Hello, I’m going on a temporary hiatus for the week – I have to write a research paper for one of my summer classes.
This is my usual method when writing a film studies paper: Choose a film that illustrates a social or historical trend. Watch the movie. Take careful notes. Then do the research: Go on JSTOR and look for any relevant scholars to agree or disagree with. Go to the library and check out books on the film and books on the social/historical topic, such as the representation of race in cinema or the male gaze or constructivism in Soviet cinema, that I also am addressing. Then find a nice, quiet place with a television where I can view the movie while writing about scenes – it’s amazing how easily one can forget small details, so I like to rewatch scenes as I write about them.
How about you, readers? Are any of you film studies students? Care to share your methods?
If not – please feel free to leave comments here for future blog posts that you want to see. I always appreciate input concerning stuff that people want to read about :)
