Cinema Studies

Since the 1970s film studies are dominated by a basic paradigm -the classical
Hollywood cinema-that is a narrative driven by protagonist, valued for the way it achieves
closure by answering all of its enigmas. Classical Hollywood Cinema is a term coined by
Janet Staiger, Kristin Thompson and David Bordwell in their seminal study performing a
formalist analysis of 100 Hollywood films from 1917 to 1960. They concluded that during
this period there was development of distinctive cinematic style which they called classical
Hollywood style. Furthermore, they claimed that the style is paradigmatic because of
Hollywood cinema global dominance. The authors had a controversial claim that all
filmmakers have a choice between two alternatives, succumbing to the classical Hollywood
style and following it or revolting against it while trying to consciously subvert the style
norms.
The most prominent mechanism used by classical Hollywood in regulating on-screen
material is 1930 production code. It was successfully administered by MPAA and MPPDA
and has been a focus for many researches since its archive was available in 1983 to
researchers. The Production Code Administration (PCA) archive contains most of Hollywood
movies produced between 1930 and 1968 together with the negotiations between the PCA
and studios on sensitive issues on screen. The code contained a list of treatments and subjects
to be avoided by producers like, sex perversion, white slavery, illegal drug trafficking and
nudity. The Catholic Church was the most influential special interest group. Catholicism has
been demonstrated by PCA files to modify some aspects of representations, motion pictures,
principally in the industry mode of representing the priests and the church.
Since 1950s, when companies with looser links on studio began to outsource
production, the classical Hollywood balances and checks became eroded leading to diversely

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expressive movies. This trend was accelerated by 1966 production abandonment and
introduction of ratings in 1968. A new tension has emerged between the conservatism and
artistic license due to movie consolidation at major media companies centre between 1980s
and 1990. Self-censorship and self-regulation are the Hollywood’s broad corporate interests
with popular cinemas remaining a site where limits of public tolerance and taste are defined
and negotiated.
Classical Hollywood style contains important elements. In this cinema style, the
narrative follows building blocks which are part of Western narratives such as actors, agents
and events, main point and secondary points, linear chains of cause and effect. Narratives are
clearly designed with discernable beginning middle and end, while providing comprehensive
resolution at the end. The goals of the characters are psychologically motivated rather than
socially.
The single most influential and most important element of cinematic form
characterizing classical Hollywood cinema is editing continuity. The important goal of
continuity editing is making the cut invisible (Donald & Renov, 2008). This can be achieved
by devices such as the eye line match or the shot / reverse-shot. The editing is subservient to
the narrative flow and it is constructed in a way that no attention is drawn on it. In this style,
the cinema constructs both time and space which is achieved by the relative lack of jump cuts
or by the 180 degree rule.
Motivation and conventions are the unifying forces behind the classical Hollywood
style. In narrative development, every event is motivated and follows a causal relationship.
Similarly, use of cinematic style is motivated by the narrative with a highly conventional
connection. The dominance of the style has caused viewers to expect certain stylistic choices
in different narrative situations. These characteristics have resulted to what Bordwell called

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“an excessively obvious cinema,”, in that it follows a set of standards, norms and paradigms,
which match and gratify viewers’ expectations.
In other words, classical Hollywood film end with answers for all questions and
viewers do not leave the cinema startled and perplexed as they would after some European
Art films or New Hollywood films. Through ideological perspective, the practices discourage
critical inquiry of the viewers on any film as well as the mainstream cinema underlying
practices (Donald & Renov, 2008). Although the anti-humanist arguments of theorists are not
supported by the authors on interpellation concept to cinematic spectatorship, the conclusion
they made is a strong evidence of a serious consideration of the power and interpellation of
classical Hollywood cinema.
Its centrality virtue within international film commerce has crucially influenced other
national cinemas. After 1917, the abroad dominant forms of filmmaking were deeply affected
by the story telling models of America studios. This does not identify Hollywood cinema
with classicism tout court. The Italy 1930 and Poland 1950 classicism mobilizes different
narration devices, for example, the Hollywood happy ending is more characteristic than other
classicism (King, 2005). However, it is important that even this ordinary cinema, the viewer
constructs meaning and form according to a process of knowledge, inference and memory.
No matter how transparent and routine classical cinemas are, it still remains an activity and
oppositional or alternative cinema will mobilize narration in following activities of a different
sort.
Classical paradigm describes a certain kind of narrative structure which has
dominated in film production. It is a set of conventions that is widely used and popular idea
in films beginning with a protagonist and an antagonist (Donald & Renov, 2008). As the
movie proceeds, the character actions reach a climax from where a resolution occurs. Some

