R ESEARCHING FOR F ILM A PPRECIATION ENG 213 October 2, 2008

T ODAY Library Basics- In General Website and Services Resources In-house Electronic Building Research Basics- Project Specific Formal Analysis Essay How to determine whether to use resources or no Which resources to use Auteur Presentation How to get started Which resources to use

H OLY S PIRIT L IBRARY B ASICS

L IBRARY W EBSITE Research Tools Cavalog WorldCat Databases Teaching and Learning eReserves Style Guides Research Wiki Services About IM

C AVALOG A catalog of what is owned by the Holy Spirit Library Includes Books, CDs, DVDs that you can check out Also includes reference books, reserve materials and periodicals that cannot be checked out You can search by Title, if you know exactly what you are looking for Author Words or Phrase Subject Limiters Publication date

W ORLD C AT A catalog system of many member libraries around the world Offers a comprehensive look at what exists Inter Library Loan Find the item you are looking for Click into the detailed record Look for “Borrow this item from another library” Any Questions or concerns ILL Contact for Holy Spirit Library is Sheri Becht or

E LECTRONIC D ATABASES AND J OURNALS Databases Link List of databases Links to smaller lists by subject Multipurpose Academic Search Premier Project MUSE News articles Lexis Nexis New York Times Access World News Reference Oxford English Dictionary Biography Resource Center Encyclopaedia Britannica

S EARCHING D ATABASES Browsing specific articles Open Database from the databases link Type keywords into the box Be mindful of alternative ways to say the same thing Choose Limiters Full Text Peer-Reviewed Dates Browsing specific journals Open the Journals link Search general term Find Journal of interest Click database that carries it’s holdings

A PPROPRIATE S OURCES Mostly Books in the Holy Spirit Library Books from other Libraries Academic Journal Articles Maybe Newspaper Articles (New York Times and Washington Post) Review Articles Relevant, Trustworthy, Evaluated Websites Probably Not Just any results that come up when you search Google Wikipedia Any Open Internet Sources

E VALUATING S OURCES For Appropriateness Within the parameters of the assignment Scholarly Supporting of your thesis Citations Do you have all the information that you need? Can you get it? Style Guides

R ESEARCH FOR F ORMAL A NALYSIS E SSAY

R ESEARCH P ROCESS FOR F ILM ANALYSIS Choose film- view it Determine if you would like outside resources Chose context(s) in which to research Help determining the meaning of the film Sources to “back-up” your opinion Your essay should not entirely be a synthesis of what others thought, use research to support your ideas Determine which kind of sources are best Search Evaluate Results Write Citations

R ECOMMENDED R ESOURCES FOR F ORMAL A NALYSIS E SSAY History of the American Cinema Volumes 1-10 Call # PN U6 H Academic Search Premier Multidisciplinary Database Project MUSE Multidisciplinary Database

R ESEARCHING FOR A UTEUR P RESENTATION

H OW TO START Choose Auteur Determine which films you will view Obtain and view films Answer Questions provided on your assignment sheet a. Is there something unique/rare/characteristic about the director’s formal style? 1. Are there favorite/recurring cinematographic, editing, sound, etc. techniques? 2. Does the director tend to work with the same crew members (editors, DPs, etc.)? 3. Are there recurring actors or types? Does the director have a diegetic alter ego? 4. Does the director tend to favor a specific genre? 5. Do his/her films tend to be set in the same place, or similar places? b. Does the director write his films, as well as direct them? c. Does the director gravitate toward certain narrative devices (e.g. flashbacks, narrators)? d. Does the director favor certain types of plots or conflicts (e.g. man against nature)? e. What is the theme of the film? Is it a theme the director tends to revisit? f. Does the film have a particular/clear political point of view or message? If so, what is it? g. Would this film be drastically different if made by another director? How? Add your own questions and answers to the list

P OSSIBLE P RELIMINARY R ESEARCH If you had trouble answering any of the questions on your own you may want to research them If any of the questions and/or answers might be something you want to discuss further with your team Recommendations History of the American Cinema Volumes 1-10 Call # PN U6 H Academic Search Premier Multidisciplinary Database Project MUSE Multidisciplinary Database

N EXT S TEPS Talk with your group about your findings Answer further questions provided to you a. What film epitomizes this director as a filmmaker? b. What theme(s) run through his work? c. What are some key aesthetic/visual characteristics of his work? Determine which information and themes you would like to present As a group Separately These will be the points that you will investigate further

D EVELOPING YOUR P ORTION OF THE P RESENTATION Consider the length of your presentation allotment 10 minutes Consider what you need to cover Steven Spielberg’s devotion to artistry Themes of holocaust and war Consider what you know already and what you need to find out I have background information for the artistry I need to find out more about themes of holocaust and war Research what you need to find out Search Evaluate Determine final sources and information that will be used

R ECOMMENDED S OURCES FOR A CADEMIC A RTICLES Databases Academic Search Premier Project MUSE JSTOR

R ECOMMENDED W EB R ESOURCES Websites with scholarly information Cine Files Senses of Cinema Film Philosophy Popular, Commercial Websites Movie Review Query Engine Internet Movie Database Film Critic