Gary Handman Doing Law in the Dark, Or: Popcorn and Hot Buttered Torts

Gary Handman Doing Law in the Dark, Or: Popcorn and Hot Buttered Torts

Doing Law in the Dark, Or: Popcorn and Hot Buttered Torts Who Killed Cock Robbin (Walt Disney, 1935)

1.(Briefly!) discuss the differences between film genres (documentaries and fictional films) 2.Describe the types of writing and research about film, both fiction and non-fiction books journal articles 3.Introduce selected sources for finding books and journal articles about film in film studies & related disciplines 4.Discuss strategies for doing research

Ingrid, my dear, it’s only a movie! …but a movie is never “only a movie” All films are social constructs and cultural “texts” All films are “documentary” in one way or another (Bill Nichols) Records of the pro-film event Documentaries of Wish Fulfillment (MOOOVIES) Documentaries of Social Representation

The earliest law “docu-drama”? Georges Méliès. Dreyfus: The Court Martial at Rennes (1899)

Law and Documentaries of Wish Fulfillment (The Movies!) The legal process (and lawyers) as grist for high drama and melodrama…the stuff of engaging cinema Lawyers as archetypes: heroes and scoundrels in control of the destiny of their clients. Continuation of realist literary traditions of 19 th Century Rich topic for parody Allows us to be spectators in a process often closed and/or mysterious to the public at large. Documentaries of Social Representation as Judicial Arguments (Documentaries) Many/most documentaries are structurally and rhetorically similar to legal pleading and the legal process (regardless of the topic) Interrogation or prosecution of individuals, events, socio-political conditions Seeking revelation, justice, redress Evidence drawn from the historical (“real) world The audience as a jury to be convinced: An attempt to instill believe in the accuracy of the evidence An attempt to convince the audience to act on that belief Documentaries and the legal topics: the legal process itself under scrutiny

Scholarly and pop Writing About Film Docs of Social Rrepresentation Docs of Wish Fulfillment (feature films)

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

Periodicals (aka magazines, journals, serials)Periodicals (aka magazines, journals, serials) NewspapersNewspapers Pop periodicals: ReviewsPop periodicals: Reviews Scholarly and professional periodicalsScholarly and professional periodicals 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? Periodical Articles:

Periodical Articles: 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

…But how do you locate this stuff?

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

Library Catalog(s)  Pathfinder: 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

The Information Universe: Books Black, David A. Law in film: resonance and representation / David A. Black. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, c1999. UCB Main PN J8.B Get da Book in da Stax Call # Look it Up in Pathfinder or MELVYL by Author, Title, or Subject Look it Up in Pathfinder or MELVYL by Author, Title, or Subject :

The Information Universe: Finding Articles Article Databases (Indexes/Abstracts) Allow subject/author searching in a group of journals in a particular discipline or topical area. Produced by different commercial publishers; often look/act differently from one another. Some indexes also offer: Abstracts Full-Text UC e-Links: links to UC/UCB holdings via MELVYL

Articles/Reviews (how do you find this stuff?) Film-related (not many exist) Film-related (not many exist) General news General news Literary and Arts Literary and Arts Other disciplines: e.g. Women’s Studies, American Studies, Ethnic Studies, History and Other disciplines: e.g. Women’s Studies, American Studies, Ethnic Studies, History and LAW LAW Article databases (aka Indexes)

Choosing an Articles database (index) FIND INFORMATION / ARTICLES / ARTICLE DATABASES BY SUBJECTLook at the listings of article databases available via the library FIND INFORMATION / ARTICLES / ARTICLE DATABASES BY SUBJECTwww.lib.berkeley.edu General Databases are often good places to start (particularly for newsy/topical issues)

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

GH Desert Island Index/Article Database List No Now Playing Ebsco – Academic Search Complete Film & Television Literature Index ProQuest (Research Library) MLA (Modern Language Assn. Bibliography) For law and film: Legaltrac Index to Legal Periodicals and Books

All databases are not created equal (or by the same company)…

Common Search Features: --Save list of good stuff --Mail Articles/Citations to yourself

But Remember: Not everything is online!!!!!: Article Databases: Generally only go back yrs online (some exceptions – e.g. JStor; Historical Newspapers; PCI) Not every publication is indexed (e.g. weird ejournals and other film arcana) 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

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

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.

A few cautionary words about research on the Net LibraryLand The Net Google Rocks!

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

1950’s1960’s Film Studies Film Scholarship Film Scholarship & Film Criticism Movies = 100+ Years Film Scholarship = 50 years Writing about film = fan and industry perspectives from the beginning William Dickson (Edison labs) invents The Kinetoscope – Nanook of the North