Title Image: Materials

This page includes links to resources on course films and directors, definitions of technology, materials on film research, sites on film terminology, guidelines on writing about film, and information on the Seattle film scene.  When you follow the links, the Web sites will open in a new browser window. To return to this page, simply close the new browser window.

Course Films and Directors

Blade Runner (Ridley Scott, 1982)

  • Blade Runner, from Filmsite.org
    Site includes a brief discussion of the theatrical release's reception and the creation of the director's cut, a comparison of the film and Philip K. Dick's source novel, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, and a synopsis punctuated with dialogue quotations (even Deckard's instructions to the Esper machine!).

Brazil (Terry Gilliam, 1985)

  • Brazil: Dreams Facts
    Background on "The Birth of Brazil" and "Gilliam's Inspiration for Brazil" from Dreams: The Terry Gilliam Fanzine.
  • Modernity and Mise-en-Scene: Terry Gilliam and Brazil
    From Images: A Journal of Film and Popular Culture, an examination of how Gilliam's films, particularly Brazil, "move between [optimistic fantasy and pessimistic modernity], parodying the ills of social modernity on one hand and offering the hope of something more meaningful in life on the other."
  • Neil Postman: Technopoly
    Professor Tad Beckman's critique and reading guide to Technopoly helps place the chapter we read within the context of Postman's discussion of technopoly, or technology's redefinition of culture.
  • The Saga of Brazil
    An interview in which Gilliam discusses his approach to directing, the European distribution of Brazil, and the tone of his comedies.
  • Terry Gilliam
    From Senses of Cinema, a biography and analysis of Gilliam's work, particularly Brazil. The site also features a filmography, bibliography of print resources, and links to other useful web sites.
  • What Neil Postman Has to Say
    Author Nancy Kaplan's page of passages from Technopoly, offered as background for her article, "Politexts, Hypertexts, and Other Cultural Formations in the Late Age of Print," provides an overview of Postman's key claims.

Dr. Strangelove (Stanley Kubrick, 1964)

  • Cold War
    A web site produced in concert with CNN's 1998 documentary series, Cold War. The site contains articles on the development of and opposition to the bomb as well as Cold War culture, espionage, and technology. A knowledge bank features a glossary of Cold War terms, a timeline, and declassified documents. A useful site for background information on the period surrounding the film's production.
  • Dr. Strangelove, from Filmsite.org
    Extensive summary with many quotations from the film. If you don't remember the contents of the plane crew's survival pack, this is the site to see.
  • Dr. Strangelove Images and Audio
    Stills, screenshots, and audio of "Mein Fuhrer, I Can Walk!"
  • Dr. Unusualaffection
    An International Relations professor's hilarious treatise on IR scholars and the Cold War illustrated with images from Dr. Strangelove.
  • Just What the Doctor Ordered
    Jeremy Boxen's essay places Dr. Strangelove within the context of the Cold War arms race. A useful example of the types of analyses you can do in your essays.
  • Nuclear Technology Timeline
    From the Global Security Institute, a timeline of developments in nuclear technology from before the 1940s to the 2000s. Includes dates for the U.S.'s first bomb tests in New Mexico, the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the Soviet development of the bomb, the U.S.'s placement of nukes in Europe, the development of the hydrogen bomb, and the Cuban Missile Crisis.
  • Senses of Cinema: Stanley Kubrick
    Keith Uhlich's profile of Kubrick examines the intersection of image and sound throughout Kubrick's work.

The General (Buster Keaton, 1927)

  • Buster Keaton Society
    Web site of the International Buster Keaton Society. The site contains reviews of books on Keaton, a short biography, news clips, interviews, articles, and information on joining the society.

Ghost in the Shell (Mamoru Oishii, 1995)

  • Selections from "A Guide to Ghost in the Shell"
    From the DVD extras, an analysis of the connection between human life and memory, a discussion of whether all humans have become cyborgs, a glossary, information on Project 2501, and a synopsis of life in 2029. Note that you must log on with your UW Net ID to access this resource.

