Films, cinema Books

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Book SynopsisGeoffrey Macnab writes regularly on film for The Independent. He is also a senior correspondent at Screen International. His books include Dennis Davidson: A Life in Cinema (2020), Stairways to Heaven: Rebuilding the British Film Industry (I.B. Tauris, 2018), Ingmar Bergman: The Life and Films of the Last Great European Director (I.B. Tauris 2009), Delivering Dreams: A Century of British Film Distribution (I.B. Tauris 2015), The Making of Taxi Driver, Searching for Stars: Stardom and Screen Acting in British Cinema (I.B. Tauris 2000), Screen Epiphanies (BFI Publishing 2009) and J. Arthur Rank and the British Film Industry(1993). He lives in London, UK.Trade ReviewThis collection succeeds admirably in providing profiles of many individuals who are ‘generally overlooked in conventional histories of British cinema’, thereby making a very useful contribution to that history, illuminating some of its obscurities but also its complexity and variety. * Journal of British Cinema and Television *I grew up devouring books about the business and the people who work in it. They opened my eyes to so many moving parts of the industry and I have always found the career journeys of filmmakers and studio pioneers, VFX wizards, props masters, distributors and publicists as extraordinary as the films they have brought to the big screen. The British Film Industry in 25 Careers is a must-read for anyone planning to work in this industry, revealing the risk-taking decisions, business and creative instincts, entrepreneurial spirit, and passion for film of so many of my heroes and peers. The UK film industry has much to offer the next generation coming into the business and as documentary specialist distributor Andy Whittaker aptly quotes Mancunian broadcaster and music pioneer Tony Wilson in the book, 'We are on this planet for 50 to 100 years - so just do things. Don't let barriers get in your way'. * Ben Roberts, BFI Chief Executive *Geoffrey Macnab’s book is enlightening about many figures we don’t know about who are working in or have worked in cinema. I found the chapter about Betty Box particularly enriching, a trailblazing woman who got equal pay with men from the Rank Organisation in 1954. Read and be amazed! * Jeremy Thomas, film producer, founder and chairman of Recorded Picture Company *Table of ContentsForeword by Andy Leyshon, Chief Executive, Film Distributors Association Acknowledgements Introduction 1. Michael Balcon 2. Richard Attenborough 3. David Puttnam 4. Betty Box 5. John Maxwell 6. Muriel Box 7. Efe Cakarel 8. Mickey Pugh 9. Isaac Julien 10. Adrienne Fancey 11. Poppa Day 12. Alma Reville 13. Val Guest 14. Liz Wrenn 15. Karel Reisz 16. Constance Smith 17. Anthony MInghella 18. Hanif Kureishi 19. Julian Fellowes 20. Eve Gabereau 21. Andy Whittaker 22. Maxine Leonard 23. Amma Asante 24. Julian Richards 25. Tim Webber Conclusion Index

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Book SynopsisPractical, positive and uplifting, the advice in this book is designed to lead to the best outcomes possible for you, the actor, making the transition from craft to career. The reader is given insight into the various types of casting directors across the industry and how that practical knowledge can benefit you and increase your chance of success. While providing an in-depth insight into the role of the casting director, this book explains the jobs of all the other people involved in the casting process including producers, network executives, writers and how they influence casting decisions. As the collected wisdom Merri Sugarman's 20+ years of experience in different aspects of professional casting within television, film and theater, this book is a treasure trove of advice to help the actors and those who support them in their career goals, learn what it takes to be a pro. For those who choose to make their craft a career, it's an invaluable resource.Table of ContentsForeword Introduction: My path from actor to casting director Chapter 1: What exactly does a casting director do? Chapter 2: How to begin Chapter 3: Where to live and why there? Chapter 4: Your two different day jobs Chapter 5: Unions: when it's time to join Chapter 6: Representation and submissions Chapter 7: Pictures, resumes, reels and websites Chapter 8: The self-tape and virtual audition Chapter 9: The casting director and audition process Chapter 10: In the audition room Chapter 11: Auditions: Being prepared Chapter 12: Curious kids Chapter 13: Where do I find the work? Chapter 14: Booking it - or not Chapter 15: The first day of school Chapter 16: Networking Chapter 17: Continuing education Chapter 18: Alternate career path Chapter 19: That's a wrap Chapter 20: Casting in a post-pandemic world Appendix 1: Useful resources Appendix 2: Glossary Index

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Book SynopsisUkrainian Cinema: Belonging and Identity during the Soviet Thaw is the first concentrated study of Ukrainian cinema in English. In particular, historian Joshua First explores the politics and aesthetics of Ukrainian Poetic Cinema during the Soviet 1960s-70s. He argues that film-makers working at the Alexander Dovzhenko Feature Film Studio in Kiev were obsessed with questions of identity and demanded that the Soviet film industry and audiences alike recognize Ukrainian cultural difference. The first two chapters provide the background on how Soviet cinema since Stalin cultivated an exoticised and domesticated image of Ukrainians, along with how the film studio in Kiev attempted to rebuild its reputation during the early Sixties as a centre of the cultural thaw in the USSR. The next two chapters examine Sergei Paradjanov's highly influential Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors (1965) and its role in reorienting the Dovzhenko studio toward the auteurist (some would say elitist) agenda of PoetiTrade ReviewUkrainian Cinema is making a great addition to a still small – but hopefully growing – body of work that will break the pattern which uncritically equates Soviet and Russian cinemas and either "Russifies" or keeps the cinemas of the former republics in the shadow. * CEU Review of Books *Table of ContentsList of Illustrations General Editor's Preface Acknowledgements Note on Transliteration Introduction Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Conclusion Notes Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisIs there a shark movie that is scarier than Jaws? What is the sneaky secret hidden in the Loch Ness monster's name? How did the Gill-man in Creature from the Black Lagoon become a romantic hero? Do mermaids count as sea monsters? What terrifying sea creature was discovered to really exist, and just what on earth is a globster?From Kraken to kaiju, Open Water to The Shallows, monsters of the deep have fascinated and horrified us for centuries. There's even a name for the fear of deep bodies of water: thalassophobia. Humans have a natural fear of predators in the water, and yet we just can't stop thinking about them! There are a lot of deep water monster movies out there; good, bad, strange and so bad it's good'. This book has collected some of the best, worst and most interesting out there to tell you about. If you ever wanted to know your crocodile from your Cthulhu and find out how they make the monsters come alive, whether you like your monsters in the ocean or in lakes, based on r

