Second draft of the dissertation proposal (title)

As I said in the previous post the direction of my dissertation has narrowed somewhat meaning that the title I had previously no longer served its purpose. Therefore I have thought and am satisfied on this new title:

The rise and fall of ‘New Hollywood’: its influence over the depiction of violence in film and alternative broadcasting platforms.

First dissertation tutorial with Chris Hunt

I had my first dissertation tutorial with Chris Hunt today. We discussed my proposal (posted in the previous entry) as I suspected the subject matter was slightly too broad and so we discussed narrow the focus using the first version as the pool from which to choose.

The element that we focused on was the elements about violence. At first I was apprehensive about using this as my focus topic as I was aware that at least two other students are intending on using violence in some degree as their topic. However having gone over the notes made during the tutorial I can understand how I could bring in elements from wider broadcasting than film alone which I was told during my tutorial would be a must to achieve a strong result in a broadcast media students dissertation.

The notes made during the tutorial comprised of:

- The depiction of violence
- How it translates into broadcasting

- The differences between factual and fictional films and programming
- News
- TV shows (fictional)
- Broadcast of films

-Watershed
- Censorship

-Social issues
- develop a debate
- Film violence allows a release of violent instinct

Structure

Introduction

History of violence - in film and broadcasting - development of genre - watershed

Theory - writers of TV/film violence - id/ego/superego

Case study - take genre - or films and/ or TV show - find a connection to current public debate

Conclusion

Dissertation Idea

The rise and fall of ‘New Hollywood’ and its influence over the development of post classical film narrative

This dissertation seeks to explore the reasons behind changes which affected the American film industry and the resultant impact on the way in which film narrative was presented during the post classical period between the 1970’s and the present day.

The paper will be presented with each decade being the subject of a dedicated section, each of which will be sub divided into categories which investigate the principal contributing factors that affected the American film industry and the narrative of the films released during those periods. I intend to explore how the increasingly graphic depiction of violence which emerged in action films such as Dirty Harry (1971), during the 1970’s, sparked controversy but then set a precedent for the action movies of every subsequent decade.

When considering the narrative changes that developed over the forty year period, it is important to ask why, how and by whom these changes were introduced. The collapse of the studio system of the 1950s and 1960 enabled a new kind of director to emerge. The 1970’s directors enjoyed levels of creative freedom greater than anything allowed either before or since. Reasons for this change are both interesting and fundamental and led to the rise in status of the auteur theory and its apparent accuracy. The auteur theory argues that, although a film is the product of the combined efforts of numerous industry professionals, the director or “auteur’s” creative influence and decisions project a clear and seemingly solo vision, bypassing the actuality of studio intrusion. The increases in director’s creative freedom coincided with economic difficulties being experienced in the USA and appear as a recurring reflection of those turbulent times. A powerful example is Martin Scorsese’s Taxi Driver (1976) which provides basis for comparison with later decades, particularly the 1980s when there was a noticeable migration away from an adult target audience to one comprising mainly of teenagers.

The creative freedom generated during the financial slump was ended when films including Michael Cimino’s Heaven’s Gate (1980) financially ruined their promoters. Studios reclaimed control and focussed on fewer, large budget films that were less experimental and more likely to deliver box office success. These 1970’s blockbusters, when combined with the popularity of home videos during the 1980’s, led to the introduction of highly profitable film sequels. An increase in independent cinemas in America during the 1990s provided a platform for creative freedom to a modern breed of directors which enabled films such as Quentin Tarantino’s Reservoir Dogs (1992) to immerge and provide the catalyst for Hollywood to tackle serious topics once again.

Through my dissertation I will consider the impact of social, financial and creative elements on the film industry. Particular emphasis will be placed on the narrative style of films produced during that decade and the development of film narrative between successive decades. I will also investigate how film, arguably the most popular and influential of art forms, finds a way to repeatedly reinvent itself to impress and excite audiences of each new generation. 

The dissertation starts today

I have put a lot of thought into my dissertation and at the beginning of the process I came up with a few very different question ideas. However I think that I have finally managed to narrow my choices down to the final question.

How and why has American cinema developed and altered from the 1970’s to the present day?

Having done some early research into this subject area I feel that there is more than enough to sustain an interesting and well informed dissertation.
 

Elements that I may include:

- the depiction of sex
- the depiction of violence
- the rise of blockbusters
- the financial uncertainties during the 1970’s
- Change in audiences
- Impact of video tape
- altering expectations in genres
- new techniques in film making