Man with a Movie Camera (Dziga Vertov, 1929)

The Matrix (The Wachowski Brothers, 1999)

  • Baudrillard and Simulation
    Summary and applications of Baudrillard's concept of simulation; written by George Mason University professor Byron Hawk.
  • The End of Humanism
    Stuart Klawans' review of The Matrix, from The Nation.
  • Film Threat Review of The Matrix
    Ron Wells on the film's influences and biblical references.
  • Matrix 2
    Wired article on special effects invented for The Matrix Reloaded. Special effects supervisor John Gaeta also touches on effects used in the first film.
  • The Matrix Cult: A Film Review
    An analysis of the ethical and philosophical systems at work in the film. Author Vladimir Tumanov concentrates on the film's violence, suggesting that Morpheus and the Nebudchadnezzar crew resemble "a modern aggressive, violent cult."
  • The Matrix: The Official Site
    Information on each film in the trilogy; site includes trailers, interviews with cast and crew, film stills and set photos, a description and video illustration of "bullet time," images and story synopses from The Matrix comics, video from The Animatrix, "The Zion Archives" of images and video files, and articles on the film's special effects and philosophy in The Matrix (among them "Wake Up: Gnosticism and Buddhism in The Matrix," "The Matrix as Metaphysics," and "Plato's Cave and The Matrix").
  • Modules on Baudrillard: On Simulation
    Professor Dino Falluga’s online introduction to Baudillard, part of his
    Introductory Guide to Critical Theory.
  • Moebius Baudrillard
    Student web commentary on Baudrillard's Simulacra and Simulation.
  • Short Attention Spawn
    Salon review of the film. Author Andrew O'Hehir concludes that "the Wachowskis have little feeling for character or human interaction, but their passion for movies--for making them, watching them, inhabiting their world--is pure and deep."
  • Simulation Reloaded
    From Cinetext: Film and Philosophy, an analysis of The Matrix from through the lens of Baudrillard's, Plato's, and Deleuze's concepts of simulation.
  • University of Chicago Theories of Media Keyword Glossary
    “Simulation” and “simulacrum” defined.
  • What is the Matrix?: Cinema, Totality, and Topophilia
    From Senses of Cinema, a discussion of intellectual responses to The Matrix.

Modern Times (Charlie Chaplin, 1936)

  • Charlie Chaplin: A World Wide Web Celebration
    This site explores Chaplin's creation of the Little Tramp icon in a series of essays ("Charlie: The Development of an Icon," "The Icon as Shield in the Battle of the Sexes," "Charlie and the Iconic Construction of Class," etc.). The author also includes bibliography of sources as well as a Chaplin filmography and timeline.
  • Chaplin Unleashed
    Site includes biography of Chaplin, synopses of feature-length films, information about current screenings of Chaplin's films and other Chaplin-related events, an image gallery, links to other sites, and a bibliography of books on Chaplin.
  • Modern Times Chaplin Site
    This site offers images and short plot summaries of some of Chaplin's films.

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Definitions of Technology

  • Oxford Companion to United States History
    Online reference work defines the term "technology" and reviews the history of technology in the United States. Note that if you are accessing the page from a non-UW computer, you will have to log on with your UW Net ID and password.

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Film Research

  • AFI Online
    Site of the American Film Institute.
  • American Studies Web
    An essential Internet research tool for American Studies scholars. The site has numerous links to sources on American literature, history, art, material culture (including film), gender studies, performing arts, religion and psychology, legal studies, race and ethnicity, economics, politics and social sciences.
  • Cinemedia
    "The Internet's largest film and media directory," Cinemedia contains links to resources on cinema, directors, organizations, networks, actors, particular films, and research.  Browse the categories to view Cinemedia's 25,000+ links.
  • Deep Focus: A Complete Guide to Motion Pictures
    Information on film history, the development of motion picture technology, directors, and specific films, performers and directors.
  • English Server
    Links to multiple resources in the humanities and social sciences.
  • Film History
    Decade-by-decade overview of historical events, industrial shifts, and emerging genres, with listing of key films from each year of a particular decade.
  • Hollywood and Society
    Essay by Douglas Kellner that explores the film-society connection from the silent period to the contemporary era.
  • Internet Movie Database
    Searchable index of over 125,000 films.  Contains links to biographies of directors, screenwriters, producers and actors; commentaries on individual films; and links to popular film reviews.
  • Movie Review Query Engine

