Reflection Journals

This semester I studied silent films and cinematic movements as part of the Guided Learning module. I chose to cover this as I am interested in all eras of film, being a current and passionate film student. I wanted to touch on film history, which I feel is one of the most important subjects to be taught in film school, due to imparting the theoretical knowledge to aspiring filmmakers, and would play a large role in film appreciation rather than current, commercial or conventional ways. And while I have watched many films from the 1940s to present day, the Silent Era in the 1900s-1920s is the time period I knew the least about, thereby the area to focus on. As my course of study, Digital Film & Television, does not actually include film history in its curriculum, I bounced at the chance to study it as part of the Guided Learning module offered at Temasek Polytechnic. This module is driven by the self-directed learning technique of PPMR (Plan, Perform, Monitor, and Reflect).

PLAN

I planned to begin with early silent short films, some of the first films ever made, and decided to watch and write on A Trip to the Moon and The Great Train Robbery. Both these films had a narrative, which makes them early examples of using the medium of film as a storytelling device. With this brief introduction to the Silent Era, I then wanted to focus on feature films from two cinematic movements, French Impressionism and German Expressionism. I initially planned to watch and analyse three films from each movement, but narrowed it down to two based on my Learning Facilitator’s suggestion to better cope with the module’s timeline. I subsequently chose the French Impressionist films The Fall of the House of Usher and Cœur fidèle, and the German Expressionist films The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari and Warning Shadows.

Developing the Learning Contract taught me to look and plan ahead, like writing the Learning Contract at the start of this subject with every action and deliverable outlined for every week. These organisational skills can remind me to be more forward-thinking and proactive.

PERFORM

My process throughout this project was to watch each specified film, research on it such as about the development and production process or related trivia, and write my personal thoughts, techniques used, and critical analysis of the films. I began like this with A Trip to the Moon and The Great Train Robbery, then The Fall of the House of Usher, The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, Cœur fidèle, and lastly Warning Shadows.

MONITOR

Across the six write-ups for this project, I improved in the examples and detail I gave. In the first write-up (on silent short films), I failed to include any hyperlinks to films mentioned or information cited, nor any visual references of the content I described. After a suggestion from my Learning Facilitator, I improved on these areas for all my subsequent write-ups, inserting hyperlinks throughout rather than listing all references at the end, and inserting stills from the film where relevant. I similarly became more detailed in identifying the characteristics of the cinematic movements. In my first write-up on a French Impressionist film, I used visuals to substantiate the tenets outlined by film historian David Bordwell, but did not provide much further explanation. After receiving feedback, I went back to improve the write-up by including specific descriptions like how the set decor was like, rather than simply mentioning that the decor was characteristic of this movement. I thereby completed my subsequent write-ups with this in mind, seeking to elaborate and give examples.

REFLECT

A skill I developed through this project is being able to make connections more easily. I analysed two films from French Impressionism and two from German Expressionism, and had to make connections not only to their characteristics but to find similarities and differences. I also made connections in terms of finding similarities to later films, when certain scenes and techniques reminded me of films that released decades later.

Another skill I developed was film analysis. I have been writing my personal reviews of films as well as critical analysis for a number of years, though reaching 1000-2000 words for each write-up in Guided Learning indeed makes them some of the more thorough ones.

These skills have helped me be more observant in watching films, about what the filmmakers were trying to convey with the unconventional techniques they used. This also encourages me to be more meaningful and purposeful with creative choices in the films I work on.

I greatly enjoyed the working style of Guided Learning, as I was able to decide on my own times to work rather than be present for fixed lessons. This not only made this subject more productive but also more efficient across my other subjects, when I was able to prioritise them when their workload was heavier. By the end I still completed all deliverables that I initially set out to do, and am satisfied with my work and performance.

The three TP student profile attributes I chose in my Learning Contract, to focus on for personal development and enrichment, are

1) Self-directed working style: This was the first time I undertook a large project as self-directed, and while it requires discipline in working hard with no learning resources provided, I did prefer this method as it enabled me to actively seek out references on my own.

2) Resilience: This trait propelled me to go further and do better. While I had wrote into my Learning Contract to have each write-up be an estimated 300 or 500 words, all six pieces I wrote ended up being more than 1000 words each. I pushed myself to analyse what I could and write what I felt was relevant and enriching, rather than stop at the minimum word count.

