Jennings 1

Luke Jennings

Mrs. Smith

AP English IV

November 22, 2016

History of the Cinema, and the Art and Craft of Film-making

My advice to young film-makers is this: dont follow trends, start them. Frank Capra.

Frank Capra has contributed to film-making tremendously, and was devoted to improving the

industry as well as many other early film-makers, such as Alfred Hitchcock, and as well as

contemporary film-makers including Steven Spielberg, and Ron Howard. As film-making has

progressed from early development to the big screen and explosions we have today, Capra and

Hitchcock were leaving their mark, and changing the way we see movies. Continuing upon their

legacies, Steven Spielberg and Ron Howard are adding their changes to the process as well. As

film-making progresses, changes will be constantly made, and the art and craft of film-making

will continue to be refined.

Frank Capra, born on May 18th, 1897, was a director, producer, and a writer. Capra has

embodied his legacy in works such as It Happened One Night, and Mr. Deeds Goes to Town,

both of which won Oscars for best director. Capra changed the film-making business by being

one of the first directors to use sound in his movies, the first one being The Younger Generation.

With the incorporation of sound, Capra used the movie to propose his own moral ideals and

values. Capra used films to push grander thoughts into peoples heads, such as the goodness of

the common man, or the vision of a world in which the social differences are broken down and

a democratic feeling of togetherness is achieved(Macmillan). Capra believed that film-making

 Jennings 2

could break down social barriers, and unite the public. Capra strived to change film-making to

have a broader purpose in the world, more than just entertaining people. He wanted to improve

the film-making system, and he did by adding sound and moral themes to movies.

With the introduction of sound to movies, profits for movie theaters skyrocketed. Those

who chose to join the sound movement prospered, while the traditional movie theaters went

bankrupt. The public chose the sound movies, and they became huge hits. Early ways of using

sound came from two methods, the Phonofilm, and the Vitaphone Process. The Phonofilm was

created by a man named Lee DeForest in 1923. The Vitaphone process was developed in the late

1920s, by a company known as Western Electric. The Vitaphone was a sound-on-disc system,

and was cumbersome and unsuccessful at first. It at first did not increase the demand for movies

with sound, but instead caused unwanted laughter from the audience. The Vitaphone resembled

that of a record player, but was attached to various other film equipment. The Phonofilm is a way

to link phonography with film. DeForest used optical recording (process of recording data, such

as sound or video, and converts them into a beam of light), which would convert the sound into a

pulsing beam of light, allowing DeForest to line up his sound beam next to the film itself, thus

eliminating having to align phonofilm with the actions of the film. Both processes where the only

ways to add sound to a movie at the time, and were fairly complicated processes. But these

processes would go on to be the future of film-making and would change the art forever.

Alfred Hitchcock is another contemporary film-maker with his own changes to the skill.

Hitchcock was born on August 13th, 1899, and was a screenwriter, director, and a producer.

Hitchcock also used movies to suggest moral themes such as the idea of being harshly treated

and wrongfully accused, but Hitchcock used movies to convey emotion. Being the best at
 Jennings 3

employing a psychological suspense, Hitchcock was nicknamed the master of suspense and

loved to leave an audience with fear and suspense. Hitchcocks first american film, Rebecca,

went on to receive an award for best picture. Hitchcock went on to create more than 50 films,

including the classics such as Rear Window, and Psycho. Hitchcock employed themes of false

accusations, conflicted emotions and twist endings with impressive skill. Hitchcock was famous

for leaving the people on the edge of their seat, and creating a suspenseful feeling in

film-making.

These contemporary film-makers are responsible for the way television and movies are

today. Their legacies live on in the films they made, and in the changes they added to the process

of film-making such as sound, emotion, and moral concepts. But, the modern day film-makers

still use these changes and steps today to change their output in the film-making industry.

One modern day film-maker is Steven Spielberg. Born December 18th, 1946, Spielberg

started with film-making early on, completing his first production by the age of twelve. Spielberg

is responsible for the great american movies Jurassic Park, Saving Private Ryan, Jaws, Back to

the Future, and the list continues. Spielberg formed his own production company called Amblin

in 1982, and was later adopted by Dreamworks SKG in 1994 which Spielberg also formed.

Spielberg employed many changes into the film-making art. From camera angles, to camera

shots, and even framing; Spielberg has left a mark on the process. Spielberg loves to use track-in

close-ups. This is where the camera is focused on a character or thing, and slowly moves in to a

close-up. Spielberg also loved to utilize the over the shoulder shot. This, like the name states, is

where the camera would be looking over the shoulder of one character at the other character.

