Wednesday, September 17, 2008
Blog #3
Referring to Marilyn Fabe's essay, "The Beginnings of Film Narrative: D.W. Griffith's Birth of a Nation" describe three characteristics of early film, using at least two scenes from Edwin Porter's Jack and the Beanstalk (1902).
Using at least two scenes from D.W. Griffith's The Girl and Her Trust (1912) and Fabe's essay, describe how Griffith's use of the cross-cut and setting impacts the film's realism and storytelling capabilities.
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Throughout Edwin Porter’s Jack and the Beanstalk, the use of fade in/fade out is used to show and enhance the presence of a change of time or setting. For example, when Jack showed his mother the beans he received, she threw them into the fire pit, and went inside with Jack. A fade out/in occurs, and a moon has appeared showing that the day has been finished as well as when Jack heads off to the giant’s home after his nap.
The use of an iris in is also used in the film which, as said by Marilyn Fabe in her essay, “The Beginnings of Film Narratives: D.W. Griffith’s Birth of a Nation,” is when “a black screen opens from darkness in an expanding circle of light.” This takes place when the fairy shows Jack the castle and where he must go, showing a glimpse into the future, and giving the audience Jack’s point of view on his upcoming trip.
Another characteristic of early film is the use of zoom in/outs. The zoom ins direct attention to a specific object or to a face, having the audience relate and feel the emotion of the character and significance of the object. The zoom outs create a sense of helplessness, when the character seems to have shrunken, not being the dominant part of the story/screen.
As for The Girls and Her Trust, the use of cross-cuts gives the audience the knowledge of other events happening at the same time, giving a better overall picture of the situations at hand and creating a thicker, more dynamic plot. For example, we see the girl sending a distress telegram locked in her office, then the receivers of the distress telegram at another train station, and then the burglars trying to break into the room from the bared windows outside and the other side of the office door, all at the same moment in time. As for the use of settings, from the numerous offices, the train pulling into the station and the robbers jumping out, to the chase scene of the locomotive with its conductors and the manual car, put together, they create a very believable, compelling, and intriguing situation showing the entire story and all of its parts from beginning to end.
Dan Gorchynsky
TA: Caroline Kastelic
[Garrett Katerzynske]
[Caroline Kastelic]
Early Narrative film as portrayed in Edwin Porter's “Jack and the Beanstalk” (1902) is far from the cinema we know today; it more closely resembles theatre put to film. Many aspects of these films are unrealistic. The camera position is static and positioned far away from the action. This allows the viewer to see the whole scene, however with little detail or direction. The use of harsh and jerky cuts when the “angel” pops in and out of scenes draws further attention to the medium. Also, actors use flamboyant movements (such as the cow dancing in the opening scene) that detract from the believability of the performance. Use of fake or painted scenery as seen when Jack is climbing the beanstalk further hinders the films realism. All of these factors add to an experience that is minimally immersive at best.
D.W. Griffith's use of imaginative camera angles, attention to mise-en-scene, and editing added a complexity and realism to film that was unprecedented at the time. The use of these skills is seen throughout The Girl and Her Trust (1912). The setting he uses is lifelike and believable with real props. The acting style is also more realistic. Instead of a static camera, he uses many different angles with well edited match cuts. This provides for greater detail and direction, while maintaining a fluid continuity to the narrative. In the scene where the woman loads a bullet into the keyhole, this film strategy proves incredibly useful. Furthermore, his use of cross cuts adds depth to his story telling capabilities. When he cuts between the girl and the impending threat of the “tramps” he creates a dramatic irony and builds tension. Through his clever control of the graphical and spatial continuity of his narratives, Griffith was able to create highly immersive film.
Edwin Porter’s Jack and the Beanstalk (1902) is a perfect display of early film and primitive narration and storytelling techniques. Looking back on a film such as this, one might make the mistake of thinking it was a recorded play performed in a theatre by a member of the audience. The camera remains rooted to the spot throughout, presenting the entire scene and its subjects in only one take. The film uses the fade-in, fade-out scene transition technique to signify a changeover in time and setting. The film’s set design of painted backgrounds of hilltops and crescent moons also draws comparisons to stage productions and lowers the film’s realism.
