Dreams and Cinema - Assignment Example

Dreams and Cinema Dreams and Cinema Oneiric, in film theory, refers to the depiction of the dream like s in the film. The dream metaphor has been greatly used in film theory by many filmmakers at all times. In fact, it would be cliché to state that films are like dreams. Dreams are of many kinds which relate to the films as well such as horror movies are nightmares. Films and dreams have had a long connection whether it is about the recurring usage as a metaphor or the technique of dream sequence used in films commonly. Dreams have thus been used in many ways in the film theory especially in experimental or avant-garde films which have contributed greatly in the development of dream language. The dream metaphor is used in history since a long time dating back to the birth of cinema. In the beginning, cinema was caught up in the famous dispute of being a system which perfectly reproduced reality or a system which depicted dream and magic. Early theorists had started recognizing the nature of cinema as the depiction of dreams. It was believed that these were filmmaker’s inner dreams which were transformed into films. Thus, the films had a perfect relationship with the dreams. Many reasons why cinema was based on dreams were psychological. Theorists researched through psychology, sociology, and aesthetics to conclude that the dream metaphor has been used relevantly in cinema and has been established as the most important contribution in film theory. Dreams and films are both considered to be perceived objectively by the spectators and dreamers. Just as in dreams, in films as well we do not perceive the real presence of the people and situations. However, there are two characteristics which may separate films from dreams; and these are materiality and presence of the original physical object. This difference is not a major one when considering the use of dreams sequences in films with special lighting and sound effects (Verrone, 2012, p. 61). Freud’s theories have grounded the relationship between dreams and films. He was the best psychoanalyst who believed that dreams are the major source of all ideas. All dreams must have a visual representation which is the dramatization or the representation of the dream thoughts through visual situations. Even though Freud never mentioned the use of film or cinema as the representation of dreams, his ideas about the dream thoughts closely relate to the visual film language. In addition to the views of Freud about visual representation of dreams, there were many other psychoanalysts who talked about the relevant consideration of the visual language of dreams. Jung, another psychoanalyst, suggested that dreams are developed based on a dramatic structure in which characters are presented, plot is developed, and a decisive event or solution is present. However, he concluded that dreams can at times be indecisive or unable to propose a solution just like a modern narrative which lacks an ending. Other psychoanalysts also describe dreams as the dramatic structures which are made from various acts which may not always be clearly linked up and can take place simultaneously. These acts are comparable to filmic sequences (Halpern, 2003, p. 14). Dreams can be structured as drama and staged as oneiric thoughts. The unconscious mind is the mental theatre which is a stage on which characters of the inner world perform. These dream characters can also be compared to the film actors. The dreamer is the director and at the same time he is the main character of his dream. The dreamer would play all the roles even when he is the only spectator of his show. According to Freud, the dream is doing hypocrisy as he defends the feeling for being responsible for the contents of the dream. A cinematic spectator may also have the same hypocrisy as he feels innocent and safe and at the same time identifies with all the characters to fulfill his unexpressed desires. In film theory, the dreamer is the director, actor, and spectator when he is asleep; and he becomes the editor when he is awake as he reconnects with the various sequences and produces a narrative structure (Indick, 2004, p. 70). Thus, where many psychoanalysts believed that dreams are like films, many talked about the ways in which films are like dreams. These concepts in film theory enable the understanding of dream structures in films. Dreams are considered to be the path through which messages are carried from one receiver to another, from the unconscious to the conscious. Films are the representation of our dreams as dreams are the first ideas that cover up the conscious mind and form cinematic sequences such as long shots, close ups, etc (Packer, 2007, p. 47). Dreams have been relative to cinema in many ways and this is the most essential consideration; dreams and films speak the same language and analyzed in the same way. Dreamers want to sleep continuously in order to complete their dreams out of their unconscious thoughts without the external disturbance. When a dreamer wishes to complete his dream without any intervention, he is actually fulfilling desires and traces of his thoughts and feelings through his dreams. In the same way, filmmakers want their films to constitute their inner feelings and desires relating them to their most suitable desires. Thus, cinema has used dreams to form the screenplays and other sequences which give the visual representation to dreams. The initial ideas of all films have come from dreams and films are still considered to be the source for first ideas. Just like dreams can be of many kinds; nightmares, wet dreams, or beautiful dreams, films may also have same characteristics. However, films generally describe the inner feelings and thoughts of the filmmakers and these reach the audience who receive them as visual representations of their dreams. Films and dreams are often related to each other, even by spectators. However, dreams had no meaning, no language, and no visual representation until cinema was introduced. This is one of the ways in which dreams and films are related. Another major relation between dreams and films are the dream sequences which are used in films to create a psychic effect on the spectator and to create a visual representation of the psychic thoughts of the characters. Many experimental filmmakers have used their own dreams to cinema as well as the dream sequence technique to represent their dreams as