Film Research: The Basics Gary Handman

Film Research: The Basics Gary Handman

1.Describes organization of library information 2.Point out some unique aspects of film as a research topic 3.Discuss how to select article databases (and determine what’s in them) 4.Discuss how to develop search strategies

Current Scholarly/In-depth Pop and fan Historical Writing About Film… Industry

Pop periodicals & Newspapers: ReviewsPop periodicals & Newspapers: Reviews Scholarly and professional journalsScholarly and professional journals ReviewsReviews Critical analysis/scholarly writingCritical analysis/scholarly writing BooksBooks From schlocky to scholarlyFrom schlocky to scholarly Biography, genre writing, individual films, individual directorsBiography, genre writing, individual films, individual directors Web Sites (more about this later…)Web Sites (more about this later…) Other online databasesOther online databases Sources for Film & Scholarship and Research

Reviews: Assessment of aesthetic and content merits of a film  Found in popular periodicals, film periodicals, and (less often) in more scholarly journals  In pop periodicals: Current and Historical (older)  Usually cover current releases, more pop theatrical releases  Tend to be relatively short and relatively superficial (with some exceptions and depending on the publication and who’s doing the writing)  Interesting sources of info about audience reception and “current think” Reviews? Critical Writing? What’s the diff?

Reviews? Critical Writing? What’s the Diff? Critical analysis:  Discuss films in:  broader historical, cultural, political, artistic context and/or  Focus on a specific aspect of a film, film genre, or filmmaker  Found in books and scholarly or film-related journals  Tend to be longer, more substantive than reviews (with some exceptions and depending on the publication and who’s doing the writing)  Often include notes, bibliographies, other scholarly apparatus

Robert DeNiro Taxi Driver …But how do you locate this stuff?

The Information Universe Library Catalog(s) Journal/Newspaper Indexes (article databases)

Library Catalog(s)  OskiCat: UCB Library holdings only  MELVYL (CDL cat): All 9 UC Campuses An inventory of what the library owns Search by Author, Title, Subject Whole books and print and electronic journals, NOT what’s inside of those publications

Doherty, Thomas Patrick. Teenagers and teenpics: the juvenilization of American movies in the 1950s Philadelphia : Temple University Press, UCB Main PN U6 D Get da Book in da Stax Call # Look it Up in OskiCat or MELVYL by Author, Title, or Subject Look it Up in OskiCat or MELVYL by Author, Title, or Subject :

Articles/Reviews (how do you find this stuff?) Article databases (aka Indexes) Library subscribes to hundreds of them in all disciplinesLibrary subscribes to hundreds of them in all disciplines Can’t find what’s in them by using GoogleCan’t find what’s in them by using Google Often look/feel/behave differently from each other (proprietary products from diff commercial vendors)Often look/feel/behave differently from each other (proprietary products from diff commercial vendors) Need to come in from berkeley.edu account or use Proxy Server (more later)Need to come in from berkeley.edu account or use Proxy Server (more later)

Try it out!

Two possibilities: Links you to full-text in ANOTHER article databaseLinks you to full-text in ANOTHER article database ANOTHER Or Flips you over to MELVYL so you can locate a physical copy of the journal at UCB or elsewhere.Flips you over to MELVYL so you can locate a physical copy of the journal at UCB or elsewhere.MELVYL

Choosing an Articles database (index) Look at the listings of article databases available via the library includes listings by SUBJECT, NAME, etc. General Databases are often good places to start (particularly for newsy/topical issues) Listings of subject-specific electronic resources

Gary’s Desert Island Index/Article Database List No Now Playing

GH Desert Island Index/Article Database List No Now Playing EBSCO dbs: Academic Search Complete and others MLA Bibliography FIAF Index International Index to the Performing Arts (IIPA)

The Information Universe (Now) But Remember: Not everything is online!!!!!: Article Databases: Generally only go back yrs online (some exceptions – e.g. Historical Newspapers) Not every publication is indexed Fairly small (but rapidly growing) subset of the books and journal universe is currently available in full-text Online is Cool

The Information Universe Remember Also: Not every topic has lots written about it, either in books or journal lit. --Research on very current topics --Research on radically specific topics --Research on topics off the beaten academic track or off the pop culture radar

How to Begin? Before you click: THINK Formulate a concise, concrete statement of the research problem Formulate your search in terms of keywords and key phrases: The impact of television advertising and television violence on school performance and pre-adolesecent social interaction.

How to Begin? Before you click: THINK Think of synonyms for key words/phrases The impact of television advertising and television violence on school performance and pre-adolesecent social interaction. Children Youth Adolescents …etc. Commercials Ads …etc. Academic achievement Grades …etc. Media TV…etc Socialization, relationships, peer interaction…etc.

The Information Universe What to do if nothing is turning up: Tweak your topic: Broaden it / select a different angle Rethink your search strategy (new keywords, new concepts, etc.) Bail out completely and choose another topic

A few cautionary words about research on the Net LibraryLand The Net Google Rocks! Google Scholar google.scholar.com

FilmBibMenu.html a growing listing of bibliographies on various film topics and individual films compiled by MRC (includes bibs for genres, filmmakers, national cinemas, and individual film).

Connecting from off-campus

…being driven over the edge by your research? Call me: Gary Handman Inland Empire Dir, David Lynch, 2006