From widescreen to pocket screen

Cinematographic framing, formats and innovations.

The connection is easy with our previous reflection on the history of painting : we mentioned the "frame," first fixed and then detachable, as the outer limit of the painting. With cinema, the "frame" became in some way the container of the filmed image.

But in our time, this notion has taken on a strong technical dimension because it is inevitably linked to the idea of format: in the same width of film, it has been possible to integrate images of several dimensions. As the widths of films have been numerous, the possible combinations have been considerable! But, artistically, framing has never been neutral: beyond the technical constraints, it remains a tool aimed at focusing the viewer's attention or arousing their emotion. Supported moreover by screens of various dimensions: from the "standard" to the vast "cinemascope", spectacular in theaters but which during multiple rebroadcasts is difficult to fit into the space offered, for example, on a television screen... Digital cinema, a new major step, is based, as we know, on the use of computer programs at all stages of production and then distribution: the notion of "virtual framing" or now the use of artificial intelligence. Finally, the mobile phone is proving to be a tool for disseminating constructed images, but which had to be filmed beforehand, taking into account the constraint of vertical reading. Hence the name "vertical fictions". With, here again, new necessities having to take into consideration human attention spans when faced with a very small image. And, for "vertical fiction", the birth of a new challenge: to go beyond its own limits and the risk of oversimplification, to seek, or even create, a new type of quality!

How long should a film be?

This is obviously a fundamental notion, linked to technical developments but also having to remain mindful of the audience's attention span! We have all had the opportunity to see the "silent films" of the first part of the 20th century, often humorous (but not always) and generally quite short (but not always). Also including their share of masterpieces, sometimes of long duration. It was with the birth of talking cinema, with which the "7th art" would then literally identify, that the average duration lengthened to generally reach an hour and a half to two hours. With some "classics", very appreciated by the spectators, approaching four hours of projection. Even some non-standard, more "elitist" films, with exceptionally long durations.

At the same time, the "short film" developed: originally conceived as a tool for experimenting with new techniques at low cost, it gradually acquired the status of a "genre" in its own right, giving rise to innovations and appreciated festivals, but unfortunately still remaining at a distance from the general public. It is often only a step towards the feature film, even though one could consider it to have value in itself. Through the qualities it implements (concentration of emotion, use of a limited time, essential creativity) it can become a source of reference and enrichment for even shorter forms linked to current developments: vertical fictions! With this new genre, born of new technologies, the duration becomes so short (1 minute 30 seconds!) that it is an extreme challenge, which can appear contrary to the necessities of the most basic quality. This is where we have to create! The field of beauty is open to us...

Article written by Jean-Marie Sanjorge