers and townspeople. Fantasy films can also be used to address issues affecting our culture. James Cameron’s Avatar blends together Fern Gully and Dances with Wolves to address issues like deforestation, cultural prejudice, and cultural destruction. Many zombie films use the undead as a synonym for political oppression, nuclear holocaust, and media brainwashing. Films about viral epidemics not only depict the social fear of diseases like what we saw with swine flu, but also serve as a reminder that these types of things happened in the past.
As technology has evolved, the film industry evolves with it. From silent films to Technicolor to computer animation, studying the history of film will help me understand what techniques have worked in the past and what haven’t. It will help me decide what kind of filmmaker I would like to be. As I think about the film directors I most admire, I have to look at what types of techniques they use to achieve the look of their films. Christopher Nolan, who directed Inception and the Dark Knight trilogy, has stated that he tries to do as much on camera as possible because it looks more genuine. He also thinks that 3D film is a waste of money and time. Both computer effects and 3D film are being utilized by many other filmmakers who see no issues with using those techniques. It is all a matter of personal preference. If we compare computer effects to more traditional methods (miniatures, on camera effects, etc), we can see how each one can be used and what each type offers. Traditional methods offer realism in the sense that you are seeing the performers’ real reactions to a situation. Computer animation, on the other hand, allows filmmakers to create circumstances that would be unsafe for everyone involved if it were attempted during filming. Most of film history has used analog film to capture the footage for movies, but within the last 20 years filmmakers have been making the switch to digital film. Digital film offers a crisper, higher quality image while analog appears grainy. Digital also cuts the cost of having to use and store hours of footage in a warehouse because the film can be stored on a hard drive. One of the most recent additions to film capture is the use of 3D cameras. Many computer animated and action films are now being offered for 3D viewing. Personally I don’t think that 3D is worth the cost for the production company or the audiences buying tickets to these films. Of all the 3D films I have paid to see, the only one that was enhanced by the 3D effect was James Cameron’s Avatar. Seeing how other filmmakers have used the tools available to them has helped me start to think about which methods I would rather use when I begin to make films.
Another way that I can use history as a filmmaker is that of documentary films. Some documentary films are focused on events that happened years ago and others deal with things that are happening right now. Even the documentaries that focus on current events are still historical because one day, the events being shown will be considered a part of history. One event that comes to mind is the September 11th attack on the World Trade Center. I remember watching the events unfold as the happened along with the rest of my tenth grade history class. At the time it was a current event, but there are kids in elementary and middle school who only know it as a historical event because they hadn’t even been born at that time. Another time in our history is World War II. My grandparents were children at the time it was happening, but to me it is just a historical event. Though I understand how important it was, I don’t know how much it affected every aspect of life at that time.
As a film student, I understand why history is important to my career. The information we discuss in class might help provide new insights into events that might have been depicted in a past film that will give me a better understanding of what really happened. The information will help me see that a popular historical film might not contain as much historical fact as people believe. Through reading the text and participating in class discussions, I might discover something about our history that hasn’t been the subject of a film. This could help me create an original movie that will break the industry’s cycle of reusing ideas and themes. Another way this class could help me is the offer new opinions or points of view about a topic or social issue that hasn’t been addressed by the film industry yet. I plan to approach this class and the information presented with the mindset of a filmmaker looking for ideas to improve my story-telling methods. I will need to keep an open mind and consider the things that go beyond the information that is presented to me. History is not just a series of facts, names, and dates. History could be considered as just an opinion and not everyone shares those opinions. How we see history depends on our culture, heritage, where we live, what we’ve been taught, and how we view the world. History is constantly changing and evolving. It is more than just the past, it is also the present and future.