Английский язык для студентов-физиков. Кинооператорство. English for physics students. Cinematography. Учебное пособие

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the film business has evolved a lot over time and has become one of the main entertainment and mass communication media worldwide.

What is the history of cinema?

The history of cinema is a remembrance of all inventions, the people who participated in them and the events that made cinematography what it is today, ranging from its black and white films to current digital and computerized trends.

Background

The history of cinema dates back to ancient times, mainly when Athanasius Kircher, a German priest, invented the famous magic lantern, a device that could simulate movement through rotating images. In the 18th century, the projection of different images that were placed on glass plates became more popular, a discovery that was called phantasmagories. By the 19th century, many experiments using images were active, including the stroboscope that made it possible to observe images at slower speeds.

By 1874 , with the invention of photography, Edward Muybridge managed to reproduce a galloping horse, using a series of photos. Finally, Thomas Alva Edison, invented the incandescent light bulb and the kinetograph, a device by means of which he was able to properly synchronize the sound with the image, a situation that also led to the inclusion of sound in the cinema.

Origin of cinema

It is considered that the cinema itself had its origins in the year 1891 when the Edison company managed to use a kinescope prototype that allowed people to observe a series of images that were in motion. The Lumière brothers were the first to carry out this work in Paris in 1895.

Evolution

Little by little film industries began to be established in the world, being the most important in Russia, North America and Europe. The films began to have a longer duration, the narration was improving. As time went on, more was invested in distribution and production and the first big studios were founded and this allowed cinema to evolve better. Its early years were characterized by its consolidation within the world of industry and in the improvement of technology.

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With the addition of color to cinema, black and white films were left behind and color separation began using moving images. The first attempts that were made to introduce sound in the cinema were made by means of phonograph records and the dialogues began to be introduced in a synchronous way. By the 1930s, most of the films made had sound and color. This ensured that the American industry increased notably, giving way to what was known at the time as the “Golden Age in Hollywood”.

Present

At present, the cinema has greater means and facilities for its elaboration, this has caused that the entire cinematographic industry has been restructured in an important way mainly thanks to the introduction of digital cinema. Nowadays, films can be made with greater skill and all their formats have been diversified in such a way that a tape can be seen in different media, from a cell phone to a computer screen.

All these new reproduction systems for films have produced a major change in the cinema experience as borders have been broken. It is also considered one of the most stable and profitable markets in the world since movie theaters have also experienced many positive changes that attract more followers every day. The introduction of 3D movies, the rooms with innovative technologies that even have armchairs with built – in movements make the industry grow every day.

Stages in the history of cinema

The development and evolution of cinema has had different stages. Each of them is mentioned below.

Silent cinema: this stage took place between 1895 and 1929. It was a stage in which the cinema had already reached a greater development. The images and movements were entered but the sound had not yet been inserted. The films were based on aspects of daily life, work or family.

Sound cinema: it took place between the years 1929 and 1945. At this time, sound was introduced through the “vitaphone” system and color was also introduced in films. The musical comedy genre stood out and it was possible to make live recordings. One of the first companies that bet on the introduction of sound was Warner Bross, thus leaving silent cinema in oblivion.

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Postwar: it was a stage of the cinema that took place between 1945 and 1970. After the war, neo-realistic cinema emerged in Italy , showing the reality of everything that happened. In this period the appearance of the video predominated and in addition, important representatives such as George Lucas, author of the famous Star Wars, emerged.

Cinema update: ran from 1970 to 1990. This is the type of cinema that exists today, one of the main means of communication that fosters social relationships.

New technology: this is the last stage and the one that is observed today, it began in 1990 and remains to date. New technologies were introduced such as 3D, a projection of films that give the sensation of depth through the use of stereoscopic vision and the use of lenses that polarize light. The 4DX was also introduced, a system for projecting films that seeks to immerse the viewer in the environment of the film.

Who invented it

It is considered that the inventors of the cinema were the Lumière brothers a December 28 of the year 1895 in Paris, at the Grand Cafe Boulevard, a place where they made public their findings projecting a train was arriving at a station. In this place, a large number of people gathered to be able to contemplate the event. It was that magical day that cinema began. The brothers registered their invention under the name of cinematographer.

Importance

Cinema turns out to be very important as it is considered one of the main means of expressing feelings and ideas in an artistic way. It is an ideal mechanism to create places of mental recreation and entertainment for all ages. The film industry has become, over time, one of the main means of communication in the world. It also has the ability to make the spectator’s creativity increase and promote intellectual development.

It is an effective means of bringing different types of content to all corners of the world, since cinema exists worldwide. The real stories of important events can be public knowledge thanks to the cinema which in turn, although they are not identical, are very close to the reality that was lived.

Regarding the development of technology, the cinema is also important because the ambition it generates in the producers makes them look for

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new tools every day, which are more effective and precise to be able to improve everything related to this type of art.

DEVELOPING PROFESSIONAL VOCABULARY

WORKING OUT THE MEANING OF UNKNOWN WORDS

2. The following words in the box are all from the text above. Find them in the text

3. For each word, read the sentence it occurs in and answer the questions

a)Is the word positive, negative or neutral?

b)Is it a noun, adjective, adverb or verb?

c)Can you think of a word with a similar meaning (synonym) and one with an opposite meaning (antonym)?

READING COMPREHENSION 4. Answer the following questions:

1.What is cinematography?

2.Can you say a few words about the background of cinema?

3.What famous people contributed to the development of cinema at its early stages?

4.How can we characterize the entire cinematographic industry nowa-

days?

5.What stages in the history of cinema do you know? Can you name

them?

6.Who invented cinema?

7.Why is cinema important?

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