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commentators emphasize the PCA role in industry censor that reveal negotiation details
around notorious movies where the administration’s repressive highlight their function in of
handling sex and violence in the code. Classical Hollywood aesthetic had less similarities
with the European notion of high art, but occasionally, major studios have brought self-
consciously movies and formally experimental in studio generating prestige.
An indie or independent film is a film production that results in feature film mostly or
completely produced outside major field studios system and it is produced and distributed by
independent entertainment agencies (King, 2005). These films are sometimes distinguishable
by their style and content and the realization of filmmakers’ personal artistic vision and are
mostly made with considerably lower budgets than other major studio films. Generally,
independent film marketing is characterized by limited release, but can have a major release
and major marketing campaigns. These films are often screened at international, national and
local film festivals before retail or theatrical release. A mainstream production can be rivalled
by independent film when it has necessary distribution and funding.
The term indie is used by marketers in advertising films with certain characteristics
and due to the fact that those traits are expected from films labelled indie, it has turned to be
its own genre. Audiences anticipate certain traits from films marketed as indies which are
made by both non-conglomerate affiliated and studios companies has in common. While the
emergency of Indie genre has been 10-15 years ago, independent films have always existed in
the American film industry. The American film industry first forty to fifty years are marked
by, struggles with control, government intervention and rapid change. The Greg Merritt’s
book, Celluloid Mavericks: A History of American Independent Film Making contains a
complete examination of early American film industry historical complexities (King, 2005).

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The earliest motion pictures for public in United States were shown in New York on
April 23, 1896. As the growth of interest and market of this new entertainment form, three
companies emerged which were the first American film producing companies. Those
companies were Biograph, Edison, and Vitagraph qualifying as the first United States studios
on the basis that occupied a monopoly on early film equipment and engaged in contracts with
talent. They become known as “The Big Three” and later they combined forces to form the
Trust. In the following years, the industry continued to grow despise the efforts of Trust to
squash independent producers, their oppositions continued to screen and make films.
Smaller production companies such as Keystone, Thanhouser, and independent
Motion Company (IMP), Rex and Fox were at the time the Big Three’s competitors. By
1920, the silent era second half begun and as Merritt 2000 calls it, “a period of tremendous
creative growth”, that included a new independent power creation. In 1934 another
controlling force the Big Fivetook over the film industry, which acted in a similar vein as Big
Three only it was made of studios; , Paramount, MGM (Loew’s) , Warner Brothers, RKO and
Twentieth-Century Fox (Tzioumakis, 2006). Their running continued until 1946 before the
invention of TV set (Merritt, 2000). By the late-1950s “independent” shifted to a new
meaning based on a studio or individual finances.
Things changed for independents in Hollywood between late 1960s into the mid-
1970s and were marked by more non-mainstream subjects. The ‘‘Hollywood Renaissance” is
the period between 967 and 1975 when filmmakers were allowed by majors a creative control
unprecedented degree in the filmmaking process” (Tzioumakis , 2006). Early
1970sTzioumakis 2006 explains that counterculture films were doing badly at the box office,
major studios solidifying “top-rank-independents” on the preferred type of film to support.in
1980s, while Hollywood was dominating the market with blockbusters, there was growth of
new opportunities for independent filmmakers.

