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10/23/13 Schreiber theory - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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Schreiber theoryFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Schreiber theory is a writer-centered approach to film criticism which holds that the principal author of a film

is generally the screenwriter rather than the director. The term was coined by David Morris Kipen, Director of

Literature at the US National Endowment for the Arts.

Contents

1 Outline

2 Origin of term

3 Criticism

4 References

Outline

In his 2006 book The Schreiber Theory: A Radical Rewrite of American Film History, David Kipen argues that

the influential 1950s-era Auteur theory has wrongly skewed analysis towards a director-centred view of film. In

contrast, Kipen believes that the screenwriter has a greater influence on the quality of a finished work and that

knowing who wrote a film is the surest predictor of how good it will be:

A filmgoer seeking out pictures written by, say, Eric Roth or Charlie Kaufman wont always see a

masterpiece, but hell see fewer clunkers than he would following even a brilliant director like John

Boorman, or an intelligent actor like Jeff Goldblum. Its all a matter of betting on the fastest horse,instead of the most highly touted or the prettiest.[1]

Kipen acknowledges that his writer-centred approach is not new, and pays tribute to earlier critics of Auteur theo

such as Pauline Kael and Richard Corliss. He believes that the Auteurist approach remains dominant, however, an

that films have suffered as a result of the screenwriter's role being undervalued. Kipen refers to his book as a

manifesto and in an interview with the magazine SF360 stated that he wished to use Schreiber theory as a lever

to change the way people think about screenwriting, and movies in general.

Origin of term

In seeking a name for his theory, Kipen chose the Yiddish word for writer schreiber in honour of the many ear

American screenwriters who had Yiddish as their mother tongue. [2]

Criticism

Writing in Variety, Diane Garrett said Kipen shows a degree of disingenuousness when he states that Schreiberism

is an attempt to rescue reviewing and scholarship from those who would have us forget just how collaborative

filmmaking truly is. She said:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Variety_(magazine)https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manifestohttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pauline_Kaelhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Boormanhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Auteur_theoryhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Endowment_for_the_Artshttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Variety_(magazine)https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yiddishhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Francisco_Film_Societyhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manifestohttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Corlisshttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pauline_Kaelhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeff_Goldblumhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Boormanhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlie_Kaufmanhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eric_Rothhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Auteur_theoryhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Endowment_for_the_Artshttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Morris_Kipenhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Film_directorhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Screenwriterhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Film_criticism

7/27/2019 Schreiber theory

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10/23/13 Schreiber theory - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schreiber_theory

Ifthats really the goal, why spend 150 pages arguing for the supremacy of the writer? Instead say

what you really mean: Don't forget the writer, please.[3]

In an interview with Kipen, film writer Michael Fox said Schreiberism seemed less an attempt to discredit Auteur

theory outright than a ploy to simply shift the auteur appellation from directors to screenwriters. [4]

Kipens reply was that there was an element of parody in his writer-centred theory, in that he hoped to

overcorrect the director-centred model in such a way that the final average of the two is a more realistic

representation.

References

1. ^ Kipen, David (2006). The Schreiber Theory: A Radical Rewrite of American Film History, p.38. Melville House

ISBN 0-9766583-3-X.

2. ^ Kipen, David (2006). The Schreiber Theory: A Radical Rewrite of American Film History, p.37. Melville House

ISBN 0-9766583-3-X.

3. ^ Diane Garrett. "Book Review: The Schreiber Theory (http://www.variety.com/review/VE1117930243.html?

categoryid=1010&cs=1)." Variety, April 15, 2006.

4. ^ Michael Fox. Author! Author! David Kipen Posits a New Auteur Theory (http://www.sf360.org/features/author

author-david-kipen-posits-a-new-auteur-theory). SF360, March 6, 2006.

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