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Book SynopsisInformation on over 40 of the biggest video game movies!

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Book SynopsisExamines the cinematic strategies that elicit visceral pleasure in the face of content that is crass, politically problematic, or unethicalTrade Review"We find it hard to talk about why we really enjoy movies. We swoon, shiver, laugh, and get aroused. But it can be embarrassing to confess to such responses, and difficult to describe them in words. Aaron Kerner addresses such dilemmas head-on in this brilliant book." -Steven Shaviro, Wayne State University

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Book SynopsisThe first scholarly work to focus on the work of American director and producer, Susan SeidelmanTrade Review"This ground breaking collection on the work of under recognized film and television director Susan Seidelman illustrates both difficulties and the potentialities of centralizing women's desires, voices, and perspectives. By looking broadly at Seidelman's oeuvre, this book deftly categorizes and contextualizes the contributions she has made to the feminist media archive." -Suzanne Leonard, Simmons University

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Book SynopsisUpdates and reapplies film theory to French director Claire Denis's films, with a particular focus on her most recent workTrade Review"This beautifully wide-ranging collection approaches Claire Denis's films through an impressively diverse set of methodologies. Thinking across dimensions of ethics and otherness, the body and its environments, the familial and the worldly, The Films of Claire Denis opens exciting new ways to encounter this rich body of work." -Rosalind Galt, King's College London

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Book SynopsisThe first comprehensive scholarly volume on Kim Ki-young and his films in EnglishTrade Review"This illuminating volume on one of South Korea's most fascinating and eccentric directors provides in-depth readings of Kim's films, while at the same time examining key themes relevant to Korean cinema as a whole: national identity, gender, state control, and Korea's complex relationship with its former colonizer Japan." -Darcy Paquet, author of New Korean Cinema: Breaking the Waves

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Book SynopsisBrings together Film Studies and Artificial Intelligence by exploring their mutual interest in the automation of vision through technology

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a huge range and FREE tracked UK delivery on ALL orders.

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Book Synopsis''Absolutely delicious . . . Janelle Brown is a surgeon of the complex relationships between women. I gobbled this up''Emma Straub, New York Times bestselling author of All Adults Here ''You won''t be able to put this novel down and you won''t want to''Laura Dave, no. 1 New York Times bestselling author of The Last Thing He Told Me ''One of those books you''ll devour''Chris Bohjalian, New York Times bestselling author of The Flight Attendant ''Janelle Brown has done it again. She has created a deliciously twisty page-turner you won''t be able to put down''Angie Kim, Edgar Award-winning author of Miracle Creek''You be me, and I''ll be you'' I whispered.As children, Sam and Elli were two halves of a perfect whole: gorgeous identical twins whose parents sometimes couldn''t even tell them apart. And once Hollywood discovered them, they became BTrade ReviewIn Janelle Brown's latest twisty, propulsive mystery, estranged twin sisters must confront shocking pieces of their past when one of them goes missing. From the first sentence, these women will have you in their grips. You won't be able to put this novel down, and you won't want to * Laura Dave, New York Times bestselling author of The Last Thing He Told Me *Janelle Brown is a terrific storyteller and stylist, and I'll Be You is one of those books you'll devour. It has a hot mess of a narrator - actually two hot messes, twins - both of whom you will root for, even as you are screaming at them to get a grip. Also? The novel has more twists and turns than the canyon roads that snake up and around Los Angeles * Chris Bohjalian, New York Times bestselling author of The Flight Attendant *Janelle Brown has done it again, creating a deliciously twisty page-turner you won't be able to put down. But I'll Be You is much more than a riveting thriller; it's a powerful and moving portrait of the fiercely tenacious bonds of familial love. With her trademark beautiful writing, depth of emotion, and sharp insights, Brown explores the dangers that lurk behind the seductive worlds of Hollywood child stardom and self-help culture. I loved this novel * Angie Kim, Edgar Award–winning author of Miracle Creek *Absolutely delicious . . . Janelle Brown is a surgeon of the complex relationships between women. I gobbled this up * Emma Straub, New York Times bestselling author of All Adults Here *Bestseller Brown infuses this twist-packed mystery with an intense story of creating one's identity, rife with deep family trauma and a low-key, creepy depiction of the dark side of twin intimacy. . . . Brown has upped her game with this one * Publishers Weekly (starred review) *A delicious work of intrigue and suspense . . . You won't want to stop reading until you find out what's happened * Kirkus Reviews *Janelle Brown stands out for her surprise-filled plots, insights into contemporary life and willingness to plumb the depths of family dysfunction . . . [she] consistently keeps readers guessing about her characters . . . I'll Be You becomes less a story about estrangement, guilt and regret and more of an addictive thriller that will keep readers burning through pages to find out what happened. When the narration shifts to Elli's point of view at a critical juncture in the novel, a twist genuinely surprises, as do Brown's insights into the very different psychological makeup, perspective and needs of the missing twin . . . a sneakily hypnotic thriller that turns on how Elli's naïve beliefs have been twisted and whether it's possible for an estranged family to reclaim their lives and futures * Los Angeles Times *Addictive . . . after you've started, hard to stop until it's all gone. Generously sprinkled with witty word choice and tasty twists, I'll Be You is a page-turner . . . the kind to read on the beach and pass the time snacking away on it . . . The choice to go along with whatever wild turn is around the corner is made easier because each one is so interesting and exciting * ABC News *Her twistiest and tightest work yet . . . a cleverly crafted and psychologically nuanced yin and yang, complete with crackling observations about celebrity, California cults, wellness culture, the fertility industry, and the undertow of addiction . . . the book calls to mind a tentpole of the genre, Gillian Flynn's 2012 hit Gone Girl * Time *Pretty Things author Janelle Brown returns with I'll Be You, a taut new thriller * Bustle, The Most Anticipated Books Of April 2022 *

