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What is Film

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A screenshot of Roundhay Garden Scene by the French Louis Le Prince, the world's first film
A frame from Roundhay Garden Scene, the world's earliest surviving film produced using a motion picture camera, by Louis Le Prince, 1888

A film, also called a movie, motion picture or moving picture, is a work of visual art used to simulate experiences that communicate ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere through the use of moving images. These images are generally accompanied by sound, and more rarely, other sensory stimulations. The word "cinema", short for cinematography, is often used to refer to filmmaking and the film industry, and to the art form that is the result of it.

The moving images of a film are created by photographing actual scenes with a motion-picture camera, by photographing drawings or miniature models using traditional animation techniques, by means of CGI and computer animation, or by a combination of some or all of these techniques, and other visual effects.

Traditionally, films were recorded onto celluloid film stock through a photochemical process and then shown through a movie projector onto a large screen. Contemporary films are often fully digital through the entire process of production, distribution, and exhibition, while films recorded in a photochemical form traditionally included an analogous optical soundtrack (a graphic recording of the spoken words, music and other sounds that accompany the images which runs along a portion of the film exclusively reserved for it, and is not projected).

Main articles: History of film technology, History of film, and Precursors of film
Berlin Wintergarten theatre, vaudeville stage at the Berlin Conservatory from the 1940s
The Berlin Wintergarten theatre was the site of the first cinema ever, with a short film presented by the Skladanowsky brothers on 1 November 1895. (Pictured here is a variety show at the theater in July 1940.)

Film Genre

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A film genre is a stylistic or thematic category for motion pictures based on similarities either in the narrative elements, aesthetic approach, or the emotional response to the film.

Drawing heavily from the theories of literary-genre criticism, film genres are usually delineated by "conventions, iconography, settings, narratives, characters and actors." One can also classify films by the tone, theme/topic, mood, format, target audience, or budget. These characteristics are most evident in genre films, which are "commercial feature films [that], through repetition and variation, tell familiar stories with familiar characters and familiar situations" in a given genre.

A film's genre will influence the use of filmmaking styles and techniques, such as the use of flashbacks and low-key lighting in film noir; tight framing in horror films; or fonts that look like rough-hewn logs for the titles of Western films. In addition, genres have associated film-scoring conventions, such as lush string orchestras for romantic melodramas or electronic music for science-fiction films. Genre also affects how films are broadcast on television, advertised, and organized in video-rental stores.

Alan Williams distinguishes three main genre categories: narrative, avant-garde, and documentary.

With the proliferation of particular genres, film subgenres can also emerge: the legal drama, for example, is a sub-genre of drama that includes courtroom- and trial-focused films. Subgenres are often a mixture of two separate genres; genres can also merge with seemingly unrelated ones to form hybrid genres, where popular combinations include the romantic comedy and the action comedy film. Broader examples include the docufiction and docudrama, which merge the basic categories of fiction and non-fiction (documentary).

Genres are not fixed; they change and evolve over time, and some genres may largely disappear (for example, the melodrama). Not only does genre refer to a type of film or its category, a key role is also played by the expectations of an audience about a film, as well as institutional discourses that create generic structures.

Examples of genres and subgenres

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Genres and subgenres[1]
Genre Description Subgenre(s) Examples
Action film Associated with particular types of spectacle (e.g., explosions, chases, combat)[2]
Adventure film Implies a narrative that is defined by a journey (often including some form of pursuit) and is usually located within a fantasy or exoticized setting. Typically, though not always, such stories include the quest narrative. The predominant emphasis on violence and fighting in action films is the typical difference between the two genres.[2][3]
Animated film A film medium in which the film’s images are primarily created by computer or hand and the characters are voiced by actors.[4] Animation can otherwise incorporate any genre and subgenre[1] and is often confused as a genre itself.
Comedy film Defined by events that are primarily intended to make the audience laugh
Drama Focused on emotions and defined by conflict, often looking to reality rather than sensationalism.
Fantasy film Films defined by situations that transcend natural laws and/or by settings inside a fictional universe, with narratives that are often inspired by or involve human myths. The genre typically incorporates non-scientific concepts such as magic, mythical creatures, and supernatural elements.[1][4]
Historical film Films that either provide more-or-less accurate representations of historical accounts or depict fictional narratives placed inside an accurate depiction of a historical setting.[1]
Horror film
Science fiction film Films are defined by a combination of imaginative speculation and a scientific or technological premise, making use of the changes and trajectory of technology and science. This genre often incorporates space, biology, energy, time, and any other observable science.[1][4]
Thriller film
Western A genre in which films are set in the American West during the 19th century and embodies the "spirit, the struggle and the demise of the new frontier." These films will often feature horse riding, violent and non-violent interaction with Native-American tribes, gunfights, and technology created during the industrial revolution.[1][4]

