Technological Film History Analysis on Titanic

Allen & Gomery (1985 p.37) suggest that technological film history “involves the study of the origins and development of the technology that makes possible the creation and presentation of movies”. What really makes a film spectacular and believable is the amount of technology that is used to capture and re-create images and feelings of the past. Without aspects such as special cameras, lenses, projection apparatus, lighting and processing equipment, some would say that there “would be no cinema” Allen & Gomery (1985 p.37).

With the technological film history approach, a lot of questions have been raised such as in Allen & Gomery (1985) “How did this technology come to be? Why did changes in cinematic technology occur (such as synchronous sound, more versatile film stocks, colour processes, wide screen and other) and why they appear at specific historical moments? How did the technological state of cinema at any given time condition the ways in which the movies could be used as art form, economic product, and communications medium?” Allen & Gomery (1985 p.38). It has been observed since the early twentieth century, that Amer

Titanic, to be successful, needed it’s director to use various different technologies. One of the main points to raise about Cameron is his timing. He re-created Titanic when the required technology was available. Throughout the film, there are demonstrations of technology that are very obvious. For example, many shots of the wreck are taken from a camera that is mounted in a remote controlled underwater machine, an advanced amount of technology used to visualise a very sensitive subject.

ica, the land of opportunity, has since used the great technology to apply and make Hollywood blockbusters. Re-captivating historical events and using technology to portray the image of the past has proved to be a huge success. James Cameron’s Titanic starring Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio have portrayed the story of Titanic through its two leading characters Jack and Rose. However, Cameron has showed the facts of the story through the production and his use of technology. In the very first scenes if the film, we see the wreck of Titanic by viewing through a ‘deep diving expedition’ (Marsh 1997. pIX). Each dive, Cameron says was specifically and accurately “planned like a lunar mission, with hours spent simulating the movement of the subs with miniatures and video systems, with charts and diagrams and hot lists issued to each sub team before each dive” (Marsh 1997. p. IX). The technology used to show the images within the ship, the deck and what we see to be Rose’s bedroom, bring out a real emotional reaction for people watching the film. A huge amount of research was required to be carried out by Cameron in Titanic, “a rigorous philosophy of absolute correctness permented every department, from set design and construction, through decorating, props, wardrobe, hairdressing and visual effects”. (Marsh 1997. p. XII)

Landau went on to explain that they shot their “1/20th scale Titanic on a motion-control stage” and added “water and smoke digitally”. Marsh (1997 p.70). They then added computer-generated passengers and crew walking their decks using motion capture as the realistic basis for their movement and added appropriate 1912 wardrobe via text maps.

In Marsh (1997 p.70) Titanic co-producer Jon Landau says that “Digital domain is incorporating traditional model photography with some of the latest digital skills available”.

The word cinema “has been used in Europe to describe motion pictures” Hampton (1970.p9). Technology in these motion pictures has developed tremendously since the 1960’s. Technology has become much more progressive from going from black and white pictures, to Technicolor, to films like Titanic. The use of this technology has aided film makers to re-create histories, in Titanic and other blockbusters such as Kenneth Brannagh’s Hamlet.

The goal and objective of the film, using “big effects, computer aided driven motion control cameras, motion capture systems, models and everything else to create moments that function on an emotional leve

Some topics in this essay:
Allen Gomery, Brannagh’s Hamlet, Domain’s NT, Rose Cameron, Titanic Cameron, Jon Landau, Rob Legato, Leonardo DiCaprio, Douglas Kirkland, James Cameron, marsh 1997, gomery 1985, allen gomery 1985, allen gomery, amount technology, computer generated, film titanic, marsh 1997 p70, james cameron, 1997 p70, salt 1992, story titanic, technological film history, marsh 1997 p37, marsh 1997 p36,