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Book SynopsisFamous for his portrayal of the iconic hardman Grant Mitchell and as the presenter of various documentaries exploring the most dangerous people and places on the planet, BAFTA-winning actor Ross Kemp is one of the UK''s most-loved TV stars. Here, for the first time ever, Ross shares tales from his remarkable life.From a childhood in Essex, most of which was spent in his mum''s hairdressing salon and pretending the fields and streams at the end of his garden were the Amazon rainforest, to finding himself travelling down through the real thing forty years later, Ross''s life has taken many twists and turns.Through it all there''s been no plan, no roadmap, no strategy. Ross has gone from one wild adventure to the next, and never quite felt like he''s fitted in anywhere. These are heart-warming and hilarious stories of the funny, scary, exciting and unbelievable things that have happened along the way. From renting a one room flat that reeked of mould and damp at drama s

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Book SynopsisChosen as a BOOK OF THE YEAR in the Sunday Times, Stylist and Observer''A multifaceted novel that is funny, verbally inventive and moving'' Sunday Times, Book of the Year''In Mercury Pictures Presents . . . the story moves between the real war and the better version Hollywood is busy creating. Sometimes tragic, often hilarious'' KAREN JOY FOWLER, Observer, Books of the Year''Its prose pulses with humour, wit and affection'' Mail on SundayThe epic tale of a brilliant woman who must reinvent herself to survive, moving from Mussolini''s Italy to 1940s Los Angeles-a timeless story of love, deceit, and sacrifice from the award-winning, New York Times bestselling author of A Constellation of Vital PhenomenaLike many before her, Maria Lagana has come to Hollywood to outrun her past. Born in Rome, where every Sunday her father Trade ReviewA smart satiric novel about Hollywood in the 1940s, war, fascism and personal drama -- ISABEL ALLENDE * Daily Mail, Best Reads of 2022 *Crackling with wit and suffused with insight, Anthony Marra's new novel is as epic in sweep as a movie set yet delineates the inner workings of the human heart with a miniaturist's precision. Mercury Pictures Presents explores the endless give-and-take between life and art, the cost of integrity, and the ways we must make peace with the past in order to move forward toward the future . . . A genuinely moving and life-affirming novel that's a true joy to read -- CELESTE NGSmart, heartfelt, and sneaky funny, Mercury Pictures Presents has all the breadth and power of an epic, and the attention to detail of an intimate conversation. I read it in a state of admiration for the beauty Anthony Marra has wrung from the English language -- SARA NOVIC, author of GIRL AT WAR and TRUE BIZA novel so rich and wondrous, written with such grace and wit, that there's only one word for Anthony Marra: a genius -- SALLY MANN, author of HOLD STILL, finalist for the National Book AwardAchingly beautiful . . . You laugh, then you sigh, then you weep. Extraordinary -- LUIS URREA, bestselling author THE DEVIL'S HIGHWAY and THE HUMMINGBIRD'S DAUGHTERMercury Pictures Presents is a wonder - intimate and sweeping, heartfelt and satirical, one of the funniest and most moving novels I've read in a long time. A novel of fascism, war, and refugees finding freedom through art and storytelling, it's both a joy to read and highly relevant to our times -- JESS WALTER, #1 New York Times bestselling author of BEAUTIFUL RUINS and THE ANGEL OF ROMEMarra brings his considerable gifts for scope and scene to early Hollywood, animating, as he does so thrillingly, the city, the players, the war, and the repercussions of small and huge actions on families, fates, countries, and film. And: this fully-realized world is also really funny! I laughed aloud many times, even as I marveled -- AIMEE BENDER, author of THE PARTICULAR SADNESS OF LEMON CAKEAnthony Marra is a writer of boundless talent: he is a top-notch historian, a razor-sharp social critic, a deeply sensitive psychologist, and an exuberant satirist - all at the same time . . . A singularly pleasurable read - smart, sad, hilarious, and always full of heart -- NATHAN HILL, bestselling author of THE NIXIt is impossible to do justice to Marra's smooth, sweeping style in bits - viewed in isolation, such descriptions could easily seem overwrought and clumsy - but knit together, these pieces have striking command and authority * International New York Times *The author's fans will recognize his elegant resolution of tangled disasters, his heartbreaking poignancy, his eye for historical curiosities that exceed the parameters of fiction... Marra unspools this period comedy with so much old-time snappy wit that Mercury Pictures Presents should come with popcorn and a 78-ounce Coke * Washington Post *You'll laugh, you'll cry in the marvelous 'Mercury Pictures Presents' about 1940s Hollywood * San Francisco Chronicle *Summer is a time for blockbusters and Anthony Marra has delivered the goods with Mercury Pictures Presents, a sweeping book about 1940s Hollywood, Mussolini's Italy and America's entry into the second world war . . . a deft and convincing writer with a sharp turn of phrase and a dark sense of humour that ignites every page... [It] will win him committed new fans and, if there is any literary justice, prizes * Spectator *Its inventive prose pulses with humour, wit and affection * Mail on Sunday *Marra's glowing prose brings the intricate story to life, and his chapter-and-verse world-building will thrill Golden Age devotees * Sight and Sound *A bravura work and a real thrill-ride * The Crack Magazine *Funny, verbally inventive and, ultimately, very moving, Mercury Pictures Presents is a wonderful novel * Sunday Times, Historical Fiction Book of the Month *An excellent holiday read -- TOM SUTCLIFFE * BBC Radio 4 Front Row *The success of Mercury Pictures Presents, both the novel and the Hollywood entity it depicts, is evanescent and ambiguous, enduring and clear all at once. Whether Artie, the showman, and Maria, the book's historical anchor and ethical conscience, will survive is one question, but the ideas posed by Marra's novel assuredly do, and they resonate all the more strongly through our own contemporary, distressingly fascist-adjacent, moment * New York Times *The story moves between the real war and the better version Hollywood is busy creating. Sometimes tragic, often hilarious -- Karen Joy Fowler * Observer *

