Explorations in New Cinema History: Approaches and Case Studies Approaches and Case Studies

Explorations in New Cinema History brings together cutting-edge research by the leading scholars in the field to identify new approaches to writing and understanding the social and cultural history of cinema, focusing on cinema's audiences, the experience of cinema, and the cinema as a site of social and cultural exchange.
* Includes contributions from Robert Allen, Annette Kuhn, John Sedwick, Mark Jancovich, Peter Sanfield, and Kathryn Fuller-Seeley among others
* Develops the original argument that the social history of cinema-going and of the experience of cinema should take precedence over production- and text-based analyses
* Explores the cinema as a site of social and cultural exchange, including patterns of popularity and taste, the role of individual movie theatres in creating and sustaining their audiences, and the commercial, political and legal aspects of film exhibition and distribution
* Prompts readers to reassess their understanding of key periods of cinema history, opening up cinema studies to long-overdue conversations with other disciplines in the humanities and social sciences
* Presents rigorous empirical research, drawing on digital technology and geospatial information systems to provide illuminating insights in to the uses of cinema

Explorations in New Cinema History presents an original approach to writing and understanding the social and cultural history of cinema, focusing on cinemas audiences, the commercial activities of film exhibition and distribution, and the cinema as a site of social and cultural exchange. If cinema history is to engage with broader social histories, this pioneering collection argues, it must concern itself not with the production of individual films, but with audiences, cinema-going, and the role that cinema plays in culture at large. Bringing together a collection of essays written by scholars working on the leading edge of the field, this volume prompts us to question and revise our understanding of key periods of cinema history, and opens up cinema studies to long-overdue conversations with other disciplines in the humanities and social sciences. Contributors describe the very different forms of cinema and the experiences they offer their audiences, from the luxurious first-run movie palaces and down market grind houses of the major metropolitan centers to the altogether different theaters in small-town and remote rural communities. Their essays employ empirical research methods such as the use of geographical information systems in modern audience research to provide illuminating insights in to the uses of cinema, making this an engaging read for all students of film history and cinema studies.

Explorations in New Cinema History brings together cutting-edge research by the leading scholars in the field to identify new approaches to writing and understanding the social and cultural history of cinema, focusing on cinemas audiences, the experience of cinema, and the cinema as a site of social and cultural exchange. Includes contributions from Robert Allen, Annette Kuhn, John Sedwick, Mark Jancovich, Peter Sanfield, and Kathryn Fuller-Seeley among others Develops the original argument that the social history of cinema-going and of the experience of cinema should take precedence over production- and text-based analyses Explores the cinema as a site of social and cultural exchange, including patterns of popularity and taste, the role of individual movie theatres in creating and sustaining their audiences, and the commercial, political and legal aspects of film exhibition and distribution Prompts readers to reassess their understanding of key periods of cinema history, opening up cinema studies to long-overdue conversations with other disciplines in the humanities and social sciences Presents rigorous empirical research, drawing on digital technology and geospatial information systems to provide illuminating insights in to the uses of cinema