FACTFILE: GCE A2 MOVING IMAGE ARTS THE FRENCH NEW WAVE AND CINEMA VÉRITÉ The French New Wave and Cinéma Vérité Learning Outcomes • demonstrate knowledge and understanding of Cinéma Vérité as a distinct style of documentary filmmaking; Students should be able to: • identify the technological advances that made • demonstrate knowledge and understanding this new style of documentary film-making of the French New Wave as an alternative possible; cinematic storytelling tradition to Hollywood; • discuss the following elements of Cinéma • identify the storytelling techniques and film- Vérité and explain their purpose: making practices of the French New Wave and − hand-held camera technique explain how they depart from the Classical − location shooting Hollywood Style and narrative; − long takes; and − the use of diegetic sound; • discuss the following elements of the French New Wave and explain their purpose in key • explain the influence of Cinéma Vérité on the works: directors of the French New Wave and their − film-making practices contemporaries; − narrative − style • demonstrate knowledge and understanding − characters; and of the influence of Cinéma Vérité and − themes; documentary film-making techniques on Hollywood cinema; and • explain the influence of the French New Wave on the work of contemporary filmmakers; • analyse the cinematic style of contemporary film-makers who have been influenced by • analyse the cinematic style of filmmakers who Cinéma Vérité and documentary film-making have been influenced by the French New Wave; techniques. 1 FACTFILE: GCE MOVING IMAGE ARTS A2 - THE FRENCH NEW WAVE AND CINEMA VÉRITÉ Course Content Cinéma Vérité and Technology rule of thumb was to shoot as quickly as possible with portable equipment, sacrificing the control In the late 1950’s technological innovation and glamour of mainstream productions for a made it possible for a new style of documentary lively, modern look and sound that owed more to filmmaking to develop –lightweight cameras, documentary and television shooting methods portable sound equipment for sync-sound on than to mainstream, commercial cinema. For location and new faster film stock that could be these filmmakers, glamorous three-point lighting, used in lower light conditions. These advances in smooth crane shots, and classically mixed technology made possible a radical new method of soundtracks were not only out of reach, they filmmaking employinghand-held cameras and were the arsenal of a bloated, doomed cinema.” live, synchronous sound that came to be known (Neupert, 2007) as Direct Cinema in America and Cinéma Vérité in France. The key directors of the French New Wave - Francois Truffaut, Jean-Luc Godard, Claude Chabrol, Eric The pioneers of Cinéma Vérité believed that Rohmer, Jacques Rivette - started out as film these advancements in film technology would critics for the magazine, Cahiers du Cinema, which enable documentary to achieve authenticity first championed the auteur theory of personal and to collapse the distance between reality and filmmaking. These film critics then had an representation, with the camera becoming ‘just opportunity to put theory into practice when they a window someone peeps through’. The mobile, began making their own stylised personal films in hand-held cameras enabled filmmakers such as the late 1950’s. Jean Rouch to move freely, recording real life on the run. The 400 Blows/Les Quatres cents coups The ‘fly on the wall style’ of Cinéma Vérité creates The 400 Blows was the breakthrough film that the impression that what is taking place onscreen ushered in the French New Wave winning Francois is an authentic slice of life, a transparent record Truffaut the best director award at the Cannes of what actually took place in front of the camera. Film Festival in 1959. The partly autobiographical The Cinéma Vérité documentary employs long film portrays the troubled childhood of 13 year- takes and location shooting to record events as old Parisian, Antoine Doinel. Truffaut adopted the they unfold in real time. Sound is also direct and is mobile camera technique and location shooting of simply recorded while the camera is rolling. Since Cinéma Vérité, using zoom lenses and swish pans the 1960’s, the handheld camera and fly-on-the- to follow the actions of his young protagonist as he wall style of documentary realism have become wanders the streets of Paris with his friend René. powerful storytelling devices in mainstream The only lighting used for these night scenes was narrative cinema. the available light from street lights and store windows. French New Wave As Marilyn Fabe points out, “Truffaut photographs The documentary aesthetic of Cinéma Vérité Antoine and René in their all-too-few moments inspired the young directors of the French of freedom with a moving camera in wide-angle, New Wave or La Nouvelle Vague who defined deep-focus long shots. Wide-angle lenses tend themselves in opposition to the commercial to exaggerate the distance between foreground films and filmmaking practices of the previous and