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Book SynopsisExcellent and entertaining advice for aspiring directors from a veteran Sundance programmer.

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Book SynopsisA biography, reissued to coincide with the twentieth anniversary of her death.Trade Review'An extraordinary life of an extraordinary woman ... Gardner's genius was not her work, but, as this book proves, her life' Observer 'Server gets movie stars, and he gets movies ... That's quite a trick for a biographer to pull off - both to immerse himself in his subjects, yet make them utterly his own' Sunday Times

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Book SynopsisJohn Buchan's name is known across the world for The Thirty-Nine Steps. In the past one hundred years the classic thriller has never been out of print and has inspired numerous adaptations for film, television, radio and stage, beginning with the celebrated version by Alfred Hitchcock. Yet there was vastly more to JB'. He wrote more than a hundred books fiction and non-fiction and a thousand articles for newspapers and magazines. He was a scholar, antiquarian, barrister, colonial administrator, journal editor, literary critic, publisher, war correspondent, director of wartime propaganda, member of parliament and imperial proconsul given a state funeral when he died, a deeply admired and loved Governor-General of Canada.His teenage years in Glasgow's Gorbals, where his father was the Free Church minister, contributed to his ease with shepherds and ambassadors, fur-trappers and prime ministers. His improbable marriage to a member of the aristocratic Grosvenor family means that Trade Review[An] outstanding biography ... Though factual, it reads like a big, rambling Victorian novel, and takes you, as novels do, into other people’s lives -- John Cary * Sunday Times *Page-turning, buccaneering stuff -- Laura Freeman * The Times *Apart from Buchan’s relentless work ethic, what shines forth from these pages is his generosity of spirit … Ursula Buchan shows a similar generosity of spirit in this wonderfully fluent biography -- Justin Marozzi * Financial Times *Excellent … [Ursula Buchan] gives us a strong sense of both the man and his milieu -- Allan Massie * Spectator *John Buchan was a writer of considerable significance but he was also a man who led a remarkable public life. This magnificent biography leads us through that life with great style and understanding -- Alexander McCall SmithDrawing on recently discovered family documents, this fascinating biography grants us the fullest picture of Buchan and his public and private life that we have ever had. Perhaps it will inspire some overdue screen adaptations of the ‘rollicking adventure stories’ of this most visual of novelists * Country Life *The great strength of this book is to make Buchan not just the writer of “shockers”, but a man whose influence helped change government policy … Ursula Buchan has done an admirable piece of work … She rightly puts his faith at the centre of the book and this lays a line towards a reimagination of Buchan -- Stuart Kelly * i *Buchan’s thrillers exploited contemporary events (and anxieties) which made them extensions of his political life. Both are integral to this excellent book in which Ursula Buchan has balanced her grandfather’s public and literary achievements with his family life and internal tensions. He emerges as a thoroughly decent man and she as a brilliant biographer * Standpoint *[An] exemplary, diligent biography -- William Boyd * New Statesman *

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Book SynopsisAn illustrated overview of writer/director/animator Mamoru Hosoda’s Academy Award–nominated movies and career, including previously unpublished storyboards, background paintings, character designs, and concept artForeword by Don Hahn Journey into the mind and creative process of one of the most celebrated anime directors working today with The Man Who Leapt Through Film: The Art of Mamoru Hosoda. Written by renowned animation critic and historian Charles Solomon (The Art of WolfWalkers) and featuring exclusive interviews alongside hundreds of never-before-seen sketches, storyboards, background paintings, character designs, and concept art, this is the ultimate companion piece to Hosoda’s work. Writer/director/animator Mamoru Hosoda’s work includes Belle (2021), the Academy Award–nominated Mirai (2018); The Boy and the Beast (2015); Wolf Children (2012); Summer Wa

