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Utilising Soviet Montage Theory to Consider Future Narratives, Designed for New Technologies Utilising Soviet Montage Theory to Consider Future Narratives, Designed For New Technologies Susan Scott Whitireia New Zealand Porirua Ph 64 327-3100 [email protected] ABSTRACT The contributions of Eisenstein, Podovkin and Soviet Montage Theory to film editing have, and should never be underestimated. However what is so commonly overlooked is Eisenstein’s concept of internal montage. His theories were not all about editing. Eisenstein was as interested in how visual and audio material could be layered within a shot (or shots) as he was in the editing of them together side by side. In keeping with McLuhan’s thinking I argue that humans are capable of envisioning types of media long before technologies allow them to exist. I believe that Eisenstein’s concept of internal montage demonstrates this point. Eisenstein was considering filmic narrative devices that today’s technologies can explore on a much higher level and very differently than was possible in his time. Keywords: motion graphics, hybrid medium, Motion graphic film story, Motion graphic design, Storytelling, moving image design, virtual reality, Soviet Montage Theory. 1. INTRODUCTION larger contexts. Whilst library shelves are full of books on film I have long been following the relationships between the theory there is very little discussion on how new technologies, changes in narrative structures and the changes in technologies; and techniques effect film language. Although motion graphics and ask; if Eisenstein and Podovkin had access to motion are common, particularly in advertising, music videos and graphic technologies or to virtual reality technologies, how opening film titles, theory that discusses motion graphics is would their theories have been applied? What would Eisenstein limited; Manovich described academics as “having remained have created? This paper examines their most relevant theories blind to it” (Manovich, 2006, p. 5). and describes content that begins (by accident or not) to demonstrate examples of internal montage. I have begun to build a film applying some of these theories. To some degree this research is a combination of, on one level standing on this shoulders of one great giant; and on a second level trying to look backwards to see forwards. I will start by strongly referencing Mast (1981) who simply and concisely describes Eisenstein and Pudovkin’s Soviet Montage Theory within the context of the Kuleshov School. I will then go on to consider an example of this thinking in conventional cinema, then move to discuss applications of his thinking within motion graphics. Finally I will use this theoretical base to consider how a new film language could evolve utilizing new technologies. 2. METHODOLOGY This paper represents the interpretational section of a much larger (Scott, 2011) and mixed method work that is to become a motion graphic film. Contextualising digital processes into a historical framework is an essential part of this process. Peter Lunenfeld supports this approach and writes in his preface to the book Design Research Methods and Perspectives by Laurel, (2003) “The importance of research into design process which includes traditional, historic and aesthetic studies of art and design cannot be overstated” (p. 11). His argument incorporates the idea that the hype and debate relating to new media enforces the need for historical and aesthetic background so that designers may see their work in This quality assured paper appeared at the 6th annual conference of Computing Fig 1: Summary of the elements of Soviet Montage Theory and Information Technology Research and Education New Zealand as described by Mast (1981). (CITRENZ2015) and the 28h Annual Conference of the National Advisory Committee on Computing Qualifications, Queenstown, New Zealand, October 6- 9, 2015. Michael Verhaart, Amit Sarkar, Rosemarie Tomlinson and Emre Erturk (Eds). 3. MAST AND MONACO ON SOVIET found that parts of different people’s bodies could be filmed as MONTAGE THEORY though they are one (Monaco, 1981, p. 152). The Russians focused on narrative and emotional effects in 4. A MORE RECENT CASE STUDY cinematic storytelling. These can be broken down into the USING THESE TECHNIQUES? narrative, intellectual and kinetic editing techniques. The In this section I demonstrate through an example, the ways narrative cuts included editing which relates to sequential mechanisms derived from Soviet Montage Theory continue to action. The premise of the Kuleshov thinking, as Mast occur in more recent films. describes it, is that we can analyse action and put it together through its most interesting elements (Mast, 1981). Arguably For this demonstration of the Kuleshov School principals I almost all narrative feature films today demonstrate a level of have chosen the film Amadeus (Zaentz, 1984), considering the this language. Also associated with the narrative cut was the sequence where the messenger comes to pick up Mozart’s idea that we can cut back and forth in time and from one place requiem. We start with a close-up of some spooky-looking to another. Today we would associate this either with the stuffed birds. We pan across what looks like a dressmaker’s flashback (or flash-forward) and the cross-cut, which deals cosy shop, past a group of women having a shawl measured, with two sequences of action running at once. An example of with a hatbox in the background. The hatbox is passed from this could be somebody about to jump off a building whilst one man to another. We cut to a long shot of a man running up somebody else runs to their rescue. Mast describes how a copy the street with the hatbox. We cut to a close-up of a feverish- of Intolerance had been smuggled into Russia and analysed by looking Mozart drinking. Then we cut to a close-up of a cape the school and states that “these lessons in editing had been being removed from the hatbox. We cut to a long shot of a learned from Griffith” (Mast, 1981, p. 153). caped man entering a tunnel, then back to a mid-shot of a sicker-looking Mozart frantically writing whilst pouring a Intellectual shots deal with metaphor, contrast (juxtaposition) drink. We cut back to a long-shot of the caped man moving and parallel cuts. The example of metaphor Mast gives is from through the snow. The man passes a lit window. We cut to a group of workers being mown down by soldiers, cutting to Mozart writing, with his bottle carefully framed, and we hear the slaughter of an ox in a stockyard. Eisenstein did this in the door knock. We cut to a mid-shot as Mozart goes to the Strike (Mast, 1981). door, and then a close-up of his face looking shocked. We cut back to a close-up of a masked man in a cape. The metaphor describes humans as being slaughtered like cattle. The contrast cut could start with a shot of a starving man Here shots have been chosen because they suit the themes of cutting to a group of people feasting. Here a third meaning is the story. The shop could be a studio and it is unlikely the created, communicating the concept of greed. Converse to this tunnel is en route to Mozart’s house but visually they make use of contrast, intellectual shots can reinforce each other sense because of the screen navigation. through the parallel cut. This could include a shot of a The kinetic effects of the sequence lie with the way in which condemned man sentenced to die, cutting to the thief who the editing increases pace right up until Mozart opens the door; murders a victim. Metaphoric contrast and parallel cuts all have this is supported by the music, which also stops when the door an emotional dimension. is opened. The concept of simultaneity is based on the idea that several This juxtaposition is not just a result of direction, but also the strands of thinking resolve at one time. The third kind of shot work of production design from storyboarding to art deals with pure emotion and is well described by Mast who department. Although this is a Hollywood film, not an art film states; that; “the very method of joining strips of celluloid striving to reference Soviet Montage, the sequence shows together, rather than their content, produces an almost examples of many of the montage theorists’ techniques. These subliminal kinetic response in an audience that a director can include the sequencing of points of the action: the juxtaposition almost unobtrusively control” (Mast, 1981 p. 154). Mast between the creepy stuffed birds and the cosy clothing shop; describes these kinetic responses as dealing firstly with rhythm, the parallel between the frantically-writing Mozart and the beat, slowness and acceleration but then goes on to describe running man; and the juxtaposition between the snowy outside tonal response: shots getting darker or lighter signifying a and the yellow warm interior of Mozart’s room (the associated change in mood or time. metaphor described could be his fever). The third type of kinetic cut is the form cut: cutting from two This all leads to moment of simultaneity when Mozart opens similar or very different objects. A famous example of the form the door and the man is wearing a mask not too dissimilar from cut can be seen in 2001: A Space Odyssey (Kubrick, 1968) one of the creepy bird faces at the beginning of the sequence. where a shot of a spinning bone cuts to a spaceship, a (Because we know the story of Mozart, we think this man is directional reference to man’s achievement in time. Finally coming for Mozart’s requiem.) An example of leitmotif within Mast describes how the Kuleshov workshop discovered the this sequence could be Mozart’s drinking which comes up directional cut in which we can cut from movement across the repeatedly within the film.
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