D.W. Griffith however used much different techniques that, at the time, had never been used or explored before in his The Girl and Her Trust (1912). Griffith’s camera stood closer to the characters on screen, even using close-ups to put more emphasis on certain actions. Griffith employed faster, fluid, smoother cuts, going back and forth between two settings and two different sets of actions to create an idea of simultaneity between the two. Griffith left the stage behind and filmed his scenes on location and used real sets without fake backgrounds to further increase the realism and believability of what was taking place on screen and separated the mediums of theatre and film.
Elliot Hughes
Edwin Porter’s 1902 short “Jack and the Beanstalk” illustrates the characteristics of early film that Marilyn Fabe mentions in her essay. The short opens up with what, in today’s standards, would be considered an extremely long take. However, a few scenes later, after Jack has climbed the beanstalk and is in a woman’s home, the scene is not cut for about two minutes (from time 4:25 to about 6:25 on the clip)! This long take is a common characteristic in early film. Another characteristic in early film is the fact that the camera is unmoving. There are no close-up shots- the camera simply remains at a “fixed distance from the action” (Fabe 2). In each scene of Porter’s “Jack and the Beanstalk,” the camera does not move. Spectators see the scene from the same distance the entire time. This makes it somewhat difficult to empathize with characters or to really see what is going on emotionally and physically, such as in scene 3 (time 1:22-2:05 on the clip). All a viewer can see is a fairy-type character tapping a sleeping character, and soon after she disappears, some birds “flying.” This, combined with the film’s choppy cuts and “loosely spliced scenes,” illustrates Fabe’s opinion that early films simply “did not tell stories very well” (2). The story is hard to follow because there is no dialog and because viewers can not see facial expressions on the character’s faces.
DW Griffith, in “The Girl and her Trust,” used much different filmmaking techniques. Rather than shooting on a stage like early films (which took away from the realism of the film), Griffith set his films in real life, filming without fake or painted backgrounds. This technique makes his films more realistic feeling and gives the viewer more a feeling that the film is actually happening. Griffith also made good use of the cross-cutting technique, which is still used today. Cross-cutting, an “alternation from one line of action to another” (Fabe 7), gives the viewer insight into numerous events that are taking place all at once. This creates a more interesting plot, thus drawing spectators in more. Griffith’s use of “new” techniques in his short “The Girl and Her Trust” tells a story and engages the audience, which early films did not do well.
Bryn Unger
TA: Caroline Kastelic
Early film in the early 1900’s had distinct, recognizable characteristics that differed from D.W. Griffith’s style of the narrative that came a few years later. Three elements that are commonplace in these films include long-style or full shots, unrealistic physically setting, and an over-dramatic, theatrical style of acting. As seen in Porter’s Jack and the Beanstalk the first two scenes display all of these characteristics. In the opening scene of the film, the viewer sees three human characters and a fake horse enter all in one distance shot. The camera never closed in on any of the action, staying in a distinct far shot for the entire scene (Fabe). Also, Fabe writes, “In a pre-Griffith [early 1900’s] film such as The Great Train Robbery (1903), for example, a fairly realistic rendering of a railroad telegraph office is marred by a painted clock on the wall, its hands perpetually set at nine o’clock.” This quote refers to early filmmakers use of set design and lack of realistic portrayals of earthly settings. In Porter’s film, we see in the first scene an artificial waterfall surrounded by painted rocks, as well as a horse played by two men in costume. Finally, Jack and the Beanstalk portrays flamboyant theatrical acting that is expected of that time (Fabe). In the second scene of Porter’s film, Jack’s mother comes to look for Jack, and finding him doing something foolish, flails her arms about and prances back and forth to portray her frustrations with her son. Overall, the film contains many elements of early film styles like these.
D.W. Griffith’s ability to show realism in his setting and portray a great story through cross-cutting is evident in his film The Girl and Her Trust. In the film, the viewer can witness Griffith’s use of mise-en-scene as he puts great detail into his sets and actors, making everything appear as realistic and as natural as possible (Fabe). The train depot consists of real trains and tracks, and everything within the depot looks acceptable within the elements. Also, Griffith uses cross-cutting in order to further the story and relay ideas and necessary information to the viewer (Fabe). For example, in Griffith’s film there is a moment when the woman at the train depot is being robbed by the Tramps. While locked in her office, she sends a telegram, and Griffith shows us this by cutting to a scene of the telegram operator receiving her message. Soon after this, we are showed the image of the man who left her alone at the depot, who is leaving his house back towards work. These images help piece together information for the viewer and make the story more dynamic and thought invoking. Griffith’s film-making style helped progress the overall quality of The Girl and Her Trust.
