Review

Summarising Cinematic Texts

This guide is surprisingly short compared to the other ones present on the website. This is not to suggest that film texts are simple or straightforward—far from it: the creation of, for example, a feature film, takes several years and the involvement of hundreds of cast and crew.

No, the reason this guide is so short is that there are relatively few techniques that are unique to the medium of film (editing, sound and visual effects just about cover it).

However, beyond these three types of techniques, filmmakers can draw upon almost all of the other elements and techniques that are available to creators. 

A feature film must, for example, include narrative elements such as plot and characters, while it can also include literary techniques such as symbolism and metaphor. 

Most importantly, a filmmaker must also consider all of the available visual techniques when it comes to crafting a film. This includes the types of camera shots and angles used in a scene, along with other considerations such as lighting and colour.

For something like a feature film to be successful it must effectively combine all of these elements and techniques by drawing upon a talented crew of specialists—never an easy task. 

When these texts do come together, however, they can have a significant influence on audiences and society at large. 

Perhaps the most impressive about film texts is how accessible they are to audiences. While the prospect of sitting down to read a lengthy novel can seem daunting, the prospect of sitting down to watch a feature film can seem highly desirable. 

Similarly, while reading a chapter of a textbook may not be particularly enticing, watching a 5-minute video on YouTube which condenses these concepts into a digestible form can be much more inviting. 

Before we start packing away all of our books, however, we must remember that in order to create something so accessible, filmmakers do a lot of the thinking for us—deciding what to include and what to leave out, and how to present the chosen information in the most efficient way possible. 

There is a danger here that important nuance and complexity can be lost. So, as with any text we analyse, we must think carefully about why a film text was created, and how it seeks to communicate meaning to its audience. This is not to say that we shouldn't enjoy the experience of watching a film, only that we should keep one critical eye open to avoid being swept up by the elegant simplicity of the film medium.

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Cinematic Techniques Guide