dramatic structures (Kracauer, 1997, p. 36). The television series Twin Peaks had a scene in which an FBI agent was led into a room which was strangely lit and a dwarf reveals the name of the killer of a woman who speaks in a bizarre form of English language. Suddenly, the agent sits wide awake at a hotel bed and is shocked by the vision. This was a blend of reality and fantasy known as a dream sequence. This type of technique is used in television series and films to portray the inner thoughts of the character or the subconscious feelings of the main character to explore real life scenarios. The dream sequence technique gives the audience the feeling that the scene is actually real in the movie or at times the audience is tricked into the belief that they were realistic events when they weren’t. This is because dream sequences are shot differently than the rest of the movie because special lenses are used and special lighting techniques that would give the scene a soft focus or an otherworldly feel. The dream sequence scenes in films are shot from the dreamer’s viewpoint and characters of the film may act in ways the dreamer wants them to. A good dream sequence would be the one which recreates the sense of disconnected reality in the same way real dreams do. In one view discussed above, dreams can be just like films or films can be similar to dreams. However on the other hand, dream sequences are used to differentiate reality from fantasy which is most commonly portrayed in our lives as well. The film is itself a dream as the filmmaker gets all ideas from the unconscious mind which is the dream thoughts portrayed into visual representations. However, just like real dreams, dream sequences are the bridge between the dreams and reality in films. It sets a positive outcome on the audience without which the audience wouldn’t know the characters’ inner concerns and doubts (Hantke, 2004, p. 198). A dream sequence may also be edited in a way which shocks the audience and ends abruptly. Other times, the sequences are deliberately edited in a way which impacts the audience and gives them a completely different feeling about the film that the audience knows from the beginning that they are watching a dream sequence. A dream sequence can be effective when it involved dramatic tension, foreshadowing, and comic relief to provide audience enough information that they could separate the reality from fantasy. Dreams have been used in cinema since the beginning as they have inspired directors continually. George Melies made 16 movies which contained the word ‘dream’ in the title. Filmmakers have used dream sequences to create scenes in movies that are impressive and appealing to the audience. Dream sequences allow filmmakers to include scenes in the film where conventional reality rules don’t apply. Moreover, dream sequences allow filmmakers to show the psychoanalytical and subconscious state of the characters. Filmmakers have also used their personal dreams to depict their movies and create shots that are impactful to the audience. These are two major aspects in which dreams are used in cinema and how filmmakers portray the visual representations of dream thoughts (Packer, 2007, p. 47). Winsor McCay was the first experimental filmmaker who coordinated dream sequences in his movies in that era. He used dream sequences with his own effects and duplicated the cinematography that he had used in his comics. He was a skilled art director and filmmaker who used special effects such as floating objects, stop motion, and animation which were aspects of modern contemporaries. His techniques were later adopted in the film industry by two directors who were inspired by the expressionism artistic movement and surrealism. Tim Burton was another contemporary who used the technique of flashbacks for the first time in his films. Flashbacks are a psychological state in which a person recalls the past memories. This technique is used in films to recollect the memories of the specific characters and use those flashbacks to help the characters as well as the audience to switch back to the reality. Flashbacks, like dreams in Burton’s work, are how characters remember significant events from their memories just like dreams depict the inner feelings of the characters. The first dream sequences used by filmmakers were to impress the audience with the usage of this new technique. It was used in the 1900 in the film Let Me Dream Again by George Albert Smith; he formed a transition between dream and reality. Dream sequences were used simply by filmmakers changing the spread of psychology and the theory of dreams by Freud. Alfred Hitchcock collaborated with Salvador Dali in 1945 to film Spellbound and create the most iconic dream sequence scene ever (Verrone, 2012, p. 61). As much as dream sequences are used in films as the visual representations of filmmaker’ inner conscience, they are used to make the films impactful and easier for the audience to understand. They portray the hidden stories and thoughts of the characters and their mindset. It helps us to better understand and comprehend the stories of these characters (Halpern, 2003, p. 14). Just like in our real lives, dreams in films also have meanings and explanations which give a meaning to directly associate with the characters and story. The importance of dream sequences in films is really high and must be presented properly to appeal the audience. Dreams have been used in many ways in cinema since the beginning of the film industry. They have a close relation to the filmmakers and the attraction to the audience. On one hand dreams are considered to be the inner thoughts of the filmmaker portrayed in visual representations while at the other hand dreams are used as dream sequences in films to attract the audience and create a positive impact over the spectators. References Halpern, Leslie. 2003. Dreams on Films: The Cinematic Struggle Between Art and Science. USA: McFarland Hantke, Steffen. 2004. Horror Film: Creating and Marketing Fear. USA: University of Mississippi Indick, William. 2004. Psychology for Screenwriters. USA: Michael Wiese Productions Kracauer, Siegfried. 1997. Theory of Film: The Redemption of Physical Reality. UK: Princeton University Press Packer, Sharon. 2007. Movies and the Modern Psyche. USA: Greenwood Publishing Group Verrone, W. 2012. The Avant-Garde Feature Film: A Critical History. 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