What are the noticeable elements in German Expressionism? We were provided a video to watch over going through some of the history of the topic and some notable filmmakers that help with this expressionism to spread. Still, I decided to do some of my own research into this, with a quick search online, the top website on the list is StudioBinder . This mainly just went over the history, Henry already mentioned in the video for us but there are bullet points of the characteristics that are high angles, deep shadows, extreme camera tilting and impossible sets.

[Images from The Cabinet Of Dr. Caligari displaying the characteristics]

HISTORY

German expressionism was started in early 1910’s in art and poetry before it moved into film when the financial problems came along due to the war. It was cheaper for the set designs (mise-en-scene) which helps expressing emotion, tension and overall pacing of the plot. They had surpassed Hollywood in film with their mechanical expertise in creating special effects back then and their love for fairy tales that lead into creating the horror genre.

EXPRESSIONISM

What is the expressionism movement? Well to my understanding it’s the movement of displaying the artist’s feelings and emotions rather face the reality of the situation creating weird distortion to the eye. In my previous course I didn’t really look into any film side but more of the art side, therefore, I went on our beloved YouTube to find some information on how this affected film. The end result was really just looking at set design playing a large role in film, they don’t have to be physically distorted rather using camera angles and lighting.

 

LANG FRITZ

Out of the filmmakers mentioned, Lang Fritz’s work really speaks to me. This man has incredible set designs, he was an architecture before putting himself into the film maker part of his life. This compare to Dr. Caligari’s set design, it feels much more realistic that doesn’t put any discomfort, this is probably why the cameras in his film don’t move a lot to catch these details.

Apart from the Mise-En-Scene aspects of the film, the shots from the film having the actors act in a certain pattern also helps push the narrative of the environment they’re trying to capture. As for the workers they move mechanically in a machine heavy area, it makes the individuals in the scene have no uniqueness making it unsettling like they’re just trapped in a cycle.