Photography

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Photography
Lens and mounting of a large-format camera
Other namesScience or art of creating durable images
TypesRecording light or other electromagnetic radiation
InventorLouis Daguerre (1839) Henry Fox Talbot (1839)
RelatedStereoscopic, Full-spectrum, Light field, Electrophotography, Photograms, Scanner

Photography is the art, application, and practice of creating durable images by recording light, either electronically by means of an image sensor, or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film. It is employed in many fields of science, manufacturing (e.g., photolithography), and business, as well as its more direct uses for art, film and video production, recreational purposes, hobby, and mass communication.

  • Food photography can be used for editorial, packaging or advertising use. Food photography is similar to still life photography but requires some special skills.
  • Photojournalism can be considered a subset of editorial photography. Photographs made in this context are accepted as a documentation of a news story.
  • Paparazzi is a form of photojournalism in which the photographer captures candid images of athletes, celebrities, politicians, and other prominent people.
  • Portrait and wedding photography: photographs made and sold directly to the end user of the images.
  • Landscape photography depicts locations.
  • Wildlife photography demonstrates the life of wild animals.


Typically, a lens is used to focus the light reflected or emitted from objects into a real image on the light-sensitive surface inside a camera during a timed exposure. With an electronic image sensor, this produces an electrical charge at each pixel, which is electronically processed and stored in a digital image file for subsequent display or processing. The result with photographic emulsion is an invisible latent image, which is later chemically "developed" into a visible image, either negative or positive depending on the purpose of the photographic material and the method of processing. A negative image on film is traditionally used to photographically create a positive image on a paper base, known as a print, either by using an enlarger or by contact printing.

Photography is the result of combining several technical discoveries, relating to seeing an image and capturing the image. The discovery of the camera obscura ("dark chamber" in Latin) that provides an image of a scene dates back to ancient China. Greek mathematicians Aristotle and Euclid independently described a camera obscura in the 5th and 4th centuries BCE. In the 6th century CE, Byzantine mathematician Anthemius of Tralles used a type of camera obscura in his experiments.

The Arab physicist Ibn al-Haytham (Alhazen) (965–1040) also invented a camera obscura as well as the first true pinhole camera. The invention of the camera has been traced back to the work of Ibn al-Haytham. While the effects of a single light passing through a pinhole had been described earlier, Ibn al-Haytham gave the first correct analysis of the camera obscura, including the first geometrical and quantitative descriptions of the phenomenon, and was the first to use a screen in a dark room so that an image from one side of a hole in the surface could be projected onto a screen on the other side. He also first understood the relationship between the focal point and the pinhole, and performed early experiments with afterimages, laying the foundations for the invention of photography in the 19th century.

Leonardo da Vinci mentions natural camera obscura that are formed by dark caves on the edge of a sunlit valley. A hole in the cave wall will act as a pinhole camera and project a laterally reversed, upside down image on a piece of paper. Renaissance painters used the camera obscura which, in fact, gives the optical rendering in color that dominates Western Art. It is a box with a small hole in one side, which allows specific light rays to enter, projecting an inverted image onto a viewing screen or paper.

The birth of photography was then concerned with inventing means to capture and keep the image produced by the camera obscura. Albertus Magnus (1193–1280) discovered silver nitrate, and Georg Fabricius (1516–1571) discovered silver chloride, and the techniques described in Ibn al-Haytham's Book of Optics are capable of producing primitive photographs using medieval materials.

Daniele Barbaro described a diaphragm in 1566. Wilhelm Homberg described how light darkened some chemicals (photochemical effect) in 1694. The fiction book Giphantie, published in 1760, by French author Tiphaigne de la Roche, described what can be interpreted as photography.

Around the year 1800, British inventor Thomas Wedgwood made the first known attempt to capture the image in a camera obscura by means of a light-sensitive substance. He used paper or white leather treated with silver nitrate. Although he succeeded in capturing the shadows of objects placed on the surface in direct sunlight, and even made shadow copies of paintings on glass, it was reported in 1802 that "the images formed by means of a camera obscura have been found too faint to produce, in any moderate time, an effect upon the nitrate of silver." The shadow images eventually darkened all over.