  • Use the query engine to search for Web reviews of particular films.
  • Library of Congress Internet Resources Page

  • Links to U.S. and international research sites on film and filmmakers.
  • Research 101
    This page defines primary and secondary sources, describes the information cycle and offers tips on how to construct search statements, select databases and evaluate sources.
  • Scene to Shining Screen: A Short History of Film Music
    UCLA Professor Paul Chihara's page on changing styles of film composition.
  • UCLA Arts Library Selected Internet Sources on Film

  • Links to sites on directors, actors, studios, unions, electronic journals, film research, festivals, movie reviews, searchable databases, and internet guides to film.
  • UW Libraries Cinema Studies Research Site
    Authored by a cinema studies librarian, the site has information on finding cinema studies resources in the UW libraries and links to electronic journals and cinema studies resources on the Web.
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Film Terminology

  • Film Sound Design
    Site dedicated to film sound includes extensive glossaries of several scholars' descriptions of sound terminology, introductory articles on film sound and the soundtrack, other online articles, and links to sites on film, sound, and film sound.
  • Glossary of Film Terms
    Part of Dartmouth's page on writing about film, the glossary defines key film terms, from "accelerated motion" to "zoom."
  • Reading a Film Sequence
    A short guide on how to to read the text and context of a film.  The page has excellent questions to guide students in their analysis of narrative, staging, cinematography, editing and sound.
  • Sound and Image: Notes for a Glossary
    From the University of Waikato, an online glossary of films terms grouped under the headings "General," "Image," "Sound," "Movement," "Editing," "Ideology," and "Semiotics." The section on images provides screen shots and other graphics to illustrate shot distance, framing, and composition.
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Writing About Film

  • Citing Film, Video, and Online Media
    Information on how to correctly document citations of film, video and online media materials.
  • Dartmouth's Writing About Film Page
    Detailed web site explains expectations for film papers; defines types of papers written for film classes (formal, historical, ideological, cultural studies, auteurist); describes useful strategies for taking film notes, annotating shot sequences, and questioning the film's contexts; provides writing tips; and includes an extensive glossary of film terms. 
  • GMU Writing Center's "Writing About Film" Page
    George Mason's step-by-step guide to writing film analyses.
  • Plagiarism Discussed
    A Purdue Online Writing Lab handout on what can constitute plagiarism, with information on when and when not to cite sources.
  • MLA Citation Guide
    This site not only reviews MLA guidelines for formatting papers, composing a works cited list, and citing books, articles, and electronic sources within your text.
  • Thinking Critically about Discipline-Based Web Resources

  • Authored by UCLA librarian Esther Grassian, this page offers criteria for evaluating discipline-based world wide web sites.  Writers can use Grassian's list to help them decide whether a particular web source is appropiate for an academic research paper.

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Seattle Film Scene

  • Cinema Seattle
    Sponsors of Seattle International Film festival, the Screenwriter's Forum, and The Talking Pictures series. 
  • Northwest Film Forum
    An organization supporting local film, Northwest Film Forum operates The Little Theater and Wigglyworld Studios.  NWFF also curates various Seattle film programs.
  • 911 Media Arts Center 
  • 911 seeks to increase community participation in the media through education programs, equipment access, screenings, and Web-based film distribution.
  • Seattle Film Institute
    Seattle Film Institute concentrates on film, offering courses in Super 8, 16 mm, sync sound, screenwriting, and the language of film.
  • Three-Dollar Bill Cinema

  • Sponsor of the Seattle Gay and Lesbian Film Festival and other events.
  • Wiggly World Studios
    As the Web page states, "WigglyWorld Studios provides a wealth of material, financial and human resources for local filmmakers, including production and post-production equipment, workshops, guest lectures and open screenings." 

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Page last updated 3/5/07
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