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Book Synopsis The first and only authorized guide to The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel brings fans behind the scenes with the writers and onto the set with the actors to unpack every season of this Emmy-winning television series The authorized companion to the Emmy-winning Amazon drama The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, a show chronicling the adventures (and misadventures) of Midge Maisel in her transformation from fifties housewife to standup comedian. The series starred Rachel Brosnahan and remains beloved for its humor, vibrancy, and portrayal of a woman fighting the odds and the prevailing culture to gain success. The book covers all five seasons of the show and captures its colorful and authentically vintage atmosphere. Featuring conversations with show creators Amy Sherman-Palladino and Daniel Palladino, and insights from show stars Alex Borstein, Luke Kirby, and Stephanie Hsu, this is a deep dive that includes script extracts, production details, thoughtful a

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Book SynopsisThis groundbreaking volume for the Thinking Cinema series focuses on the extent to which contemporary cinema contributes to political and philosophical thinking about the future of Europe''s core Enlightenment values. In light of the challenges of globalization, multi-cultural communities and post-nation state democracy, the book interrogates the borders of ethics and politics and roots itself in debates about post-secular, post-Enlightenment philosophy. By defining a cinema that knows that it is no longer a competitor to Hollywood (i.e. the classic self-other construction), Elsaesser also thinks past the kind of self-exoticism or auto-ethnography that is the perpetual temptation of such a co-produced, multi-platform ''national cinema as world cinema''. Discussing key filmmakers and philosophers, like: Claire Denis and Jean-Luc Nancy; Aki Kaurismäki, abjection and Julia Kristeva; Michael Haneke, the paradoxes of Christianity and Slavoj Zizek; Fatih Akin, Alain Badiou and JacquesTrade ReviewAccessible and rigorous, brimming with indispensable insights for students, scholars, and readers of film studies, continental philosophy, visual culture, and media theory ... It is a rare pleasure to read a work of film-philosophy that so carefully balances textual hermeneutics and political deconstructions. * Alphaville: Journal of Film and Screen Media *Constitutes an interdisciplinary epistemological and philosophical map, a challenging and precious tool to register, draw and address the complex socio-political dynamics of our time with a critical and experimental spirit ... [An] essential text (a must read for these dangerous times). * New Review of Film and Television Studies *Not only a rich exploration of the relationship between film and philosophy, European Cinema and Continental Philosophy makes a timely claim on the stakes of thinking Europe today. Elsaesser provides a new and urgently needed framework for grappling with the contemporary conditions of European politics and film culture. * Rosalind Galt, Professor of Film Studies, King’s College London, UK *Elsaesser argues for a contemporary European cinema of openness and multiplicity, for a cinema that foregrounds autonomy and liberation. These arguments are backed up by an impressive account of contemporary European philosophy and its influences on cinematic thought. Elsaesser develops the key notions of a ‘cinema of abjection’ and ‘post-heroic narratives’ and, as a result, he charts an impressive map of European cinema and a European politics to come. * Richard Rushton, Senior Lecturer in Film Studies, Lancaster University, UK *European Cinema and Continental Philosophy offers an important and deeply engaging reappraisal of the status of European cinema at a moment of apparent crisis. There is both defiance and brilliance in the way that Elsaesser, situating cinema in its wider philosophical, political, social, and cultural contexts, seizes upon its perceived marginality and irrelevance as the key to its strength, and presents the widespread “abjection” he identifies, as evidence of creative freedom and the embodiment of Europe’s core Enlightenment values. This volume combines daring originality with the impressive scholarship we have come to expect from Thomas Elsaesser. It is a work of major significance which will have a profound impact upon contemporary and future film studies. * Wendy Everett, Professor Emeritus, University of Bath, UK *Table of ContentsTable of Contents Chapter 1: European Cinema into the 21st Century: Enlarging the Context? Chapter 2: Film as Thought: The ‘Film and Philosophy’ Debate Chapter 3: Film as Thought Experiment Chapter 4: “Europe” – A Thought Experiment Chapter 5: A Cinema of Abjection? Chapter 6: Post-heroic Narratives and the Community-to-Come Chapter 7: Claire Denis, Jean-Luc Nancy and Beau Travail Chapter 8: Hitting Bottom: Aki Kaurismäki and the Abject Subject: The Man Without A Past Chapter 9: “Experimenting with Death in Life” Fatih Akin and the Ethical Turn Chapter 10: Black Suns and a Bright Planet: Lars von Trier’s Melancholia as Thought Experiment Chapter 11: Anatomy Lesson of A Vanished Country: Christian Petzold’s Barbara Chapter 12: Control, Creative Constraints and Self Contradiction: The Global Auteur Bibliography Filmography Index

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Book Synopsis''It''s very easy to kill - so long as no one suspects you.'' So says Miss Pinkerton when ex-policeman Luke Fitzwilliam meets her on a train. Luke doesn''t take much notice of this little old lady''s story about a serial killer on the loose in her village - until her predictions start to come true, when he feels compelled to check it out. Very soon the race is on to prevent any more murders... Dramatised by Joy Wilkinson, and with a distinguished cast including Patrick Baladi, Lydia Leonard, Michael Cochrane and Marcia Warren, this is a gripping BBC Radio dramatisation of one of Agatha Christie''s most ingenious detective stories.2 CDs. 1 hr 30 mins.

