School of Film and TV - Theses
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ItemWhat makes a filmmaker make films? A theoretical model & analytical method for the interrogation of filmmaking practice( 2014)Scholarly research on filmmaking practice from a filmmaker’s point of view is rare, with existing studies mostly focusing on the making of feature films. The research presented in this thesis demonstrates that it is both possible and useful to systematically describe, structure, and assess the significance of some of the more notable factors that affect and shape a much broader range of filmmaking practices, the impulses that motivate them, and the films they generate. Part I of this thesis addresses the theoretically-based Research Question 1: "What is a theoretical model for the analysis of filmmaking practice that is: 1) from a filmmaker’s point of view; 2) comprehensive; and 3) structured and systematic?" After establishing that there are no existing models of filmmaking or any other creative practice that meet these three criteria, a new theoretical model called the Practice-Space Model of Filmmaking is proposed and described. This model is sited within a cross-disciplinary theoretical framework that draws on elements of existential phenomenology psychology, Pierre Bourdieu’s theory of the “sociology of power”, Storper and Salais’ economic theory of “worlds of production”, and the Hindu notion of purushartha or “goals of life”, as modernised by Mohandas Gandhi. Part II of this thesis addresses the empirically-based Research Question 2: "Can the Practice-Space Model of Filmmaking: 1) be operationalised; and 2) be useful in the analysis of Chris Warner’s filmmaking practice between January 1978 and December 1991?" Utilising an analytic autoethnographic case study method and cross-modal data collection, the operationalisation of the analytical method associated with the Practice-Space Model introduced in Part I is demonstrated by applying it to a 14-year period in the author’s own filmmaking practice in Australia, during which he was the sole or joint filmmaker of nine completed films and two uncompleted film projects. The results of this analysis of a limited section of Australian filmmaking practice demonstrate that the Practice-Space Model of Filmmaking is both practicable and useful, and suggest the basis for more broadly-applicable further iterations of the Model.
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ItemOn the same page: an exploration of the co-screenwriting experience( 2014)Most commercial screen product created in the last century has been the result of collaboration between two or more writers. However, while there exists a significant body of research into the areas of both ‘collaboration’ and ‘screenwriting’, very little exists which interrogates their nexus. This practice-led thesis begins to address that gap by firstly investigating the process of co-screenwriting through my writing collaboration with John Studley on the feature-length screenplay, The Last Resort. Throughout the writing of the screenplay I maintained observational diaries, transcribed audio recordings of writing sessions and reflected on communication and collaboration patterns. Secondly, this thesis also attempts to contextualise this collaboration between two screenwriters constructing a feature-length screenplay by examining various co-authoring models used. In spite of the fact that the majority of film scripts are credited to one writer, I suggest that collaborative screenwriting within the film industry is highly prevalent, particularly in Hollywood, where it takes many guises, both overt and covert, willing and unwilling. I further suggest that historically, the rigid modern screenplay format used by many contemporary screenwriters developed as a by-product of studio-enforced collaborations during the silent-movie era of Hollywood and, therefore, this particular form of the screenplay may be ideally suited to co-writing. Through the examination of my own collaborative screenwriting practices, I conclude that a prolonged and well-considered prewriting phase may be highly desirable to the quality of the final screenplay and the health of the collaborative process. I propose that conversational collaboration (writing every word together) can be an effective technique between two screenwriters; and that conversational collaboration significantly enhances the vocabulary required to successfully co-write and strengthens what is, possibly, the most important ingredient of all successful collaborations: trust.