french cinema week 5

8/7/2019 French Cinema Week 5

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Cinema and Nation:

French CinemaWeek 5: The New Wave


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French New Wave Decline of French film industry afterWWII

Losses of warand occupation

1946 laws gave French films very limited exclusivity

Influx of US films postwar

Based on cumbersome infrastructure, studio system, sets, labour

intensive

Aesthetic stagnation: over-emphasis on scripts, preproduction,

production values, experience and low-risk topics. Also belief that

audiences wanted escapism pushed so farthat films were completely

divorced from peoples experiences


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Truffaut, Godard, Jacques Rivette trained at Cinmathque set

up by Langlois and Franju and so were outside the traditional

path

Truffaut was taught by Bazin close connection between

criticism and practice.

He watched international cinemas from all periods opensinterest in form, the cinematic as well as international scope

not just about French literary tradition

The influence on him of earlierFrench cinema including avant

garde, Ren Clair, Jean Vigo (Zro de conduite), poetic realism,

and more recent directors like Varda, Melville, Bresson

Bazin among others begins Cahiers du Cinma in 1951

Truffaut wrote about international film, experimental film, and

took film criticism seriously


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In his landmark 1948 essay Birth of a NewIn his landmark 1948 essay Birth of a New

AvantAvant--Garde, filmmakerGarde, filmmaker Alexandre AstrucAlexandre Astrucadvanced the notion ofadvanced the notion of

le camrale camra--stylostylo (camera pen) ...(camera pen) ...

...which imagined the cinema eventually...which imagined the cinema eventually

breaking free from the concrete demands ofbreaking free from the concrete demands of

generic narrative and where images (togethergeneric narrative and where images (togetherwith sounds) become a means of writing just aswith sounds) become a means of writing just as

flexible and subtle as written language.flexible and subtle as written language.


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Greatly influenced by Astruc's theory, it was only a fewGreatly influenced by Astruc's theory, it was only a few

years later that in 1954 critic and later filmmakeryears later that in 1954 critic and later filmmakerFranois TruffautFranois Truffaut

, in his classic statements which, in his classic statements which

fuelled the emergence of thefuelled the emergence of the French New WaveFrench New Wave,,

spoke of the (preferably writer-) directoras an

AUTEUR:

the cinematic equivalent of a novelist, capable

of expressing themselves through recurring

thematic elements, distinctive ways of building

characters, and, above all, through thedeployment and movement of actors and

objects within the time and space of the shot.


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Truffaut was hugely critical of many of the traditions of FrenchTruffaut was hugely critical of many of the traditions of French

cinema as they exhibited themselves in the 1950s. He dismissedcinema as they exhibited themselves in the 1950s. He dismissed

these as athese as a Cinma de PapaCinma de Papa which desperately needed renewal:which desperately needed renewal:

It was not merely the specific failings of the most respectedIt was not merely the specific failings of the most respected

scriptwriters of the day that displeased him, but the fact that theyscriptwriters of the day that displeased him, but the fact that they

were considered central to the quality of the film, that these werewere considered central to the quality of the film, that these were

scriptwriters films in which the director was merely lescriptwriters films in which the director was merely lemonsieur qui met les cadrages lmonsieur qui met les cadrages l--dessus (the gentleman whodessus (the gentleman who

adds the pictures to the scenario [oradds the pictures to the scenario [or scriptscript]]:: Truffaut 1987: 224).Truffaut 1987: 224).

For Truffaut as for the rest of theFor Truffaut as for the rest of the CahiersCahiers [[du Cinemadu Cinema] team, this] team, this

was heresy, for if film was to become an artwas heresy, for if film was to become an art--form in its own right,form in its own right,then the artist was surely the one who wrote in filmthen the artist was surely the one who wrote in film--language,language,

that is the director...that is the director...

Diana Holmes and Robert Ingram,Diana Holmes and Robert Ingram, Francois TruffautFrancois Truffaut (Manchester: MUP, 1998), pp. 22(Manchester: MUP, 1998), pp. 22--24.24.


