D.W. Griffith and the Development of Narrative Form

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David Wark Griffith, “the father of film technique,” is and always will be a man of great achievement in the world of cinema, and can be considered one of the most influential figures in film history. Griffith did more than any individual to establish a narrative language for film, and create a fully articulated form out of a seemingly insignificant entertainment medium. He developed and utilized several techniques throughout his works such as, but is not limited to, the 180-degree system, cut-in shots, and his unique narrative structure. Though D.W. Griffith utilized the 180-degree system often, it was not invented solely by him, but certainly developed out of the experiences of several directors. The system was essential in maintaining the direction of movement during a film and so characters would not “bump into themselves”. To ensure the audience was always on the same side of the narrative action, the film had to be carefully shot and edited so the camera never crossed the 180-degree line. The development of the aforementioned resulted from Griffith’s background in theatre as well as his deep understanding of audience perspective. Griffith brought a new technique to his craft offering deeper meanings to his scenes. With the addition of “cut-ins”, Griffith broke down the standard distance between audience and action, allowing a closer look into the drama of the piece and the reactions of actors on-screen. By editing shots of different spatial lengths in sequence to create cinematic “sentences” within a scene, Griffith successfully heightened the emotional intensity. In addition to cut-in shots, Griffith invented another effective trope known as the flashback. The flashback was a shot or sequence that interrupted the narrative to bring the audience briefly to the past. This confused and sometimes scared viewers, but Griffith compared the nature of how it worked

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