Mitchell Keller
TA. Caroline Kastelic
Edwin Porter’s short 1902 film, “Jack and the Beanstalk” has many great examples of how an early film used simple techniques in order to achieve important elements that furthered the understanding of the story. The fade out at about 52 seconds in to the film showed the scene turn from day to night nearly instantly just by adding a moon and darkening the set. There was also a good example of a match cut at 03:14. In the previous shot, Jack was seen climbing up the beanstalk and out of frame. In the next shot, we see Jack climbing up the stalk, emerging from the bottom of the frame. This was a great way to show how Jack was simply just gaining altitude as he climbed. Finally, the long shot when Jack was inside the Giants house, hiding from him showed how daunting of a task it was going to be for Jack to escape. The multiple attempts he makes at getting out help show how scary it really is in the room. All of these techniques were very simple and helped move film further away from the theater, which most early film was greatly based off of.
D.W. Griffith's short film “The Girl and Her Trust” was a truly gripping and attention grabbing film due to the use of many important techniques new to film (at that time) that I have become so accustomed to and have gained a new appreciation for. The cross-cut is a great example of a technique I see every day but never truly appreciated. The tension builds when the girl sticks a bullet in the keyhole of the door, facing the robbers. We see her attempting to fire it off, as it cross cuts outside the door to the unsuspecting bandits trying to enter the room. This caused some great anticipation as to what would happen to the ignorant robbers. We become apprehensive once again during the chase scene when we see the train slowly catching up to the bandits on their getaway cart. This causes the viewer to become anxious, wondering if the bandits will get away with the money, or if they will be caught by the men on the train. This was a wonderful use of the cross-cut since it made us aware of the full situation of what was happening and caused us to continue watching to see the full outcome.
Mark Scholbrock
TA: Caroline Kastelic
According to Marilyn Fabe’s essay, “The Beginnings of Film Narrative: D.W. Griffith’s Birth of a Nation,” there are three characteristics to early film. The first characteristic, mise-en-scene, is the director’s specific choice of actors, scenery, wardrobe and make-up. For example, in Edwin Porter’s Jack and the Beanstalk, the first scene’s set and costumes are consisted fairytale like designs with a majestic waterfall in the background. The second characteristic of early film is the way the image is framed in the scene. By zooming in or out on the object can create different feelings about the scene. It can create drama in the scene and focuses the viewer’s attention on the subject. Another powerful tool of early film was the editing process. A fade-in is when the shot starts at black then gradually brightens until the image is fully displayed. In Jack and the Beanstalk they use this trick when the fairy goes from the ground by the beanstalk and appears in the bedroom upstairs. This technique is used well when the director wants to speed the process of the story.
In D.W. Griffith’s The Girl and Her Trust, the details in the setting make the film more realistic. For instance the calendars on the wall and paperwork in the girl’s office set the scene. Cross-cut is used when the girl’s actions are shown followed by the man and then the bandits’ actions even though they are all in different places. By using this technique it creates suspense in the film.
Alison Korth
T.A. Caroline Kastelic
One thing that really got me right away when watching "Jack And The Beanstalk" was how grand that opening set was (for the time period). The lavished room with the waterfall is great. The cow... not so much, but we'll give them the benefit of the doubt :) The props and 3-D sets are also very like D.W.'s stuff. Jack And The Beanstalk also uses fades to show a passage of time.
Besides all of that, it seems as if Jack In The Beanstalk is relatively similar to films of its time. The editing is very basic, and there is virtually no use of different camera angles Everything IS a wide shot.
By cross cutting you are able to show different things happening to different people. This allows the audience to get involved with more characters. In the first scene we are allowed to bypass the boring stuff by cutting from the girl with the soda. This also allows us to see how other characters react with one another.