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Critic T. Jefferson Kline sets out the context and influencesCritic T. Jefferson Kline sets out the context and influences

from which thefrom which the French New WaveFrench New Wave emerged in the lateemerged in the late

1950s:1950s:

New technology,New technology, enabling low budget film productionenabling low budget film production

(hand(hand--held Camiflex cameras, film stock suitable forheld Camiflex cameras, film stock suitable forfilming in a variety of lighting conditions).filming in a variety of lighting conditions).

Decline of the postDecline of the post--Second World War French film industry,Second World War French film industry,

with film production widely seen as stagnant andwith film production widely seen as stagnant and

bankrupt) theatrical, and laden with highly craftedbankrupt) theatrical, and laden with highly crafteddialogue (ratherthan truly cinematic). And cinemadialogue (ratherthan truly cinematic). And cinema

attendance in rapid decline.attendance in rapid decline.


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The emergence of a new generation of hugely cinephile and cineThe emergence of a new generation of hugely cinephile and cine--literate criticsliterate critics

(in new film magazines such as(in new film magazines such as Cahiers du cinmaCahiers du cinma)) who were givenwho were giventhe opportunity to put theircontroversial views (about Hollywood andthe opportunity to put theircontroversial views (about Hollywood and

French cinema) into practice.French cinema) into practice.

Adventurous film producersAdventurous film producers willing to work within financial austerity, whichwilling to work within financial austerity, which

in turn meant they could risk allowing these newly emerging directors ain turn meant they could risk allowing these newly emerging directors a

great deal of personal creative freedom.great deal of personal creative freedom.

The emergence of auteurismThe emergence of auteurism,,a new critical discourse about thea new critical discourse about the

importance of the film director, and the possibilities and attractions ofimportance of the film director, and the possibilities and attractions of

his/her personal cinematic style, which helped to create a solid markethis/her personal cinematic style, which helped to create a solid market

specifically for films by a particulardirector (ratherthan just from aspecifically for films by a particulardirector (ratherthan just from a

particularstudio, with a particularstar, in a particulargenre) amongst aparticularstudio, with a particularstar, in a particulargenre) amongst a

cinephile publiccinephile public

(T. Jefferson Kline, The French New Wave, in Elizabeth Ezra [ed],(T. Jefferson Kline, The French New Wave, in Elizabeth Ezra [ed], European CinemaEuropean Cinema [Oxford:[Oxford:

OUP, 2004])OUP, 2004])


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Back to TruffautBack to Truffaut

AA filmfilm costingcosting 300300 millionmillion francsfrancs mustmust pleaseplease everyevery

possiblepossible audienceaudience inin everyevery countrycountry.. AA filmfilm costingcosting 6060

millionmillion francsfrancs cancan makemake aa profitprofit inin FranceFrance alonealone oror by by

touchingtouching certaincertain groupsgroups inin differentdifferent countriescountries..

TomorrowsTomorrows filmfilm willwill notnot bebe mademade byby cameracamera technicianstechnicians

butbut by by ARTISTSARTISTS forfor whomwhom shootingshooting aa filmfilm constitutesconstitutes aa

formidableformidable andand exaltingexalting adventureadventure.. TomorrowsTomorrows filmfilm willwill

resembleresemble itsits authorauthor TomorrowsTomorrows filmfilm willwill bebe anan act act of oflovelove..

(Franois(Franois Truffaut,Truffaut, Arts,Arts, 1515 May,May, 19571957))


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How did these ideas make theirway into new wave

practice?

Working outside the studio system; lowerproduction

values, shooting on location, hand held camera, few

extras, sets, etc. Settings had to be everyday and

were often in Paris where the directors were based.

Stories became about everyday life instead ofdrawing from a French literary tradition, films

represented contemporaryFrance.

Films by Claude Chabrol, Jacques Rivette, Jean-Luc

Godard, Jacques Demy, etc

The "New Wave" only lasted a short time: most

directors eitherstop making films ormove into much

more commercial work

french cinema week 5

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