Blog Response- Article- Intensified Continuity
According to David Bordell, explain how and why continuity has intensified in Hollywood cinema. Also consider whether anything has been lost with this change.
http://crocodoc.com/hDIyjZb
INTENSIFIED CONTINUITY
The term “intensified continuity” is defined as “traditional continuity amped up and raised to a higher-pitch of emphasis.” Elements of intensified continuity differ greatly from the more traditional approach to continuity of film. According to David Bordwell, continuity has intensified cinema through more technical means such as lens choice, aspect ration, and screen size. Detail continues to be lost as well as cohesiveness of the continuity of the piece as a whole. Thus, the continuity of the piece is defined by the evolving taste of audience’s acceptance the methods of cinematography and distribution and/of the medium.
Technology has effected continuity the greatest. For example, in the early days of cinema, most shots were locked down static shots (such as Arrival of a Train) because of the great bulk and size of the cameras used. As time progressed, camera became more and more agile that it was almost necessary for the audience to stay entertained by epic, moving camera shots. These evolved into what we now know as “free roaming camera” shots. Beyond cranes and Steady-Cams, overuse of CG has also brought the overuse of the digital camera’s used in the digital world. These are not restricted by, say gravity, or space. Thus as an audience we expect more and more from professional Hollywood films as our appetite for free roaming camera has grown.
Bordwell is saying that over time, films continue to intensify cutting of shot length and shot density, compared to traditional films of the 30’s to the mid 60’s. During these times, the ASL (average shot length) of a Hollywood feature film were about 9 seconds long. Today, ASL's have gotten surprisingly low in modern Hollywood films. Some films even go as low as 2 seconds ASL. Bordwell asks, "Has rapid cutting therefore led to a 'post-classical' breakdown of spatial continuity?" Thus, “Can such high shot densities continue to have a coherent nature?” I can say from personal experince that some actions scenes have been cut to a point where I have lost coherence. “Today, most films are cut more rapidly than at any other time in U.S Studio filmmaking. Indeed, editing rates may soon hit a wall.” In this quote, Bordwell says that despite the inventive fast cuts of today, the continuity of a film is more important (than action created by quick cuts) in a a mainstream film and can become incomprehensible if there are fast-action clips without any long establishing shots. Many techniques can be used (such as the 180 degree line rule and constants such as direction) in order to keep the audience coherent, however.
Traditionally, you would choose a lens length depending on your shooting style and material. Speilberg once said that what intensified Hollywood films' concept of continuity was how directors decided to "freely mix long-focus and wide-angle within a single film." Directors that used this technique pushed the limits of relying on only certain shots to create successful films, thus becoming successes themselves. Bordwell stated “If a scene relies on rapidly cut singles, the filmmaker must find fresh ways to emphasize certain lines or facial reactions.” The simple idea that Hollywood has accepted both styles of filmmaking supports acceptance of this intensified continuity in American films today.
In conclusion, today’s movies heavily rely on rapid cutting, fluid free ranging camera movements, and what medium they are in. Cinematographers, such as Kuleshov or Pudovkin, differentiated themselves by defying these rules and setting their own rules in terms, thus differentiating themselves as artists, like canvas to printing press.
According to David Bordell, explain how and why continuity has intensified in Hollywood cinema. Also consider whether anything has been lost with this change.
http://crocodoc.com/hDIyjZb
INTENSIFIED CONTINUITY
The term “intensified continuity” is defined as “traditional continuity amped up and raised to a higher-pitch of emphasis.” Elements of intensified continuity differ greatly from the more traditional approach to continuity of film. According to David Bordwell, continuity has intensified cinema through more technical means such as lens choice, aspect ration, and screen size. Detail continues to be lost as well as cohesiveness of the continuity of the piece as a whole. Thus, the continuity of the piece is defined by the evolving taste of audience’s acceptance the methods of cinematography and distribution and/of the medium.
Technology has effected continuity the greatest. For example, in the early days of cinema, most shots were locked down static shots (such as Arrival of a Train) because of the great bulk and size of the cameras used. As time progressed, camera became more and more agile that it was almost necessary for the audience to stay entertained by epic, moving camera shots. These evolved into what we now know as “free roaming camera” shots. Beyond cranes and Steady-Cams, overuse of CG has also brought the overuse of the digital camera’s used in the digital world. These are not restricted by, say gravity, or space. Thus as an audience we expect more and more from professional Hollywood films as our appetite for free roaming camera has grown.
Bordwell is saying that over time, films continue to intensify cutting of shot length and shot density, compared to traditional films of the 30’s to the mid 60’s. During these times, the ASL (average shot length) of a Hollywood feature film were about 9 seconds long. Today, ASL's have gotten surprisingly low in modern Hollywood films. Some films even go as low as 2 seconds ASL. Bordwell asks, "Has rapid cutting therefore led to a 'post-classical' breakdown of spatial continuity?" Thus, “Can such high shot densities continue to have a coherent nature?” I can say from personal experince that some actions scenes have been cut to a point where I have lost coherence. “Today, most films are cut more rapidly than at any other time in U.S Studio filmmaking. Indeed, editing rates may soon hit a wall.” In this quote, Bordwell says that despite the inventive fast cuts of today, the continuity of a film is more important (than action created by quick cuts) in a a mainstream film and can become incomprehensible if there are fast-action clips without any long establishing shots. Many techniques can be used (such as the 180 degree line rule and constants such as direction) in order to keep the audience coherent, however.
Traditionally, you would choose a lens length depending on your shooting style and material. Speilberg once said that what intensified Hollywood films' concept of continuity was how directors decided to "freely mix long-focus and wide-angle within a single film." Directors that used this technique pushed the limits of relying on only certain shots to create successful films, thus becoming successes themselves. Bordwell stated “If a scene relies on rapidly cut singles, the filmmaker must find fresh ways to emphasize certain lines or facial reactions.” The simple idea that Hollywood has accepted both styles of filmmaking supports acceptance of this intensified continuity in American films today.
In conclusion, today’s movies heavily rely on rapid cutting, fluid free ranging camera movements, and what medium they are in. Cinematographers, such as Kuleshov or Pudovkin, differentiated themselves by defying these rules and setting their own rules in terms, thus differentiating themselves as artists, like canvas to printing press.
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