A great example of cross cutting also comes when at the train station. We see the shady looking man pop his head out. By going to a medium-close up from a medium-long shot we clearly understand the action (of popping his head out) and we are able to see his expression (which we couldn't have if we stayed with the first shot)
Kyle Arpke
Kastelic
Edwin Porter's "Jack and the Beanstalk" is a great example for what early film was all about. There are three characteristics in early film that can be seen in Porter's film. There is no variation in camera angles throughout the film. Instead of using cut aways as Griffith began to do, the camera remains in the same spot the whole time. Besides the fact that the angle does not change, the size also remains the same. There are no close ups or extreme long shots. The viewer has to look for small details whereas Griffith would have zoomed in on the parts he wanted people to see. Porter also uses fade ins and fade outs as transitions between scenes.
Griffith's use of cross cutting and the setting impact the film's realism and storytelling capabilities. By cutting from the scene inside the building to the scene outside with the "tramps" it brings a sense of realism. By showing the "tramps" waiting outside we see how they got there. Had the camera stayed inside on the man and woman talking, it would have been as though the "tramps" had just appeared out of nowhere. The use of realistic setting brings the film more to life. Griffith uses realistic props like the clock pendulum swinging back and forth in the background of the scene to make things seem more real.
Sara Nesbitt
Caroline Kastelic
Many of the characteristics of early film that Fabe describes can be found in Edwin Porter’s “Jack and the Beanstalk.” The very first scene, for instance, is “shot with a static camera in [a] long take” that lasts for about a minute. The shot, which is really the entire scene, is a long shot, showing all of the people involved, as well as background scenery like a waterfall and a tree. This scene also demonstrates how many early films were basically filmed plays. The next scene presents another example. The transition between the 2nd and 3rd shot is awkward, and, as Fabe says, “the temporal and spatial relations between the shots [are] ambiguous and unclear.” It is hard to tell what exactly is going on between the two shots.
Watching Griffith’s “The Girl and Her Trust,” one can see a huge difference in filmmaking techniques. Griffith shot on location, so scenes that take place outside are actually shot outside, making the film much more realistic. Doing this also takes away from the “filmed theatre” quality earlier films had. Griffith also uses cross-cutting, or “a cutting back and forth from one line of action to another.” This is used a few times, such as when the tramps are trying to get into the girl’s office. The camera goes back and forth between the two sides of the door, but it is always clear what is going on and where everything is.
William Ingebretsen
The first characteristic of early film is shown in the first film. This characteristic is the long shot, in which the people are shown in a smaller perspective than the scene. The second characteristic is the length of the shots. These shots are long in duration without the camera switching to a new angle called lengthy static long shot. The third characteristic of early film is the painted scenery. Things such as clocks, trees, and clouds are not 3 dimensional objects, they are just painted into the background providing a cheap illusion of the real thing. In the second film, and example of cross-cutting is shown when the man brings the money into the bank, and the scene switches to the 2 men jumping behind the barrels outside. The man walks outside past the men behind the barrel, and then switches back to the women into the bank. The setting is very accurate because the use of real objects is done, instead of painting the background, giving the film a much more realistic feel.
Nick Stoehr
806
In the film Jack and the Beanstalk by Edwin Porter mister Porter uses some classic early cinema techniques to better tell the story to the audience. One of the techniques he uses is the fades at the beginning and the end of scenes to better represent the idea of time passing. For example after Jack first buys the magic beans there is a fade out but then it quickly fades back in to show jack now at his home. This technique shows the audience that time as passed with using the blank screen rather then showing jack walk all the way home. Another technique he uses is a cut once jack reaches the top of the scene while climbing he then cuts away and shows jack now at the bottom of the screen. This is another example of a simple technique used to better connect to the audiences.
In The Girls and Her Trust we see the crosscut used more instead of the more simple methods of editing. The best example of this is when the girl buts the bullet through the keyhole of the door and then it cuts to the unsuspecting robbers on the other side. This method of telling multiple sides of story at once is shown throughout the film.
From the first scene one could tell that "Jack And The Beanstalk" is obviously a very early film. First off it has no sound witch is a characteristic of almost all early film. Another thing is the hand painted set that is prominent throughout the movie. Another characteristic of early film the gimmicks that the film uses to capture the audiences attention, such as the scene where the witch vanishes.
In the second movie, "Girl And Her Trust," is a example of and early film that uses storytelling. Unlike many films of its time it tells a story instead of just showing something to dazzle the audience. Instead of using hand painted scenery, it uses realistic backgrounds set in real places. It also uses cuts instead of fade outs to make the film seem more fluid and show more detail. In the end this film is a much more advanced than the first, but not necessarily better.
