"This book develops a critical and theoretical approach to the semiotics of motion pictures as they are applied to a broader range of constructions than traditional commercial narrative productions. This interdisciplinary approach begins with the problems posed by motion perception to develop a model of cinematic interpretation that includes both narrative and non-narrative types of productions. Contrasting traditional theatrical projection and varieties of new media, this book integrates analyses of title sequences, music videos, and visual effects with discussions on classic and avant-garde films. It further explores the intersection between formative audio-visual cues identified by viewers and how viewers' desires direct engagement with the motion picture to present a framework for understanding cinematic articulation. This new theoretical model incorporates much of what was neglected and gives greater prominence to formerly critical marginal productions by showing the fundamental connections that link all moving imagery and text, whether it tells a story or not. This insightful work will appeal to students and academics in film and media studies"--
This book develops a critical and theoretical approach to the semiotics of motion pictures as they are applied to a broader range of constructions than traditional commercial narrative productions.
This book develops a critical and theoretical approach to the semiotics of motion pictures as they are applied to a broader range of constructions than traditional commercial narrative productions.
This interdisciplinary approach begins with the problems posed by motion perception to develop a model of cinematic interpretation that includes both narrative and non-narrative types of productions. Contrasting traditional theatrical projection and varieties of new media, this book integrates analyses of title sequences, music videos, and visual effects with discussions on classic and avant-garde films. It further explores the intersection between formative audio-visual cues identified by viewers and how viewers desires direct engagement with the motion picture to present a framework for understanding cinematic articulation. This new theoretical model incorporates much of what was neglected and gives greater prominence to formerly critical marginal productions by showing the fundamental connections that link all moving imagery and text, whether it tells a story or not.
This insightful work will appeal to students and academics in film and media studies.
Acknowledgments |
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ix | |
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xi | |
Introduction |
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1 | (20) |
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3 | (3) |
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Avoiding `Narrative' Assumptions |
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6 | (5) |
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11 | (10) |
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21 | (3) |
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1.1 The `Natural' and the `Encoded' |
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24 | (3) |
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1.2 Depiction (Diagnostic) and Denotation (Symbolic) |
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27 | (6) |
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33 | (3) |
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2.1 Poetry and Articulation |
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36 | (2) |
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38 | (7) |
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45 | (8) |
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3 Interpreting Cinematics |
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53 | (18) |
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3.1 Ambivalent Perceptions |
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54 | (3) |
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3.2 Motion Perception: Kinesis |
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57 | (14) |
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71 | (16) |
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75 | (3) |
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4.2 The Unity of Sound and Image |
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78 | (9) |
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87 | (40) |
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88 | (11) |
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5.1.1 The Modulation of the Shot |
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92 | (4) |
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5.1.2 Expressing Duration |
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96 | (3) |
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99 | (5) |
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100 | (2) |
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5.2.2 Deleuze's `Perception--Image' |
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102 | (2) |
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104 | (5) |
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109 | (18) |
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112 | (2) |
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5.4.2 Multiscreen Projection |
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114 | (5) |
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119 | (8) |
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127 | (22) |
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6.1 Entanglement With the Symbolic |
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131 | (3) |
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6.2 The Diagnostic Modality |
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134 | (4) |
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6.3 Against Realism as Diagnostic |
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138 | (4) |
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6.4 Causal Identifications |
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142 | (7) |
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149 | (40) |
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7.1 The `Lexical Function' |
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150 | (13) |
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7.1.1 Text::Image Composites |
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155 | (5) |
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7.1.2 The `Reading-Image' |
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160 | (3) |
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7.2 The `Material Function' |
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163 | (2) |
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7.3 Materiality and Technical Failure |
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165 | (10) |
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168 | (3) |
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171 | (1) |
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171 | (2) |
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173 | (1) |
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174 | (1) |
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7.4 Derivative Sign-Functions |
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175 | (8) |
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175 | (4) |
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7.4.2 `Narrative Function' |
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179 | (4) |
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183 | (6) |
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Afterword: Cinema and Motion Graphics |
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189 | (7) |
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189 | (2) |
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Perception and Signification |
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191 | (5) |
Bibliographic Reference Sheet |
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196 | (11) |
Index |
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207 | |
Michael Betancourt is a critical theorist and research artist concerned with media history, digital technology, and capitalist ideology. He is the author of more than 30 books. Deeply interdisciplinary, his writing has been translated into Chinese, French, German, Greek, Italian, Japanese, Persian, Portuguese, and Spanish. He is the author of The ____________ Manifesto and books such as The History of Motion Graphics and The Critique of Digital Capitalism, as well as several books on the semiotics of motion graphics. These publications complement his movies, which have screened internationally in galleries, museums, film festivals, and contemporary art fairs.