Types of Photography

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Art

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| name = Photography | image = Large format camera lens.jpg | image size = 250px | caption = Lens and mounting of a large-format camera | other_name = Science or art of creating durable images | classification = | types = Recording light or other electromagnetic radiation | used_with = | inventor = Louis Daguerre (1839) Henry Fox Talbot (1839) | manufacturer = | model = | related = Stereoscopic, Full-spectrum, Light field, Electrophotography, Photograms, Scanner }} 1. Portrait Photography

One of the most common photography styles, portrait photography, or portraiture, aims to capture the personality and mood of an individual or group. Images may be candid or posed, full body or close-ups. Either way, the subject’s face and eyes are typically in focus. Lighting and backdrop help to convey tone and emotion. Popular types of photography portraits include senior portraits, family portraits, engagement photos, and professional headshots. The best portrait photographers make clients feel completely comfortable, so that their expressions are natural and relaxed.

2. Photojournalism

Photojournalism is a way of telling the story of a newsworthy (perhaps even historic) event or scene through photographs. Photojournalism should be as objective and truthful as possible and capturing candid moments as they happen is more important than getting picture-perfect shots. Generally, photojournalists attend planned events with the hope of capturing unplanned, unscripted moments. Their work is routinely published in magazines and newspapers.

Example of a studio-made food photograph.

3. Fashion Photography

Fashion photography showcases and glamorizes fashion clothing, shoes, and accessories to make them more desirable to consumers. It is commonly published in magazines and online. People may choose this niche over different types of photography because of the opportunity to be highly creative in making photographs eye-catching and appealing. Fashion photographers take a lot of full body shots and work in an array of locations, from fashion shows to studios with full lighting setups to city streets and open fields. They utilize many of the same skills as portrait photographers and must practice good teamwork and communication when working with shoot stylists, creative directors, and models.

4. Sports Photography

By catching athletes, coaches, and even fans at the perfect moment, sports photographs can depict the passion, drama, and emotion that fuels sporting events. Sports photographers must aim and shoot quickly to keep up with the action around them, and it’s best practice to use a higher ISO to shoot at a faster shutter speed. Sports photographers also usually use long, heavy lenses for zooming in on the action. Interesting angles can help make your work stand out in this competitive genre.

5. Still Life Photography

Like it sounds, still life photography features inanimate objects—natural or manmade. Still life photography can be artistic or commercial. It is commonly used in stock photography as well as product advertising. (Think of the product images shown in catalogs, magazines, and billboards.) For still life photographers, object selection, arrangement, and lighting are key to getting a great shot.

6. Editorial Photography

Editorial photography is taken to illustrate a story or article, typically for a magazine or newspaper. The subject of editorial photography can vary widely and is entirely dependent on the topic of the text it accompanies. Generally, for editorial photography, you’ll want to get shots that work for a variety of layouts, including horizontal and vertical compositions. When working in editorial photography, you are likely to work closely with writers and art directors, and demonstrating good communication skills and professionalism will help you succeed.

7. Architectural Photography

Both the interior and exterior design of buildings and structures are the subject of architectural photography. From warehouses to city bridges to old country barns, this genre encompasses diverse structures. Often, the photograph showcases the structure’s most aesthetically pleasing parts, such as a particular beam or archway. Interesting materials and colors may also be emphasized. Lighting can be challenging in architectural photography and, for exteriors, photographers must know how to work with natural light. Gear such as a tilt-shift lens, a tripod, and a panorama head is often useful. Architectural photographs can be of value to designers, architects, leasing companies, and building investors.

Photographic Film

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Photographic film is a strip or sheet of transparent film base coated on one side with a gelatin emulsion containing microscopically small light-sensitive silver halide crystals. The sizes and other characteristics of the crystals determine the sensitivity, contrast, and resolution of the film.

"Photographic" redirects here. For the image obtained, see Photograph. For other uses, see Photography (disambiguation).

The emulsion will gradually darken if left exposed to light, but the process is too slow and incomplete to be of any practical use. Instead, a very short exposure to the image formed by a camera lens is used to produce only a very slight chemical change, proportional to the amount of light absorbed by each crystal. This creates an invisible latent image in the emulsion, which can be chemically developed into a visible photograph. In addition to visible light, all films are sensitive to ultraviolet light, X-rays and gamma rays, and high-energy particles. Unmodified silver halide crystals are sensitive only to the blue part of the visible spectrum, producing unnatural-looking renditions of some colored subjects. This problem was resolved with the discovery that certain dyes, called sensitizing dyes, when adsorbed onto the silver halide crystals made them respond to other colors as well. First orthochromatic (sensitive to blue and green) and finally panchromatic (sensitive to all visible colors) films were developed. Panchromatic film renders all colors in shades of gray approximately matching their subjective brightness. By similar techniques, special-purpose films can be made sensitive to the infrared (IR) region of the spectrum.

