The Direct Cinema of David and Albert Maysles

Author:   Jonathan B. Vogels
Publisher:   Southern Illinois University Press
Edition:   New edition
ISBN:  

9780809330096


Pages:   244
Publication Date:   30 August 2010
Format:   Paperback
Availability:   In Print   Availability explained
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The Direct Cinema of David and Albert Maysles


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Overview

Boldly signifying the cultural issues of the 1960s and 1970s in groundbreaking pieces such as Grey Gardens, Gimme Shelter, and Showman, filmmakers and brothers David and Albert Maysles used an approach to documentary film that involved spontaneous observation of naturally occurring events. With no rehearsed footage and no preconceived plots, their revolutionary work eschewed the authoritative voice-over narrator, didactic scripts, and the traditional problem-and-solution format used by the majority of their predecessors in the genre and duly influenced subsequent directors in both fiction and nonfiction film. Their collaboration from 1962 until David’s death in 1987 wrought thirteen major works in which the brothers critiqued the concept of celebrity with unglamorous footage of iconic figures, explored how commercialism hinders communication, and questioned the possibility of seeing anything clearly in a world abounding with both real and constructed images.             Jonathan B. Vogels outlines how the Maysles brothers blended a unique amalgam of direct cinema characteristics, a modern humanist aesthetic, and a collaborative working process that included other directors and editors. Looking at the films as both shapers and reflections of American culture, he points out that the works offer insights into a wide range of contemporary topics including materialism, celebrity, modern art, and the American family. In addition to describing the changes in technology that made direct cinema possible, Vogels provides careful, scene-by-scene analyses that allow for a consideration of the Maysles brothers’ films as films, a tactic not frequently employed in nonfiction film studies.

Full Product Details

Author:   Jonathan B. Vogels
Publisher:   Southern Illinois University Press
Imprint:   Southern Illinois University Press
Edition:   New edition
Dimensions:   Width: 15.20cm , Height: 1.50cm , Length: 22.90cm
Weight:   0.346kg
ISBN:  

9780809330096


ISBN 10:   0809330091
Pages:   244
Publication Date:   30 August 2010
Audience:   College/higher education ,  Professional and scholarly ,  Undergraduate ,  Postgraduate, Research & Scholarly
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   In Print   Availability explained
This item will be ordered in for you from one of our suppliers. Upon receipt, we will promptly dispatch it out to you. For in store availability, please contact us.

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Jonathan B. Vogels is the head of the Upper School at Colorado Academy in Denver. He has written extensively about secondary education, as well as documentary films.

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