background planes, making the world seem generation. As young filmmakers starting out open and expansive, the perfect lens choice, with limited budgets, it offered them a way to when combined with a freely mobile camera, for shoot cheaply on the streets of Paris with small conveying a feeling of unbounded freedom.” (Fabe, production crews and use of real locations, 2004) including their own apartments. “I wanted a film which would resemble a The French New Wave was, first and foremost, an documentary without being one,” Truffaut said exciting new model of production that was both at the time. The director creates ‘the feel’ of fast and cheap. As Richard Neupert explains: “The a documentary by capturing the rhythms of ordinary life as Antoine carries out kitchen chores, 2 FACTFILE: GCE MOVING IMAGE ARTS A2 - THE FRENCH NEW WAVE AND CINEMA VÉRITÉ puts out the garbage and wanders through the light so that their faces are obscured, makes use streets. Working against the grain of conventional of jump cuts, disregards narrative coherence, cinematic storytelling, “Truffaut lingers on ignores continuity shots and renders dialogue seemingly insignificant orextraneous details inaudible through the use of ambient noise.” and actions, that, ultimately contribute not to the (Greene, 2007) film’s narrative but, rather, to its dense emotional texture.” (Greene, 2007). Breathless was shot on the streets of Paris cinéma vérité-style in just four weeks with a tiny crew The directors of the French New Wave shared a and completely silent, with the sound dubbed in desire to revitalise film language and experiment post-production. Cinematographer Raoul Coutard with film form and technique. As Richard Neupert used a hand-held camera throughout, shooting writes, “The hand-held camera became a from a wheelchair and the back seat of a car. In distinctive marker of New Wave images, adding the famous scene where the two main characters, a casual, contemporary look that found a bit of Michel and Patricia, stroll along the Champs- shake and jitter in the image not just acceptable, Elysees, Coutard secretly filmed from inside a mail but lively and desirable.” (Neupert, 2007) pushcart with those passing by unaware that a film was being made. This ‘fly-on-the-wall’ stripped- The visual style of the French New Wave down approach gave the filmmakers the freedom constantly calls attention to itself. The invisible to improvise and invent on the spot, as Coutard storytelling of the classical Hollywood narrative is explains. “The shooting plan was devised as we deliberately subverted in the most self-conscious went along, as was the dialogue…Little by little we fashion. Flamboyant tracking, zooming and discovered a need to escape from conventions and panning shots, long takes, discontinuous edits, even run counter to the rules of ‘cinematographic high-angle shots, swish pans, lap dissolves, grammar’.” (Neupert, 2004) jump cuts and freeze frames are employed to disrupt narrative time and convey the energy and The use of new or relatively unknown actors and vitality of the characters. a naturalistic style of acting contributed greatly to the documentary realism of the New Wave films. Classical Hollywood conventions such as the 180 The characters and themes of the New Wave also degree rule are openly flouted in French New Wave marked a new departure in French cinema. As films. In The 400 Blows continuity is disrupted Richard Neupert writes, “Narrative experimentation when the director deliberately crosses the lines was combined with a renewed interest in telling of sight to show a character facing in different stories for a younger generation or at least directions in a series of continuous medium close- from their perspective…New Wave stories tend ups. The film ends with astriking freeze frame to be loosely organised around rather complex, that has become one of the most famous images spontaneous young characters. Importantly, in cinema. The freeze fame is a key visual motif in unpolished, sometimes disjointed film styles Truffaut’s third feature film, Jules and Jim (1962) fit these rather chaotic, good-humoured tales of where it is used to “stop the action, much like a youths wandering through contemporary France.” photographer’s camera would, helping foreground (Neupert, 2007). In an echo of Italian Neorealism, the emotions of characters while isolating specific children were often also the central characters in moments in time.” (Neupert, 2007). Francois Truffaut’s films. Breathless/A Bout de souffle The stylish exuberance of the New Wave filmmakers came as a sensory shock to audiences, who were Jean-Luc Godard’s debut feature was perhaps the used to traditional films and ‘invisible’ cinematic most radical of the New Wave films, using a number storytelling. The techniques used in these of conventions, notably the jump cut, to disrupt films deliberately drew attention to themselves, continuity. As Naomi Greene says, Breathless reminding the audience that they were watching a “leaves no doubt about Godard’s desire to do away film.