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In 1981 Sundance Institute was created by Robert Redford where in Utah it held
independent film workshops and purchased the U.S. Film Festival in 1984 and renamed it
Sundance (Merritt 2000). Orion in 1980s and 1990s in the industry was the most significant
mini-majors. At this point in history audience expectations and marketing became a larger
part of the film industry than it used. Genre pictures were used in Hollywood to sell tickets
for decades, but the takeover of the conglomerates, was crucial to market film in the most
direct and indie films marketing by 1990 was appealing. New offices that specialized in
independents were created by majors.
Independent arms were launched by conglomerates in the bid of Sundance Film
Festival successful films. Sony made Sony Pictures Classics in1992, Fox Searchlight was
created in 1995 by Century Fox. Turner Broadcasting System was bought by Time Warner in
1996 and it made Fine Line Features which were previously Turner’s subsidiary. By 2003,
the seven major studios were Disney, Sony Pictures, Warner Brothers, 20 th Century Fox,
Paramount, Universal and UA-MGM all having independent arms and all owned by parent
conglomerates (Bordwell, Staiger, & Thompson, 1985).
Genre is a term for any category of entertainment, literature or art, whether audio or
visual, written or spoken based on stylistic criteria. They are formed by convection lasting for
certain duration as new genres are invented and old ones discontinued. The main film genres
include action, war, comedy, adventure, horror, musicals, science fiction, epic / historical,
drama, war and western. Film sub genres include guy films, disaster, fantasy, film noir,
biographical, road, romance, supernatural sports and others. My genre is adventure film
which revolves around explorations and conquests of a protagonist.
The purpose of the exploration can be to retrieve a treasure or a person, but its main
purpose is pursuit of the unknown. It is associated with narrative of discovery and quest, and

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spectacular scenes of violence, combat and pursuit. Adventure films are not restricted to any
historical or geographical setting but are indeed basic elements of chase, challenge and
conflict. They are similar to action films in their design of providing energetic, action filled
experience for the film viewer. Unlike action films, they use their action scenes to explore
and display exotic locations in an energetic ways.
Adventure films subgenres include Western film, pirate film, disaster film, historical
or epic drama swashbuckler film and Survival film. Main plot elements include quests for
lost continents, , coast, urban, desert ,a jungle, mountain or island settings, characters going
on heroic journeys and treasure hunts for the unknown. They are set in a period background
and may include fictional adventure heroes or adapted stories of historical within the
historical context. These films may be combined with war, science fiction, fantasy or horror
films.
Early in the days, they were intended to appeal men and they created major heroic
stars throughout the years. These patriotic, altruistic and courageous heroes often overcame
injustice, fought for their beliefs or struggled for freedom. In recent days, adventure films
have some which are successful blockbusters, have crossed over and added heroines and
heroes in resourceful action (Bordwell, Staiger, & Thompson, 1985) s. Some individual
characters are always associated with adventure films; Clark Gable, Johnny Weismuller,
Tyrone Power, Douglas Fairbanks Sr. (and Jr.), Errol Flynn, Gary Cooper, Kirk Douglas,
Charlton Heston, Alan Ladd, Sabu, Stewart Granger, Burt Lancaster, Sean Connery, John
Wayne, Harrison Ford and Cornel Wilde. Female stars in these films were romantic interests
and secondary figure for the male lead.
David Keith Lynch is an American screenwriter born in20th January 1946 is visual
artist, musician, director, actor and author known for his surrealist films while developing a