Zach Cosby
When watching Edwin Porter's "Jack and the Beanstalk", one can see many characteristics of early film that Marilyn Fabe discusses in her essay on the beginnings of film narrative. The first characteristic that gives "Jack and the Beanstalk" away as an early film is the way the camera stays stagnant, giving a wide shot of all the action that is going on for an extended period of time. The scene where Jack is hiding in the cabin in the sky while watching the giant eat, is 68 seconds, an almost unheard of time for one camera angle in modern narrative features. As Fabe points out these long static shots leave the viewer “to pick out the significant details of the action” from everything else that is unimportant in the scene. The painted backdrops in "Jack and the Beanstalk" “undermine the realism” of the movie as they are “blatantly artificial” and provide no depth and an unrealistic view. This is most evident in the scene outside Jack’s house where the hills in the background and trees are clearly two-dimensional and perfectly rounded. Porter’s film also lacks narrative depth from the way the long shots proceed “in a strict chronological order” that only show one thing happening at once.
Watching D.W. Griffith's "The Girl and Her Trust" after viewing "Jack and the Beanstalk", one can clearly see a difference not only in the sets but also most prominently in the style of shots and the use of cross-cutting in the editing. By filming the scene where the robbers arrive outside and by real train tracks with real trains, the viewer is easily transported to the scene and is able to forget that what they are watching is fictional. The cross-cutting that is used primarily in the second part of the film helps to thicken the plot “by giving the spectator greater knowledge than the characters.” We know that the girl is being carried off by the robbers and we know that at the same time her lover is coming to rescue her on a train, however the viewer lacks the knowledge of how far apart they really are and they are left to wonder at when the girl will be rescued. This helps to get the audience more involved with what is happening to the characters and creates suspense as well. These to factors alone made D.W. Griffith’s film much more realistic through the use of real sets and more interesting with the thickened story.
Lanae Smith
TA: Caroline Kastelic
Early films had many defining characteristics. One of these characteristics is using a long shot to capture all of the action during the film. The entire Jack and the Beanstalk film is filmed using a long shot. Another characteristic of early films is using artificial painted background details. In Jack and the Beanstalk you can clearly see the hills and trees in the background are fake during the scene where the beanstalk starts to grow. Early films also filmed their scenes in “one lengthy, static long shot” instead of many different scenes complied together like the scene where things start coming out of the beanstalk in the bedroom in Jack and the Beanstalk.
In D.W. Griffith’s The Girl and Her Trust, Griffith uses the editing technique cross-cutting to show multiple things happening at once like the scene where the tramps are trying to break in and the girl is sending the telegraph for help. This gives the viewer different perspectives of the story and adds more detail to the story. The way Griffiths uses the setting also enhances the viewing experience. The use of authentic-looking three dimensional props adds to the illusion that you are there at scene playing out and immerses you in the film itself.
Tanisha Richter
In Porter's Jack and the Beanstalk there are a couple characteristics portrayed that represent early film. One main characteristics is the Fade in/out. This technique is used to change scenes, show time elapsing, begin a film, or end a film. For example When Jack and his mother go inside, Porter uses a fade out right into a fade in showing time passing and then the fairy appears outside where the bean stock then is created.
The next characteristic is the use of jumpy film, when there was a cut in the film. Such as in the scene with the fairy making the bean stalk appear outside of the house. She is standing there waving her magical staff in one position and a second later she jumps a few feet to a different position.
The Third characteristic of early film is the editing. Such as in Jack in the bean stalk Porter did do a few things with editing portraying the fairies magical powers. When Jack comes down off the stalk and chops it down and defeats the giant the fairy then appears waves here magical staff and changes jacks ordinary clothing to shining armor.
The first scene using cross-cutting that helps make you feel what the characters are feeling is right after the man kisses the girl in the beginning. He is standing in the one room thinking about what he has done while she is standing in another room at the same time thinking about what just happened, and give you an idea of how they are feeling by seeing them both thinking about it.
The second is the scene where the two men are peeking in on the girl throughout the window. it shows them peeking and then her showing that she senses someone watching her.