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Book Synopsis______________First published in 1977, A Postillion Struck by Lightning is volume one of Dirk Bogarde's best-selling memoirs.Following Bogarde from childhood through adolescence, to the beginnings of his budding career, A Postillion Struck by Lightning is a heartfelt memoir, offering insight into what created the drive and charisma that eventually made him a star. Dreamy, sun-soaked summers full of freedom spent with his younger sister are mixed with holidays in France and rambling the countryside.Writing plays instead of playing sports, Dirk's talents lay in the creativity of painting and expression rather than in the precision of maths or science, much to the growing concern of his parents. Packed off to live with relatives in Scotland, his father hoped that a proper Scottish education would equip his son to follow in his footsteps for a career in Newspapers.In Scotland, Dirk learned to defend himself, to sound like a native Glaswegian, and to hide his intTable of ContentsPreface Summer Winter Illustrations A Note on the Author

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Book SynopsisWhilst sightseeing in Paris, 1979, the Doctor and Romana notice a series of unexplained temporal disturbances. When a visit to the Louvre lands them in hot water, they realise that a certain Count Scarlioni knows more about advanced technology than a 20th Century Parisian should. With British detective Duggan in tow, the time travellers become embroiled in an audacious plot to steal the Mona Lisa and sell it on the open market. Not only that, but Count Scarlioni appears to have more da Vinci masterpieces at his disposal - each one apparently genuine. What time experiment is Scarlioni forcing a genius professor to undertake? What is behind his suave persona, and what are his plans for not only Paris but the whole world? The Doctor and his friends must discover the answers before time itself runs out. Lalla Ward narrates this classic TV adventure, and in an exclusive bonus interview she recalls her time as Romana in the BBC TV series.2 CDs. 1 hr 58 mins.

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Book SynopsisExam Board: AQA, Edexcel & EduqasLevel: AS/A-levelSubject: Modern LanguagesFirst Teaching: September 2016First Exam: June 2017Film analysis made easy. Build your students'' confidence in their language abilities and help them develop the skills needed to critique their chosen work: putting it into context, understanding the themes and director''s technique, as well as specialist terminology.Breaking down each scene, character and theme in Au revoir les enfants (Goodbye, Children), this accessible guide will enable your students to understand the historical and social context of the film and give them the critical and language skills needed to write a successful essay.- Strengthen language skills with relevant grammar, vocab and writing exercises throughout- Aim for top marks by building a bank of textual examples and quotes to enhance exam response- Build confidence with kn

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Book SynopsisGeorge Lucas by Brian Jay Jones is the first comprehensive telling of the story of the iconic filmmaker and the building of his film empire, as well as of his enormous impact on cinema. At once a biography, a business manual, and a film history, George Lucas will, for the first time explore the life and work of a fiercely independent writer/director/producer who became one of the most influential filmmakers and cultural icons - a true game changer.On May 25, 1977, a problem-plagued, budget-straining, independent science fiction film opened in a mere thirty-two American movie theatres. Its distributor - 20th Century Fox - were baffled by the film. The film''s production had been a disaster from nearly day one, hampered by bad weather, malfunctioning props and ill-fitting costumes. But its release on a quiet Wednesday in May of 1977, changed cinema forever. The film was Star Wars.The fiercely independent thirty-three year-old George Lucas was just Trade ReviewMasterful and engaging: just what Lucas' fans and buffs, who love the nitty-gritty of filmmaking, have been waiting for. * Kirkus Reviews *George Lucas is a terrific book! Brian Jay Jones has pulled off the rare trick of a writing a biography that appeals to both hard-core fans and casual readers. It is filled with fascinating details, backed up by deep and dogged research, woven into a breezy, fast-paced story that effortlessly pulls the reader into Lucas's world. Future film buffs and historians will look back on George Lucas as a landmark achievement. * Debby Applegate, Winner of the 2007 Pulitzer Prize for The Most Famous Man in America: The Biography of Henry Ward Beecher *Like the famous opening shot of the very first Star Wars, George Lucas: A Life is sweeping, humbling, and instantly transports you into the world of the mad dreamer. Fellow nerds unite! Finally, we get a book that examines the history of a titan who really changed our lives. Beautifully obsessive and relishes every detail. Just like us. * Brad Meltzer *Maestro biographer Jones tackles another brilliant entertainer. The world knows George Lucas as the filmmaker who brought us Star Wars, one of the most iconic Hollywood franchises in history, but as Jones' in-depth, fascinating, and even gripping exploration reveals, Lucas is much more than a gifted storyteller... Jones digs deep to limn the highs and lows of Lucas' career and life, capturing his drive and innovation in crisp, sparkling prose. Masterful and essential for film and pop culture enthusiasts. * Booklist *The collective double take over Star Was never gets old... Jones, who comes to Lucas from a celebrated life of Jim Henson, tells a more straightforward story in definitive detail. * New York Times *Exhaustively chronicles the life and movies of George Lucas, arguably America's most successful filmmaker. Tells in granular detail how his films were produced: from initial concept and scriptwriting, to casting and location selections, to the filming and, most importantly for Lucas's process, the editing. Proves Lucas's singular legacy is well deserved. * Publishers Weekly *Engaging... Jones captures the bone-crushing work, the frustrations with film studio overlords and the near failures that resulted in ground-breaking films like American Graffiti and Star Wars * Jane Ciabattari, BBC *The most compelling part of Brian Jay Jones' very readable book covers the years in which this kid went from a provincial, and nearly rural, childhood to studying illustration and going to film school at the University of Southern California.... [Jones'] narrative of the ordeal [of making Star Wars] and triumph makes wonderful reading.... Jones is a good storyteller... he proves that an American billionaire can be an odd, brilliant but quite ordinary fellow. * San Francisco Chronicle *Lucas changed not only the way movies are made but even the way they are shown... Jones mines the literature on Lucas's life and work to produce an admirably comprehensive view. * Washington Post *A fast-paced portrait of the reclusive and visionary George Lucas. His rise from unknown, budget-stretched writer to film industry legend is all here. And it's told through anecdotes and insights that build out the man behind the creation. The perspectives from colleagues, competitors, mentors and friends are at times brutally honest.... It's the one biography for casual and die-hard fans alike. * Rolling Stone *

