motion pictures
A fictional film is a film with a fictional plot that may be based on real events or people. The term is defined differently:
- In terms of content: It is to be distinguished from other types of film such as documentary films , advertising films and films that are shot for reporting purposes .
The following restrictions are also used:
- Technical: Originally the term referred to an act performed by actors, in contrast to cartoons (the trend here is towards the term "animation film").
- Film length or duration: The expectation that a feature film is well over an hour long, which was previously referred to as a "full-length" feature film, has become commonplace. The opposite is the " short film ", the term "long film", however, is rarely used.
- Form of publication: In the past, a distinction was made between cinema and television films , today the former are increasingly referred to as "feature films", even trick or animation films.
Feature films are usually shot with the means of feature film dramaturgy on the basis of a script . They make up the vast majority of films shown in theaters , and there are a variety of film genres .
In the German-speaking area - especially in connection with individual episodes of television series - one occasionally speaks of films “in feature length”. This can be misunderstood to mean that the duration of a fictional film has a meaning for its characterization as a feature film. What is meant by this is that individual feature films that are not part of a series usually have a duration of 90 minutes or more, while individual series episodes are usually shorter.
The first feature films
The inventor of the feature film can be described as the German-born American Carl Laemmle from Laupheim . He founded Universal Studios in Los Angeles, USA and was instrumental in the production and development of the first feature films. He was the first to realize that you could get the masses excited about it.
International situation
The feature films produced by the US film companies dominate the international market. Feature films are also produced in large numbers in India , but mainly for the national market (see also Hindi film ).
Situation in Germany
Germany is one of the countries with a long history of feature films . From the early days of the 20th century, films by Fritz Lang and Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau deserve special mention, who as representatives of expressionist film have made film history on an international level . During the time of National Socialism , in which numerous important film directors had to emigrate abroad, there was no longer any question of German feature film production having international status. It was not until many years later that German auteur films, with directors such as Volker Schlöndorff , Rainer Werner Fassbinder and Wim Wenders, were able to build on the glorious tradition again , albeit mainly in terms of success with film critics and awarding film prizes . The economic success on an international level was limited to a few feature film productions such as Das Boot and Lola rennt - also in the following years . In contrast to the situation in the USA, for example, television broadcasters traditionally play a major role in the production of feature films. This applies on the one hand to productions that are made as television films exclusively for television broadcasting, but also to cinema productions in which television companies are involved.
Web links
- http://www.rechercheportal.de/dc/film.php (large collection of free film databases)
- http://german.imdb.com/ ( IMDb : English language directory of films and actors)
- German film classics from Progress Film-Verleih in German and English version