Films from the Hollywood Film Noir period which have clear influences from German Expressionism:

Universum Film-Aktien Gesellschaft (UFA)

UFA was first established in 1917 which, during the war, was utilised as a propaganda machine to benefit the countries’ war efforts. After the war, the UFA’s efforts turned more to attempting to enhance Germany’s international image. The establishment was born after taking over most of the nations leading studios and forcing them to work for UFA.

Why has UFA managed to stay in business?

After UFA faced multiple bankruptcies the company was forced to absorb into multiple other countries. For example, UFA is the holding company of all FremantleMedia’s (a leading German television company) production activities .

They used jagged and distorted lines, rough and rapid brushwork and jarring colours to depict street scenes and subjects in crowded and agitated atmospheres. The art usually captures the inner turmoil of the artist or the subject being imagined, forming an emotionally charged objective nature in which the subject may view the world through.

The Weimar Republic was the German government from 1919 to 1933. The Chancellor of the time, Heinrich Brüning, unable to solve the country’s economic problems, promoted a shift towards a rightist dictatorship by ignoring the Reichstag, or German Parliament, and governing by presidential decree.

Economy:  the Weimar Republic was troubled by post-war economic problems as a result of the Treaty of Versailles. The terms of the treaty required that Germany pay financial reparations, disarm their military, lose territory, and give up all of its overseas colonies. These reparations sent the early Weimar republic into an age of hyperinflation, with the working class being effected most heavily. However, the republic’s economic state had recovered considerably by the late 1920s, allowing the republic to gain authoritarian control and greater power over the German people.

Social: some aspects of German society were said to flourish during the Weimar Republic, with a surge in modernist art, music, theatre, design, dance and film. The traditionalist and constraining views of the 19th century were torn down, allowing creative experimentation to grow rapidly.

Political: the Weimar Republic faced major political instability as a result of the constitutional regulations of the time allowing the democratic decisions of the Reichstag to be overruled by the president. The moderate socialist leaders also faced criticism from both the ‘radical’ left-wing, as they were viewed as not doing enough to prevent against another war, and also by the conservatives who disagreed with their liberal policies. This naturally caused much confusion in German society as of the conflicting ideas which saturated the political landscape of the time.

Task 1 – Explain how the production context of Citizen Kane influenced the “look and feel” of the end product.  

Before ‘Citizen Kane’ Orson Welles achieved a level of notoriety through his acting and direction of many theatre performances across the UK and America. His direction of the radio drama ‘The War of the Worlds’ (1938) shocked American audiences with his ‘authentic’ adaptation of the classic, prompting RKO productions to offer Welles a film contract with almost complete creative control; this project became ‘Citizen Kane’. Welles’ in-depth understanding of theatre and creative control over a substantial budget heavily influenced the final look and feel of the film, as the film showcased many camera techniques and editing styles not yet popular in western cinema; for example, the use of deep depths of field to increase the naturalistic view of the movie, used to mimic how the eye would see a certain scene. Welles also collaborated with industry-leading cinematographer Gregg Toland and renowned editors Robert Wise and Dede Allen to allow ‘Citizen Kane’ to have a high-quality and polished look throughout, in addition to incorporating experimental camera techniques for the period.  

Task 2 – Choose your favourite scene from the film and explain why this is the case. You should consider Welles’ use of micro elements in your answer.

My favourite scene from Orson Welles’ ‘Citizen Kane’ would have to be the “Campaign promises” scene as Kane conducts his speech for Governor. Welles uses this scene to effectively depict Kane at the pinnacle of his career, with sweeping pans and medium-paced zooms beginning the scene, setting the grandeur of the ceremony. Gregg Toland utilises low-angle shots to accentuate the political and social power Kane has developed up to this point in his career; in these shots he is portrayed as significantly taller than the rest of his party on stage, further portraying his power over them and showing their dependency on Kane for their own prosperity. The editing in this scene is also heavily significant, with the scene beginning on wide shots of a theatre full to brim with Kane supporters, then to Kane’s speech, then a cut to his watching wife and son. I believe this may be an attempt to foreshadow the downfall of Kane’s career (his infidelity with another woman) as Robert Wise juxtaposes his promises to become elected with shots of his family, possibly to demonstrate that these two parts of Kane’s life cannot co-exist harmoniously.

