Filming Notes
Filming Notes
motion picture theatres, (Dominick, 2002). The movie industry experienced decline but in 1975,
Stephen Spielberg came up with “Jaws” while the production of “Titanic” in 1997 brought great
change seen in the movie industry up till this 21st century.
History of Film in Africa
Rouch in Uwakwe (2010) stated that film arrived Africa in 1896 through a Vaudeville magician
who stole a theatregraph projector from the Alhambra Palace theatre in London and took it to
South Africa where he later introduced the first moving image on the continent. The first films
made in Africa were exotic and they reinforced the initial stereotypes about Africa as a “dark
continent of wild beasts, cannibals, primitive and backward people who grow tails and idle away
time in the jungle” (Rouch in Uwakwe, 2010:105). This distorted image of Africa in the early
films has been attributed to selfish motives and ignorance on the part of the Europeans. In fact,
“Negro Cruise” was the first film about tropical Africa made by leon a Frenchman, during his
first motor-car trip from North Africa to South Africa in 1924 and 1925, (Mgbejume 1989). The
film told the story of poirier’s adventure. However, the life of the people he saw enroute was also
portrayed in the film. The film revealed details of circumcision rites, and depicted an unusual
aspect of pygmy life.
References
Baran, S. (2002). Introduction to Mass Communication. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Biagi, S. (2003). Media Impact: An Introduction to Mass Media- Belmont: Wadsworth
Dominick, J. (2002). Dynamics of Mass Communication. New York: McGrew-Hill
Hanson, R. (2005). Mass Communication: Living in a media world.
New York: McGrew-Hill
Mgbejume, O. (1989). Dramatic TV. Film scriptwriting. Jos: Redeemer House Publishers.
National Film and Video Censors Board (2000). Film and video
Genre explores social values and attributes , it is common to experience the life – style of an
artist in a film and how reactions influence actions of others in the film and the viewers at home.
It portrays such qualities like wealth, grandeur, and opulence as social indicators of followership
as organizational expectations, genre jealousies, intrigues and betrayals as sources of social
conflicts as examples of social considerations in genres.
•Environmental Factors
The social conditions of the society are brought to public glare through film genre. It shows how
stories, theme, values or imagery of the genre, harmonises with the life in the immediate
environment where the film is produced or cast. For instance, corruption, prostitution, and
religiosity are common themes in Nollywood films. They depict the environmental conditions of
their productions.
•Science or Scientific Rationalism
This consideration was given as a product of the scientific age of the 19th and 20th centuries. It
deals with the reason behind an action, deduced in a rational and logical order. It is an argument
or an incisive enquiry into a creative work of art, based on reasoning. Empirical or scientific
deductions form the template for assessment in scientific rationalism. Also, actions are subjected
to rational tests and deductions. The essence of the scientific rationalism approach is to put
artistic work under the test of intellectual and rational evaluation
References/Further Reading
Anunike, O. (2005). “Film Criticism: Theory and Application” In V. Agbanu and C. Nwabueze
(eds.) Readings in Mass Communication. Owerri: Top Shelve Publishers.
Barnhart, C.L. and Barnhart, R.K. (1988). The World Book Dictionary.
Chicago: World Book Inc.
Kogah, V.C. (1999). Visual Communication, Film, Graphics and photojournalism. Owerri: Gust-
Chuks Publishers.
New Webster Dictionary (1997). Dictionary of English Language New York: Hexicon
International Publishers Cwild Group.
Owuamalam, E.O. (2007). Film and Screen Directing. Owerri: Top Class Publishers.
Components of Films
All films tell stories. And for the stories to be understood, they must be woven around the basic
film components of theme, plot, characters, language and setting. These components are
discussed in details as follows:
•Theme
The theme is the main or the central idea which the film writer wants to communicate through
the script. This theme could be overtly or covertly presented through dialogue directions,
description of characters and setting. There is need for film critic to comment on the theme of the
film he/she writes on.
•Plot
The plot is story that the scriptwriter tells. More than that, it is the structure, the plan of the story,
the arrangement of the shots, scenes, episodes, incidents, acts and the overall film. It has the
following elements: exposition, conflict, complication, crisis, climax, flashback, point of attack,
suspense etc. every good plot has a beginning, middle and end. A film critic includes, in the
work, a plot, a summary of the film in about a page. He looks at the plausibility or otherwise of
the plot, the sequence and knitting to achieve a synergy.
•Characters
The characters in a film are the characters about which a story is told. They include human
beings, gods, spirits, animals etc. character essentially means character’s idiosyncrasies,
distinctive qualities, desires that he/she exhibits through actions, dialogue, language, and
scriptwriter’s directions. Character can be portrayed or delineated through its external, internal
and objective characteristics (Mgbejume, 2002). The two major characters in a film are the
protagonist (the lead character) and the antagonist (any character that stands against the
protagonist). Others are seen as minor characters.
•Language
This refers to the scriptwriter’s way or method of communicating his/her work to the viewers.
This could come in the following ways: diction, semantic, syntax uses, proverbs, idioms, adages,
symbols, gestures, dialogue, aside, monologue etc. It also concerns or refers to thought,
appreciate choice of words easily spoken of (Duraku, 1997).
•Setting
Film setting refers to the representative of the natural location, locale of the film. It is the habitat
of the characters. Setting has three elements namely:
(a)Physical setting of the script
(b)General significant occurrence, which grows out of a character’s social, moral, and cultural
intercourse within each of the settings and
(c)The atmosphere, which embodies the emotional characteristics of each setting, (Mgbejiume,
2002).
References/Further Reading
Duraku, A.B.C (1997). A handbook on drama and theatre. Owerri: Colon concept
Mgbejiume, O. (2002). Dramatic TV, film and scriptwriting. Jos: Redeemer house publishers.