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new cinematic style (Sheen & Davison, 2004). The violent and surreal elements found in his
films, have been to offend, disturb and mystify audiences. According to his essays in the
book The Cinema of David Lynch: American Dreams, Nightmare Vision, his work is
anticipation, formative influence on independence aesthetic in Hollywood that has been
increased in dominance over fifteen years. He began his work in mixed media and fine arts
and entered movie making mainstream in a duration when it was in a state of technological
and economic transformation.
In 1971 he moved to Los Angelo’s with his wife and daughter where he studied film
making AFI Conservatory. After Eraser head and The Elephant Man in 1977 and 1980, he
grabbed Dune 1984 opportunity which gave him access to a production system that is
consistently puzzled due to his way of thinking. with Mark Frost, Lynch created his own
television series, a murder mystery Twin Peaks (1990–1991), he later created a cinematic
prequel, Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me (1992). In the same period, he created a road movie,
Wild at Heart (1990) together with a family film, The Straight Story (1999). He then turns to
surrealist filmmaking where three of his subsequent films operated on non-linear narrative
structures, “dream logic”, the psychological thriller Lost Highway (1997), in 2001,the neo-
noir mystery film Mulholland Drive and in 2006 the mystery film Inland Empire .
In 2002, Lynch embraced the internet and produced web based shows such as the
surreal sitcom Rabbits (2002) and the animated DumbLand (2002). Since then, he has been
distinctively situated in changing system nexus in distribution and exhibition; video and TV
pay introduction between 1970 and 1980; regional independent cinemas growth; multiplex
rise with an extended market reach. From Eraser head to Dune to Twin Peaks(1999), Lost
Highwy (1997) and The Straight Story (1999), his film give an aesthetic post- hollywood
synergies in a way that has not been done by any other film maker. In 2009, Lynch produced
a documentary web series called Interview Project that was directed by Austin Lynch, his

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son, and friend Jason. In the same year he collaborated with Werner Herzog, to produce his
film My Son, My Son, What Have Ye Done? (Sheen & Davison, 2004)
In 2010, Lynch began made guest appearances on The Cleveland Show in Family Guy
spin-off as Gus the Bartender. In October 6, 2014, he confirmed via Twitter that Twin Peaks
in 2015 would shoot together with Mark Frost the new, nine-episode season of, expecting
them to air on 2016. He lives by the belief that his work is similar to European films than the
American films. Lynch work has several recurring characters and has critics from Odell and
Le Blanc explaining that, “his films are so packed with recurrent characters, images, motifs,
techniques and compositions that could view his entire output to be a large jigsaw puzzle of
ideas (Sheen & Davison, 2004). One key theme noted is the use of dreamlike imagery and
dreams structure something that relate to as “surrealist ethos” that relies on the subconscious
in providing visual drive.
The term auteur originates from France, translated as author that means a film director
reflects their creative vision. An auteur is a filmmaker whose artistic control and personal
influence over a movie are so great and the filmmaker is referred to as the author of the
movie. Auteur theory is a filmmaking theory where the director is the primary creative force
in a motion picture. This theory arose from France in the late 1940s, was outgrowth of the
André Bazin and Alexandre Astruc. Cinematic theories and had been dubbed by the
American film critic Andrew Sarris (Spears, Callahan, & Anderson, n.d.).

David Lynch as an Auteur

He is an established auteur and not only does he write his screenplays but also
involves himself in every level of his films production casting, special effects, music, sound
design, editing, camera work and lighting. Sheen & Davison, 2004, his approach to his films
has tied them all together with common thread setting a good example to other auteur. Lynch

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film the Dune, has strong auterial presence, and it is the most collaborative work as he did not
maintain the final cut right and has strong divestiture of auteurial control. During its release,
Lynch was still uteurism as it was marketed as a human-interest story instead of auteur film
as compared to Eraserhead.
Eresarehead may have taken time due to Lynchs meticulous attention to detail and
funding issues the film became a huge success and an instant cult classic within a midnight
movie circuit with its success launching his career. The Elephant Man (1980) his second
feature was nominated for eight Academy Awards, including, Best Director, and Best Actor
for John Hurt in the title role and Best Picture. Surreal, Beautiful, Striking and Moody are all
words to describe the unique look of Lynch’s films he is involved in every aspect of film’s art
direction. From bold colours to sensual textures, Lynch a perfectionist, to high contrast
spaces, and his films stand out. The most uniqueness about his mise-en-scene is the film’s
lighting style which is highly original, purposefully chosen, and sometimes shocking, his
films’ lighting are set in unique tones and contrast to expectation to the story (Devlin &
Biderman, 2011).
The power of fantasy is great, Mullholland Dr. Serves to reveal the extent to which
‘fantasy determines our own experience.’ By providing the answers to our questions about
identity and even produces these questions. Lynch’s films are extraordinary in this way, they
open our eyes and help us to confront those deeming questions about identity we have been
scared to do all along. This is one of the many fantastic qualities about Lynch’s films; he is
always challenging us and showing people the light to those very dark tunnels.
Lynch is an exceptional autear as he writes books, sings, paint, and participates in
each step of his film productions. He has embraced internet and is among the modern auteur
of our time, he have produced animations. Lynch is not known to obey film styles or rules but