In Edwin Porter's Jack and the Beanstalk the technique that they used in early film making of fading in and fading out was used. At one point they used it to create the feeling from going to day then night. Another technique that shows that Jack and the Beanstalk is of an earlier film is they only used one camera angle and lots of wide shots showing the whole scene, and very simply editing.
In the Girls and Her Trust by DW Griffith you notice that the filming was much more complex. They have a wide variety of camera angles. They also use the cross-cuts which shows that events and actions are happening at the same time. This helps create a better story line for the viewers, easier to understand. One example of using cross-cut in the film was where she held the bullet to one side of the door and then they cross-cut to the robbers to see how they are reacting.
Amber Blanchard
TA: Caroline Kastelic
There is obviously many ways that film has developed over the years. While keeping in mind the characteristics of early film, my first thing thought after starting Jack and the Beanstalk was that there was no sound. A couple other things that came to mind were that the film is in black and white and has a grainy look to it, and that people's actions seem to be sped up a bit. The cross-cutting done in Griffith's The Girl and her Trust added suspense to the film, I think. The scene where it kept jumping back and forth from the man and the train to the woman in the room was very fast-paced. The film's settings doesn't really differ that much in place, but I believe that it doesn't matter for this film and just the two settings work.
Derek Reilly
One of the most notable characteristics in early film was the absence of close-up shots. This is evident in the first scene of Porter's "Jack and the Beanstalk," during which two different actions are occuring. The two men are talking on one side of the screen, and the cow is stomping around on the other. It is also obvious in the scene that plays just before the two minute mark. Some objects are fluttering about, then a giant egg appears and cracks open. A close-up would have allowed Porter to show more detail and clear up any confusion over the action taking place.
Early films also contained theater-style mis-en-scene. This can be found in the first scene, in which the two men (as well as the other two actors who make up the cow) are exaggerating the action. The introduction to the giant, where the actor attempts to play a strong, masculine role also exhibits exaggeration in the fashion of theater.
All of the aforementioned scenes also exhibit another characteristic of early cinema, which was the lack of a subjective viewpoint. The camera faces the action and does not change location at all during a given scene. The audience cannot see the film from the narrator's point of view because they are stuck looking at the objective whole - objective in the sense that the camera is separate from and purely observant of the characters in the shot.
In Griffith's "The Girl and Her Trust," there is an early scene in which cross-cutting adds realism to the film. The scene depicts a man loading a gun, the cuts to a train arriving, then back to the man, who looks out of the window. This provides a more realistic, subjective viewpoint, and it also allows the viewer to anticipate action that may be arriving.
In addition, during the scene that contains two men pushing themselves along a railroad track, it became clear to me that the setting added realism to the film. It seemed to have been shot on location, and if it wasn't it certainly appeared real. Either way, it could not be mistaken for a cheap set piece that was characteristic of earlier cinema.
By comparing these two films by Porter and Griffith, and essentially comparing early cinema with the narrative style that was pioneered by D.W. Griffith, I have found that "narrative films" added much more than a story. They added realism, subjectivity, suspense, and all of the other elements of a movie that dominate cinema to this day.
Eric Grycan
TA: Caroline Kastelic
Edwin Porter’s “Jack and the Beanstalk” from 1912, is a great example of what an early film with primitive narration and storytelling techniques was like. Looking back at a piece like this, the viewer might think it was a recorded play performed in a theatre by a member of the audience. The shots consist of a static camera movement (no movement). This sort of style presents the entire scene and its subjects in only one take, making the film seem a lot more fictional. The backgrounds that are presented are clearly made-up sets so that also decreases the realism of the work at hand. The film uses many fade-ins and fade-outs as scene transitions to signify a changeover in time and setting.
D.W. Griffith, in his 1912 film “The Girl and Her Trust” used much different techniques that, at the time, had never been used in films. Griffith’s camera mimicked real-life situations by being closer to the characters on screen, and sometimes using close-ups to put more emphasis on certain things. Griffith employed faster, fluid, smoother cuts, going back and forth between two settings and two different sets of actions to create an idea of story that goes going on in two or more places at once. Griffith left the idea of the old stage performance behind and set up his scenes on location, using real sets without fake backgrounds to further increase the realism and believability of what was taking place on screen. By doing this he surely was trying to break away from the idea of theater and change how films were to be made.
Jason Edwards
Film 114
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