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Book Synopsis An unpretentious guide for all those who want to learn to analyse, understand and evaluate films.Film Studies: An Introduction provides an overview of the key areas in film studies, including aesthetics, narrative, genre, documentary films and the secrets of film reviewing. From Hitchcock and Tarantino to Spielberg and Bigelow, you will gain a critical understanding of legendary directors and the techniques and skills that are used to achieve cinematic effects. Whether you are a film studies student or just a film buff wanting to know more, this book will give you an invaluable insight into the exciting and incredibly fast-moving world of film.Understand Film Studies includes:Chapter 1: Film aesthetics: formalism and realismChapter 2: Film structure: narrative and narrationChapter 3: Film authorship: the director as auteurChapter 4: Film genres: defining the typical filmChapter 5: The non-fiction film: five types of documentaryChapTrade Review'Buckland's pocket-sized volume represents a breakthrough: it's genuinely pitched at novices and succeeds in maintaining a perfect balance between clarity and intellectual complexity' Sight and Sound

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Book SynopsisThis is the fully-researched account of the historical and contemporary development of the traditional martial arts genre in the Chinese cinema known as wuxia. The book unveils rich layers of the wuxia tradition as it developed in early Shanghai cinema in the late 1920s, and from the 1950s onwards, in the Hong Kong and Taiwan film industries.Table of ContentsPart I: History and Development: 1. Introduction; 2. Wuxia from Literature to Cinema; 3. Reactions against the Wuxia Genre; 4. The Wuxio Genre Shifts Ground; 5. The Rise of Kung Fu, from Wong Fei-hung to Bruce Lee; Part II: The New School and Beyond: 6. The Rise of New School Wuxia; 7. The Wuxia Films of King Hu; 8. A Touch of Zen and the Moral Dilemma of the Female Knight-Errant; 9. Wuxio after A Touch of Zen; 10. Wuxia between Nationalism and Transnationalism; Glossary; Filmography; Works Cited.

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Book SynopsisWorld Cinema and the Essay Film examines the ways in which essay film practices are deployed by non-Western filmmakers in specific local and national contexts, in an interconnected world.

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Book SynopsisChallenging assumptions around Sixties stardom, the book focuses on creative collaboration and the contribution of production personnel beyond the director, and discusses how cultural change is reflected in both film style and cinematic themes.

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Book SynopsisThis is the first English-language study of internationally acclaimed Portuguese filmmaker Pedro Costa, examining the cultural, production and exhibition contexts of his feature films, shorts and video installations.

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Book SynopsisProvides the first scholarly examination of Finnish studio systemTrade Review"This fascinating book makes a crucial contribution to anglophone scholarship on Finnish cinema, and resonates as a rich case study in the cinema of small nations. Examining how majors, minors and independents operated and competed in the Finnish 'Studio System', Kimmo Laine explores the particularities of mid-20th-century Finnish film culture, stars, audiences, and genres." -C. Claire Thomson, University College London

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Book SynopsisDemonstrates how and why the transnational figure of the vampire was appropriated by Italian genre filmmakers between 1956 and 1975

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Book SynopsisRepresents the first comprehensive reconstruction of Italian women's film cultures of the 1960s and '70s.Trade Review"This passionate and imaginative engagement with the 'archival turn' breathes new life into cultural history. Weaving a brilliant dialogue between a very wide range of theories and archival sources, Missero's refreshing methodological intervention demonstrates both the tenacity of male privilege and the existence of a feminist film culture as a form of precarious collectivity in postwar Italian film history." -Danielle Hipkins, University of Exeter

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Book SynopsisPost-Horror is the first full-length study of one of the most important and divisive movements in twenty-first-century horror cinema.Trade Review"This book is indispensable for both academic researchers and film critics as well as genre fans who strive to understand the finer workings of this new cycle in horror cinema." -Sandra Aline Wagner, University of Limerick

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Book SynopsisBlood in the Streets investigates the various ways in which 1970s Italian crime films were embedded in their immediate cultural and political contexts.

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Book SynopsisExamines Thai horror film and the central role this genre plays in Thailand's film industry

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Book SynopsisTaiwan New Cinema (first wave, 1982?1989; second wave, 1990 onward) has a unique history regarding film festivals, particularly in the way these films are circulated at major European film festivals. It shares a common formalist concern about cinematic modernism with its Western counterparts, departing from previous modes of filmmaking that were preoccupied with nostalgically romanticizing China?s image. Through utilising in-depth case studies of films by Taiwan-based directors: Tsai Ming-liang, Zhao Deyin and Hou Hsiao-hsien, Tsai discusses how Taiwan New Cinema represents a struggling configuration of the ?nation?, brought forth by Taiwan?s multilayered colonial and postcolonial histories. Taiwan New Cinema at Film Festivals presents the conditions that have led to the production of a national cinema, branding the auteur, and examines shifting representations of cultural identity in the context of globalization.

