Evaluation
To produce my French New Wave essay I had to do large amounts of research on why it had such an effect on cinema. I started by researching the key individuals who went from writing reviews for the film magazine 'Cahiers Du Cinema'. Godard, Truffaut, Chabrol and Rivette all shared a vital role in the New Wave as they decided to go from writing about films, to directing them. I then watched a few of the most famous texts from the New Wave. This included the likes of Godard's 'Breathless' (A Bout De Souffle) and Truffaut's 400 Blows (Les 400 Coups).
For my video essay I decided to really go into depth with how the French New Wave started in a country that was seriously lacking real entertainment. Therefore the first half of my essay solely focuses on France during the start of the New Wave and how the individuals who were part of it, went on to make a large impact in later cinema. I have tried to find footage and pictures of France during the 1950's and 60's whilst the voiceover describes life during those times, to show how cinema was a vital part of culture damaged, post-war France. Once I felt that I had gone into detail on the culture at the time, I began to one by one, explain how each of the Cahiers critics went from writing about films to actually making them. To do this I had to find lots of images of the likes of Truffaut, Godard, Chabrol and Rivette whilst they were making these New Wave films. I was able to find useful footage of each of them participating in interviews. I then placed the focus of the essay on Godard's 'Breathless' and Truffaut's '400 Blows' as I began to go into detail about the changes that the New Wave brought to cinema. Along with the voiceover explaining the commonly used features during the New Wave, I used examples of footage and stills from both of the films so the viewer of my essay can visually recognise the conventions that the French New Wave consisted of. I then finished off my essay by explaining the effect that the French New Wave has had on today's cinema. For example, as Quentin Tarantino is inspired by the New Wave and specifically Godard, it is said that 'Pulp Fiction' is inspired by 'Breathless', so therefore accompanying my voiceover are clips from films such as Pulp Fiction.
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