The art of film making : a study in the way cinematographic techniques affect the meaning of film content

Abstract

This dissertation aims at looking at the photographic techniques of video and how they contribute to the feelings and interpretations of the content. By focusing on the camera techniques and not on other cinematic tools, the study seeks to illustrate the notion that the camera is not a simple recording device, but the manner in which one records what there is in front, has influence on the matter. Moreover, it suggests that it is the intelligent and creative use of such techniques that create a work of art. The study unfolds in both a theoretical and a practical aspect. It starts with a discussion on the photographic techniques of filmmaking, specifically the lens, framing and camera movement, together with their formal and aesthetic meaning. This is followed by a video production and analysis of a short fiction, in which such filmic tools are used to communicate certain feelings and meanings. The video accompanying this dissertation follows the basic stages one goes through in the process of filmmaking, from the birth of an idea, through the written scenario, the planning, the shooting, the editing, and up to the 'premiere!'