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Book SynopsisFor nearly ninety years, Hollywood''s brightest stars have favoured the Chateau Marmont as a home away from home. Filled with deep secrets but hidden in plain sight, its evolution parallels the growth of Hollywood itself. Perched above the Sunset Strip like a fairy-tale castle, the Chateau seems to come from another world entirely. An apartment-house-turned-hotel, it has been the backdrop for generations of gossip and folklore: 1930s bombshell Jean Harlow took lovers during her third honeymoon there; director Nicholas Ray slept with his sixteen-year-old Rebel Without a Cause star Natalie Wood; Anthony Perkins and Tab Hunter met poolside and began a secret affair; Jim Morrison swung from the balconies, once nearly falling to his death; John Belushi suffered a fatal overdose in a private bungalow; Lindsay Lohan got the boot after racking up nearly $50,000 in charges in less than two months. Much of what''s happened inside the Chateau''s walls has eluded the publTrade ReviewFascinating, dishy, and glimmering with insight, THE CASTLE ON SUNSET is a must-read for anyone interested in the rich and racy history of Tinseltown. Shawn Levy's entertaining and deeply researched biography of a building chronicles experiences both glamorous and sordid, historical and contemporary. This is the definitive book about Hollywood's most storied hotel -- Cheryl Strayed, author of WILD: A JOURNEY FROM LOST TO FOUNDChateau Marmont in West Hollywood is unquestionably one of the most dauntingly glamorous hotels in the world [and this book is] an exuberant record of its life and times . . . Levy's pages teem with extraordinary and extreme personalities -- Simon Callow * THE SUNDAY TIMES *I felt like I was sneaking around the hallways of the Chateau after midnight and peering through keyholes in history . . . Lovingly researched and wonderfully dishy -- Joe Hagan, author of STICKY FINGERS: THE LIFE AND TIMES OF JANN WENNER AND ROLLING STONE MAGAZINEI want to live inside this book! -- Taylor Jenkins Reid, author of DAISY JONES & THE SIXAs elegant and naughty as the hotel's guests . . . tells a secret history of American film, fame and decadence. It's a spellbinding read -- Peter Ames Carlin, author of HOMEWARD BOUND: THE LIFE OF PAUL SIMONA fabulously fizzy account * VANITY FAIR *A fascinating exposé of wild nights and celebrity scandals at Hollywood's iconic hotel * GRAZIA *An irresistible, deliciously dishy deep-dive . . . told in prose so witty and alive, you feel you're sitting at the bar with Dominick Dunne. This is a book worthy of its glamorous, alluring subject -- Wednesday Martin, author of PRIMATES OF PARK AVENUE: A MEMOIRHollywood and Beverly Hills were separated by two miles of unpaved road when the Chateau Marmont - modelled on a Loire Valley castle by its owner Fred Horowitz - was completed in 1929. Levy's witty, intimate account describes how the flowering of hotspots on the Sunset Strip beginning in the 1930s made the Marmont a show-business magnet -- Jane Ciabattari, BBC Culture

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Book Synopsis In an era of reboots, restarts and retreads, J.J. Abrams'' Star Trek trilogy--featuring new, prequel adventures of Kirk, Spock and the rest of the original series characters, aboard the USS Enterprise--has brought the franchise to a new generation and perfected a process that is increasingly central to entertainment media: reinvigorating the beloved classic. This collection of new essays offers the first in-depth analysis of the new trilogy and the vision of the next generation of Star Trek film-makers. Issues of gender, race, politics, economics, technology and morality--always key themes of the franchise--are explored in the 21st century context of The Kelvin Timeline.

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Book Synopsis Mary Nolan (1905-1948), also known as Imogene Bubbles Wilson, was the subject of two infamous court cases--one with Frank Tinney and the other with Eddie Mannix--in the 1920s. Like many Ziegfeld Follies girls, she had the beginnings of a promising career, but by the 1930s it had been destroyed by adultery, drugs and physical abuse. This biography follows Nolan''s life from the backwoods of Kentucky to her death in 1948. Included is a series of newspaper articles published in 1941 that were to be expanded into her memoir, which she was unable to complete before her death.

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Book Synopsis Aliens: They have taken the form of immigrants, invaders, lovers, heroes, cute creatures that want our candy or monsters that want our flesh. For more than a century, movies and television shows have speculated about the form and motives of alien life forms. Movies first dipped their toe into the genre in the 1940s with Superman cartoons and the big screen''s first story of alien invasion (1945''s The Purple Monster Strikes). More aliens landed in the 1950s science fiction movie boom, followed by more television appearances (The Invaders, My Favorite Martian) in the 1960s. Extraterrestrials have been on-screen mainstays ever since. This book examines various types of the on-screen alien visitor story, featuring a liberal array of alien types, designs and motives. Each chapter spotlights a specific film or TV series, offering comparative analyses and detailing the tropes, themes and cliches and how they have evolved over time. Highlighted subjects include

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Book Synopsis The ground has shifted from the days in which serious history and boring went hand in glove. Textbooks and lectures have their place, but less traditional classrooms can be powerfully immersive and insightful. Take the 1929 Marx Brothers film The Cocoanuts and what it teaches about both the Great Depression and early sound films. The Marx Brothers are among the funniest comedy teams of all time. Four of their 13 films are on the American Film Institute''s list of the 100 greatest American comedies ever made. For many contemporary viewers, though, getting the jokes is not always easy because the humor can be subjective and timebound. This work looks at the American past through the lens of the Marx Brothers'' films and other projects. Each of the chapters focuses on a specific film, contextualizing the world at the time and how the Marx Brothers lampooned those subjects. Along the way, the book demonstrates what the Marx Brothers revealed about weighty topics like

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a huge range and FREE tracked UK delivery on ALL orders.

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a huge range and FREE tracked UK delivery on ALL orders.

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