Subject Guide: Film Studies: E-books

Documentary Film: A Very Short Introduction takes readers along the diverse paths of documentary history and charts the lively, often fierce debates among filmmakers and scholars about the best ways to represent reality and to tell the truths worth telling. Key subgenres of documentary addressed include public affairs films, government propaganda 
particularly the works produced during World War II
, historical documentaries, and nature films. The thematic approach permits connections between eras, as well as revealing the on-going nature of documentary' core controversies involving objectivity, advocacy, and bias. Interwoven throughout are discussions of the ethical and practical considerations that arise with every aspect of documentary production.

Film: A Very Short Introduction is a brief history and examination of the medium of film, studying its role and impact on society, as well as its future in the digital age. Considered by many to be the most dominant art form of the twentieth century, film is both a means of telling stories through images and sounds, and an instrument of illusion. Drawing on a range of examples from around the world, this VSI considers the paradoxical nature of film as a mass medium and fine art; as technology and fantasy; as documentary and fiction; and as amateur photography and film industry.

Film Music: A Very Short Introduction focuses on the most central issues in the practice of film music. What is film music? How is it composed? How does film music work? The rich and deeply moving sounds of film music are as old as cinema. The very first projected moving images were accompanied by music in many places as a variety of performers — from single piano players to small orchestras — brought images to life. Film music has since become its own industry, an aesthetic platform for expressing creative visions, and a commercial vehicle for growing musical stars of all varieties.

Cinema was the first, and arguably the greatest, of the industrialized art forms that dominated the cultural life of the 20th century. It continues to adapt and grow as new technologies and viewing platforms become available, and remains an integral cultural and aesthetic entertainment experience for people the world over. Cinema developed against the backdrop of the two world wars, and over the years has seen smaller wars, revolutions, and profound social changes, with its history reflecting this. The History of Cinema: A Very Short Introduction looks at the defining moments of the industry, from silent to sound, black and white to colour, and considers its genres from intellectual art house to mass-market entertainment.

Hollywood: A Very Short Introduction tells the story of Hollywood, from its nineteenth-century origins to the emergence of internet media empires. It recounts how the studio system rose out of the ashes of Thomas Edison’s trust to create the handful of companies that have dominated global screens and imaginations for over 100 years. It reveals that the elements taken to be a natural part of the Hollywood experience—stars, genre-driven storytelling, blockbuster franchises—are the product of cultural, political, and commercial forces. The challenges of new technologies, including sound, home video, and computer graphics, are explored and Hollywood’s responses to World War II, independent film movements, and regulations imposed by Washington are also examined.

One film out of every five made anywhere comes from India. From its beginnings under colonial rule through to the heights of Bollywood, Indian cinema has challenged social injustices such as caste, the oppression of Indian women, religious intolerance, rural poverty, and the pressures of life in the burgeoning cities. Indian Cinema: A Very Short Introduction delves into the political, social, and economic factors which have shaped Indian cinema into a fascinating counterculture. Covering everything from silent cinema through to the digital era, it examines how the industry reflects the complexity and variety of Indian society through the dramatic changes of the 20th century, and into the beginnings of the 21st.