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rather, he tells original stories while combines aesthetics to create particular tones or moods
(Devlin & Biderman, 2011). Mysterious, alluring and provocative, his films attract wide
ranges of spectators or audiences while placing him in film history as an important and
influential directors of all time.

Reasons Why David Lynch cannot be aAuteur

Lynch structural significance or distinguishable personality disrupts the audience
conventional expectations about cinema. His great films achievements lie in their ability to
break down the distance between the screen and spectator. They implicate the spectator very
structure rather than permitting the imaginary proximity dominating the mainstream cinema.
Cult classic Eraserhead is not an easy movie to watch which is similar to the world his films
create that is not easy to live. The film is full of jarring sounds and bizarre imagery and it
definitely sets the standard for Lynch’s vision on films.
The eraserhead has post-industrial wasteland setting, unconventional plot and
imagery that look like it has been extracted from a subconscious mind. This film is compared
to films like The Cabinet of Dr. Calagari (1920), mise-en-sce’ne of Robert Weines, the
arburdist/ surelist dreamscapeof Luis Bunuel’s Un chien Andalon (1929)and the futuristic
urban decay of Fritz Langs Metropolis (1927 (McGowan, 2007)). Many critics argue that the
Eraserhead question is misplaced and irrelevant and they continue that despise that despise its
incoherence and gaps, it is a narrative film with a linear story, hero and dialogue and the best
way for its analysation is it’s the decipher that the meaning falls out of the storyline. Images
from this film are not tied to the plot but images from subconscious are the plot. Throughout
the film, excessive hyperbolic or gross out shots confronts the spectators and they force
viewers to contemplate the leakage, opening up or utter decay of both human and non-human.

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Conclusion

The American film industry after a long history of change has reached a situation
where conglomerate power take advantage of visionary filmmakers and visionaries are using
studios to make their films. The classical Hollywood cinema has five determinates in forming
a narrative structure One or two protagonists, desire to catalyses story, Antagonist and Cause-
effect chain. The classical Hollywood style should fulfils cultural function in U.S. by
maintaining and affirming the conventions of fashion, social constructions of identity and
moral behaviour like economic class racial roles and gender for Americans. The new classism
is electric and does not deal with earlier neoclassism, conscious American government and
public buildings or, with a similar personal adaptation that is authoritative and authentically
classical. New classicism is far from being uniform and is part American culture pluralism.

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References

Bordwell, D., Staiger, J., & Thompson, K. (1985). The classical Hollywood cinema. New
York: Columbia University Press.
Devlin, W. & Biderman, S. (2011). The philosophy of David Lynch. Lexington, Ky.:
University Press of Kentucky.
Donald, J. & Renov, M. (2008). The SAGE handbook of film studies. London: SAGE
King, G. (2005). American independent cinema. Bloomington: Indiana University Press.
McGowan, T. (2007). The impossible David Lynch. New York: Columbia University Press.
Merritt, Greg. Celluloid Mavericks (2000): The History of American Independent Film. New
Yor Tzioumakis, Yannis.(2006) American Independent Cinema: An Introduction. New
Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press, Print. k: Thunder’s Mouth Press. Print
Spears, R., Callahan, J., & Anderson, L. The Auteur.Sheen, E. & Davison, A. (2004). The
cinema of David Lynch. London: Wallflower Press.