Task 3 – Why, in your view do you think Citizen Kane is regularly cited by critics as “ the greatest movie ever made” ?

Citizen Kane, unlike many other classic movies of the genre, gained heavy notoriety both from modern audiences and from the movie-goers of the 40’s, as it was said to be one of the most heavily anticipated movies of 1941. Orson Welles’ expertise in the theatrical world allowed for the movie to gain major recognition for its use of staging and acting to reflect changing character dynamics. In addition, ‘Citizen Kane’ also featured camera and lighting expertise from renowned cinematographer Gregg Toland and innovative editing techniques from Robert Wise, elevating Welles’ creative vision. Many critics regard ‘Citizen Kane’ as “the greatest film ever made” as a result of its technical expertise which was regarded as well ahead of its time. In my opinion, ‘Citizen Kane’ is regularly honoured with this title as it reflects the essence of an expertly crafted film which also withstands the test of time; the film’s experimental and ground-breaking nature which shocked audiences during its’ premiere still holds up on modern audiences, portraying how a traditional yet experimental film should be edited and shot. The film blurs the lines between the industries’ standard 2-hour feature film and an excellently crafted cinematographic experience, which hints at subtleties in the changing character dynamics and stays committed to its overall aesthetic and themes. The now overly replicated nature of ’Citizen Kane’ demonstrates its well-deserved titles and accolades, leaving a significant imprint on the industry and spawning many great films in its’ wake.  

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Description: Screenwriters write and develop screenplays for movies and TV shows, either by adapting pre-existing stories or based on an original idea. These screenplays are supposed to embody the emotions of the characters, the settings and the main meanings a scene is meant to portray; writers often collaborate with actors, directors and producers to achieve the best fitting screenplay which encompasses all participants’ ideas and aims. This often means a writer will draft and redraft their screenplays multiple times before deciding on the final outcome. Screenwriters can also be commissioned by producers or studios to create a certain screenplay.

What are screenwriters good at?

• Knowledge of screenwriting: understand all the key features of a screenplay and know how to improve and amend one.
• Creativity: write well and innovatively, express your ideas effectively in screenplay-form.
• Arts knowledge: a deep and wide knowledge of all genres of art, so as to be able to source ideas from a range of sources and understand cultural contexts.
• Watching film and TV drama: passion for the genre and a understanding of the industry.

Inspirational Practitioner: The Coen Brothers

The brothers usually base their screenplays on desolate and lonely, although picturesque, landscapes which often reflects personal issues each character portrays. A lot of their narratives feature the idea of luck or very unlikely situations the characters have to navigate. The Coen’s introduce the poignant landscapes as a part of the characters personalities, usually demonstrated through distinctive regional accents which are intertwined into the dialogues; for example, ‘Fargo’ features a rural dialect based on that spoken in Minnesota, said to be a combination of Scandinavian, German and Irish dialects from the 19th century. The ‘Fargo’ screenplay features this dialect heavily to implicate the toll such a rural and desolate area can have on the characters, causing a lot of their moments of anger and sadness to be intensified.

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• 3 light sources used to illuminate subject
• Involves a key light, fill light and back light.
• 3PL forms a foundation for many more complex lighting techniques

Key light:

• Main and brightest source of light.
• Generally placed at a 45 degree angle from the camera.

Fill light:

• Fills in the shadows created by the key light.
• Placed on opposite side of camera than the key light.
• Fill light should be dimmer than the key light, to allow for contrast om either side of subject.

Back light:

• Creates a rim of light around the back of a subject, helping to distinguish the subject from the background.
• Positioned behind the subject, higher or lower to avoid the camera.