3) Competency: Learning this part of film history made me more knowledgeable of the silent film landscape. While some of these films may not be well known and my curriculum in studying filmmaking does not cover film history at all, wide knowledge of films and mentioning of obscure references is common in the film industry, particularly in competitive markets like America and the U.K. This module thereby enables me to be slightly more culturally literate in film history, for a broader perspective overall.

In future situations like in work that is more intensive, I hope to apply the trained skill of discipline, initiative, and personal enrichment to be more productive, efficient and effective in my work.

This project was fulfilling for me as I managed to accomplish my goals of discovering more silent films and learning about the characteristics of these movements. Prior to this project I had little to no knowledge of French Impressionism and German Expressionism, but through this module I was able to not only learn their respective characteristics but also recognise their application in the films I analysed.

Reflection on my write-up for early short films (A Trip to the Moon and The Great Train Robbery)

Challenges experienced

I wished to read up about the techniques that The Great Train Robbery used and how they achieved specific effects. A challenge was that little information was documented regarding the making of the film, thus I focused more on my personal opinion on it, particularly in its storytelling.

Room for improvement

I could include hyperlinks where relevant to allow readers to navigate the subject more seamlessly. I could also include image/video samples in my write-up to further illustrate my points, especially when writing about specific moments in the films.

Reflection on my write-up for The Fall of the House of Usher (1928)

Challenges experienced

I had not known the details of French Impressionism prior to writing this, thus this was my introduction not only to the film but also to the movement. I had trouble finding detailed information on the movement particularly to cinema, as it is not well-known or recognised, and argued by film critics on its validation. However, I did find the outline of tenets that film historian David Bordwell attributed to French Impressionism, and managed to gain greater detail into it with the assistance of ChatGPT, which did help.

Room for improvement

Some research is needed for explanations on the tenets of the French Impressionism movement. For example, how the design of the decor is particularly characteristic of French Impressionism, and how these tenets were applied to enhance the film.

Reflection on my write-up for Cœur fidèle (1923)

Challenges experienced

I was unable to find a version of the film with English subtitles, and instead watched it with its original French intertitles, while referring to a printout of an English subtitles text file. This was not a large problem as the film has only around 50 intertitles, compared to a non-silent film that would typically have hundreds of lines of dialogue.

Room for improvement

I could have tried harder to review specific moments to gain a better understanding of the context in the scenes, for example the moment of lens distortion which seems to be a recollection or imagination, though I am unsure. I could have also done more research on the ‘poetic realism’ style as it is still somewhat ambiguous to me.

Reflection on my write-up for The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920)

Challenges experienced

I watched the film before researching on German Expressionism, and was thus less observant regarding the characteristics of the cinematic movement demonstrated in it. Thus, I subsequently watched many YouTube video essays on the film and the movement in cinema, then scrubbed through the film to notice the elements more vividly.

Strong points

Good samples of film stills used to illustrate the points in the descriptions, and also with further elaboration written specifically about the visuals in the stills. Observation of creative techniques is also good, as I managed to realise the examples of 'show not tell' when I was thinking back on the film.

Reflection on my write-up for Warning Shadows (1923)

Challenges experienced

I found it extremely tough to understand the film's events, such that after watching it, I read all user reviews found on IMDb, Rotten Tomatoes and Letterboxd, which did help somewhat but unfortunately did not provide much insight, in part due to the film being little known. I subsequently watched the film again before beginning to write about it.

Room for improvement

I still did not fully understand the film the second time so it could have been more thorough, though it was hard to find good details of the film.

Reflection on my conclusive analysis of French Impressionism and German Expressionism

Challenges experienced

In writing this concluding analysis, I wanted to cover the foundation of these two movements and their impact. However, I had seen only four feature films from these movements as per the GL Learning Contract. Thereby, I still had to do quite some research in writing this final piece, looking briefly at other films and researching about their history and the renowned filmmakers behind them.

Strong Points

I feel that this write-up successfully and adequately covers the movements, as I wrote about their characteristics with examples, their histories and origins, and their impact on contemporary cinema. I think this is a fitting conclusion to this project that effectively dissects the differences between the two.