In black-and-white photographic film, there is usually one layer of silver halide crystals. When the exposed silver halide grains are developed, the silver halide crystals are converted to metallic silver, which blocks light and appears as the black part of the film negative. Color film has at least three sensitive layers, incorporating different combinations of sensitizing dyes. Typically the blue-sensitive layer is on top, followed by a yellow filter layer to stop any remaining blue light from affecting the layers below. Next comes a green-and-blue sensitive layer, and a red-and-blue sensitive layer, which record the green and red images respectively. During development, the exposed silver halide crystals are converted to metallic silver, just as with black-and-white film. But in a color film, the by-products of the development reaction simultaneously combine with chemicals known as color couplers that are included either in the film itself or in the developer solution to form colored dyes. Because the by-products are created in direct proportion to the amount of exposure and development, the dye clouds formed are also in proportion to the exposure and development. Following development, the silver is converted back to silver halide crystals in the bleach step. It is removed from the film during the process of fixing the image on the film with a solution of ammonium thiosulfate or sodium thiosulfate (hypo or fixer). Fixing leaves behind only the formed color dyes, which combine to make up the colored visible image. Later color films, like Kodacolor II, have as many as 12 emulsion layers, with upwards of 20 different chemicals in each layer. Photographic film and film stock tend to be similar in composition and speed, but often not in other parameters such as frame size and length. Silver halide photographic paper is also similar to photographic film.

References

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  1. ^ Jump up to:a b c d e f g
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  3. ^ Jump up to:a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q Hayward, Susan. "Genre/Sub-genre" in Cinema Studies: The Key Concepts (Third Edition). Routledge, 2006. p. 185-192
  4. ^ Jump up to:a b c d Grant, Barry Keith. Film Genre: From Iconography to Ideology. Wallflower Press, 2007. p. 1
  5. ^ Jump up to:a b c d Grant, Barry Keith. Film Genre: From Iconography to Ideology.Wallflower Press, 2007. p. 11
  6. ^ Alan Williams, "Is a Radical Genre Criticism Possible?" Quarterly Review of Film Studies 9, no. 2 (Spring 1984): 121-2
  7. ^ Jump up to:a b Judith Butler and genre theory.
  8. ^ Grant, Barry Keith. Film Genre: From Iconography to Ideology.Wallflower Press, 2007. p. 17
  9. ^ Grant, Barry Keith. Film Genre: From Iconography to Ideology.Wallflower Press, 2007. p. 18
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  17. ^  (Subscription or participating institution membership required.)
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  19. ^ Grant, Barry Keith. Film Genre: From Iconography to Ideology.Wallflower Press, 2007. p. 4
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  21. ^ Grant, Barry Keith. Film Genre: From Iconography to Ideology.Wallflower Press, 2007. p. 7-8
  22. ^ Jump up to:a b c Grant, Barry Keith. Film Genre: From Iconography to Ideology.Wallflower Press, 2007. p. 8.
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  35. ^ Park W. What Is Film Noir? [e-book]. Lanham, Md: Bucknell University Press; 2011. Available from: eBook Collection (EBSCOhost), Ipswich, MA. Accessed November 19, 2017.

From the earliest days of cinema in the 19th century the term "genre" (already in use in English with reference to works of art or literary production from at least 1770[5]) was used[by whom?] to organize films according to type.<ref> Hayward, Susan (2006) [1996]. "Genre/Sub-genre". Cinema Studies: The Key Concepts. Routledge Key Guides (3 ed.). London: Routledge. p. 185. ISBN 9781134208920. Retrieved 29 May 2020. As a term genre goes back to earliest cinema and was seen as a way of organizing films according to type. But it was not until the late 1960s that genre was introduced as a key concept into Anglo-Saxon film theory [...].

  1. ^ a b c d e f "90+ Film Genre Examples for Film & TV". StudioBinder. 13 December 2020. Retrieved 25 February 2021.
  2. ^ a b "Action and Adventure Films | Encyclopedia.com". www.encyclopedia.com. Retrieved 25 February 2021.
  3. ^ "Adventure Films". www.filmsite.org. Retrieved 25 February 2021.
  4. ^ a b c d "AFI's 10 TOP 10". American Film Institute. Retrieved 25 February 2021.
  5. ^ "genre". Oxford English Dictionary (Online ed.). Oxford University Press. (Subscription or participating institution membership required.)
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