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16 - The Essay Film

from Part III - Technologies of the Essay

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 October 2022

By
M. Alter Nora
Edited by
Kara Wittman  and
Evan Kindley
Kara Wittman
Affiliation:
Pomona College, California
Evan Kindley
Affiliation:
Pomona College, California
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Summary

This chapter traces the history of the essay film from its origins in D. W. Griffith and Sergei Eisenstein (and theorizations by writers such as Hans Richter and Alexandre Astruc) to its manifestations in contemporary experimental cinema and video art installations such as John Akomfrah’s Vertigo Sea. The author argues that the essay film is uniquely positioned to incorporate and respond to political and social crisis.

Keywords

FilmCinemaEssay FilmMontageDocumentaryVideo ArtSergei EisensteinHans RichterAlexandre AstrucChris Marker
Type
Chapter
Information
The Cambridge Companion to The Essay , pp. 246 - 262
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2022

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  • The Essay Film
  • Edited by Kara Wittman, Pomona College, California, Evan Kindley, Pomona College, California
  • Book: The Cambridge Companion to The Essay
  • Online publication: 27 October 2022
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009022255.017
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  • The Essay Film
  • Edited by Kara Wittman, Pomona College, California, Evan Kindley, Pomona College, California
  • Book: The Cambridge Companion to The Essay
  • Online publication: 27 October 2022
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009022255.017
Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • The Essay Film
  • Edited by Kara Wittman, Pomona College, California, Evan Kindley, Pomona College, California
  • Book: The Cambridge Companion to The Essay
  • Online publication: 27 October 2022
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009022255.017
Available formats
×