Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Acknowledgements
- Introduction: Special Effects and the Techno-Romantic Paradigm
- 1 Imagining Technological Art: Early German Film Theory
- 2 Modern Magicians: Guido Seeber and Eugen Schüfftan
- 3 The Uncanny Mirror: Der Student von Prag (1913)
- 4 Visualizing the Occult: Nosferatu (1922)
- 5 The Technological Sublime: Metropolis (1927)
- 6 “German Technique” and Hollywood
- Conclusion: Techno-Romantic Cinema from the Silent to the Digital Era
- Bibliography
- Index
6 - “German Technique” and Hollywood
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 13 April 2021
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Acknowledgements
- Introduction: Special Effects and the Techno-Romantic Paradigm
- 1 Imagining Technological Art: Early German Film Theory
- 2 Modern Magicians: Guido Seeber and Eugen Schüfftan
- 3 The Uncanny Mirror: Der Student von Prag (1913)
- 4 Visualizing the Occult: Nosferatu (1922)
- 5 The Technological Sublime: Metropolis (1927)
- 6 “German Technique” and Hollywood
- Conclusion: Techno-Romantic Cinema from the Silent to the Digital Era
- Bibliography
- Index
Summary
Abstract
In the mid-1920s, the innovative imagery and emotional force of German films startled American critics and filmmakers. Well-known directors like F. W. Murnau and Paul Leni were invited to Hollywood, and their American films showcased a range of unconventional camera effects, in particular moving camera feats and extreme camera angles. What galvanized American commentators about these methods was the realization that cinematic devices could be used to visualize affective content. German filmmakers proffered a novel model of cinematic immersion, which augmented the audience's absorption in the story world with figurative levels of meaning. Prompted by objectives originating in techno-romantic thought, Hollywood began to pay increased attention to the expressive potential of technical tools, with lasting effects on American filmmaking.
Keywords: F. W. Murnau, camera angles, moving camera, immersion, camera cranes
In the mid-1920s, German films caused an upheaval in Hollywood. Critics and members of the film industry were astonished by the camera feats on display in films like Der letzte Mann (Ufa, 1924, dir. F. W. Murnau), Varieté (Ufa, 1925, dir. E. A. Dupont), and Metropolis (Ufa, 1927, dir. Fritz Lang). Possibly for the first time since the introduction of feature-length films, it became painfully obvious that, despite all its commercial successes, Hollywood was lagging behind technically and aesthetically. The New York Herald Tribune for instance proclaimed: “It is curious to note how completely Germanic this new art of the cinema seems to be. As an industry, of course, the American photoplay is supreme by at least a thousand miles, yet when it comes to the aesthetics of the screen field, even the local film makers look to Germany for inspiration and idea.” In addition to aesthetic deficits, early warning signs also indicated that American market shares in Europe were slipping. As part of a multi-faceted approach to meet these challenges, studios started importing directors from Europe with expectation that they would create prestigious films with the international appeal and familiarize Hollywood with their methods.
Conventional wisdom has it that many of the impulses Hollywood received from Germany were technical in nature. Indeed, Hollywood paid close attention to German technological innovations, as producer G. A. Mincenty observed: “What interests almost every American about German films is whether he can see something technically new.” Scholars have often pointed to special effects, camera movement, or high-contrast lighting as examples of Germany's influence on Hollywood.
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- Special Effects and German Silent FilmTechno-Romantic Cinema, pp. 227 - 272Publisher: Amsterdam University PressPrint publication year: 2021