Spielbergs work with the camera has influenced other film-makers to follow in his footsteps and
 Jennings 4

practice the same camera shots. Spielberg also exploited a variety of lens sizes, mainly the wide

lens. He employed the wide lens to capture the foreground and the background at the same time,

but without losing any quality. The wide lens was used by Spielberg to make the foreground

subject dominate the background. With the wide lens, Spielberg also uses the medium and long

lenses to display size and magnitude. These camera lenses are perfect for capturing a large group

of people or a anything else in high magnitude, such as a cluster of animals. Camera lenses hold

a huge role in the production of a film, and can drastically change the outlook. Spielberg has left

his mark on the art of film-making with the camera shots, and camera lenses. Many young

directors and producers follow in Spielbergs path and utilize the same type of camera shots he

does.

Camera lenses play a huge role in the making and producing of a film. They can control

the emotion and tone of a scene, as well as the mood one is trying to establish. Lenses are

responsible for the depth, positioning, and object priority in a film. Lenses are considered a huge

development in the process of film-making. The three main lenses are the regular lens, about

50mm, the wide lens, about 24 to 35mm, and a zoom lens, about 80 to 200mm. When shooting

to obtain a wide angle or a huge foreground, use a wide lens. This is best used when the subject

of the image is spaced out over a great distance of land, but is relatively close to the camera

itself. When shooting for a close-up, a normal lense or zoom lens can be useful. Zoom lenses are

best used when the subject of an image is far away, and not spacious. Lenses when used right can

add a whole new level of professionalism to a film.

Another modern day film-maker is Ron Howard. Born on March 1st, 1954, Ron Howard

made his screen debut at age four. Being the son of two actors, Howard grew up around the
 Jennings 5

screen and theatre and was a dominate role in many films at a young age. Howards parents

influenced his decision to be a film-maker, and he fell in love with it the first moment he

debuted. Howards first major production was Grand Theft Auto, which he had written in about

two weeks. It was a massive hit, and Howards directing days took off. He was considered the

King of Comedy after his first few successful movies. In 1986, Howard was working for a

major production company known as Imagine Entertainment, which he co-founded, and to this

day is the co-chairmen. Howard loved to work with humor and fantasy, and many of his movies

are considered comedial classics. Howard also loved to create drama; shown in his famous hits

Backdraft and Apollo 13. Howard, much like Hitchcock, loved the drama of a thriller. Howard

created Angels and Demons, as well as Da Vinci Code, as a devotion for his love of thrillers.

Howard chose stories that tell of a historic event, made evident with his production of Apollo 13.

History can tell a huge story. Many films are based upon historic events, and many

film-makers utilize these stories in their creations. Apollo 13, We Were Soldiers, 13 Hours, The

Pursuit Of Happyness, and almost any war movie or thriller you will find is based on or

developed from either a true story, or a historical event. Ron Howard, Steven Spielberg, and

many other producers and film-makers use history to tell their story. What better source of

inspiration is available? Also, the audience can reminisce or ponder humanitys past decisions

portrayed in the films. History is the best storyteller the world has, and she has many stories to

tell.

Film-making throughout history has been altered and changed by many Producers,

Directors, Screenwriters, and others. With these changes, the process of film-making has
 Jennings 6

improved and evolved to become better and more modern. Many of these film-makers listed

have left their changes on the process, and their legacies will live on in their creations.
 Jennings 7

Works Cited

Achievement, Academy Of. "Ron Howard Biography." -- Academy of Achievement. American

Academy of Achievement, 09 Sept. 2010. Web. 09 Nov. 2016.

Editors, Biography.com. "Alfred Hitchcock Biography." Bio.com. A&E Networks Television,

n.d. Web. 08 Nov. 2016.

Filmmakers.com. " Steven Spielberg Biography." Steven Spielberg Biography. Media Pro Tech

Inc., 1999. Web. 09 Nov. 2016.

LAvideofilmaker.com. "Steven Spielberg Film Techniques" Learn Filmmaking. N.p., 15 July

2015. Web. 09 Nov. 2016.

McBride, Joseph. "Frank Capra Biography." Encyclopedia of World Biographies. New York,

n.d. 08 Nov. 2016. Print.

"The Introduction of Sound in Cinema." Web log post. Film History Fall 2013. N.p., 09 Dec.

2013. Web. 08 Nov. 2016.