The world has grown from an expansive tract of land and water to a global village. Many of the activities humans perform have also changed from tedious processes to an easier form of accomplishment with the technological improvement. Technological improvements have changed the modern standards of film development, making it easier to manipulate film to create and offer the best films for easier competition in the market. Filmmakers appear to have undergone evolutions of distinctive styles, movements, and methods of video capture to ensure unique products.
Technological developments have moreover offered directors several tools and techniques which have never before been possible. It is the filmmaker’s responsibility to utilize the technical platform to provide a contextual cinematic quality. As the history of filmmaking technology progresses from the quality of cameras, sound recording, and editing, the creativity of a film director highly depends on how much the director combines all the aspects of cinema. However, as much as there are new methods being developed in the film industry, the manager of the film is the only person who can provide quality, consistent movies. Technological advancements can only enhance the director’s ability in the methodology of filmmaking. According to Brannigan, “The success of a filmmaker is all dependent on the capacity of their engagement in developing the characters, editing a smooth flow of images, and taking note of the historical context in the film’s technological development.”
Ingmar Bergman, a Swedish movie director, is one of the most successful filmmakers; he has been able to provide excellent cinemas of diverse genres. He directed over sixty films and over 100 plays. As an artist, Ingmar Bergman used his creativity to produce unique films that are known all around world. Examples of such films include The Seventh Seal, Cries and Whispers, and Smiles of a Summer Night, which are watched by almost all the populations in the world. Through directing one of his well-known films, Smiles of a Summer Night, Bergman was able to challenge his dramatic career by developing his vision and perception of the moviemaking industry. Bergman produced his ideas by writing for films and documentaries and later directing them for cinema and television (Macnab & Geoffrey). He would write about the attributes of the society he lived in which included betrayal, death, illness, and even insanity.
Old films involved creating a perception of a single flow of thought. Most films depended on the lifestyle of the artists, relating to the visions of human life either in their times or in the past. It was difficult to represent the future or alternative visions of society. Using the same modes of cinematology employed in previous years would indicate a massive downfall for the industry rather than advancement and progress. The depiction of the historical and cultural influences on society became readily apparent. In the film Smiles of a Summer Night, which involves families experiencing marital troubles, Ingmar Bergman is able to enhance the dilemma in different marriages and produce a clear storyline. Smiles of a Summer Night was one of the first films that he directed, and it meant a lot to him since the film would build his reputation (Singer). Although many of his films involved his home country as a setting, Ingmar Bergman has remained one of the best directors in the entire filming industry worldwide.
By shooting the first videos in black and white, the images shown in his films were not as robust as they could be, yet they were still able to communicate his message to the audience. The editing part of the movies did not involve many contexts since it did not involve a broad audience; his films were directed at a specific audience. This reflects the fact that at the beginning of filmmaking history, the process did not include many ethical considerations. By writing and directing his films, Ingmar can identify the color suitable for the cinema and maintain the genre of the main character throughout the movie.
The success of Ingmar Bergman can also be related to the quality and efficiency of the films he has directed. The ability to produce quality films with small budgets was a significant boost for Bergman. One example of the influence of a small budget on his filmmaking is The Touch, released in the seventies. The film involved a man intruding into a marriage and changing the lives of everyone involved. This film only featured three actors and focused on love and divorce. Bergman faced the challenge of using a limited cast to tell his story on film. Yet, through the use of dialogue in the expression of feelings from the different characters, Bergman was more than able to establish and sustain the tension of the melodrama. His ability to make films cost-effectively and still tell amazing stories which attracted large audiences made him attractive to studios. The film also won Bergman an increasing fan base, owing to the significant number of people who saw and loved the movie.
The use of enhanced technological know-how in the production of films resulted in a colored films where the contextual images had their colors different from the original white and black. The change of color to an improved visual enhancement resulted in showing more about the reality of life. The increased sharpness and quality of audio meant that characters were able to communicate and express themselves more clearly, making the film experience more robust. People experienced enhanced sound as an improvement to the film experience, meaning that films received more and more positive attention (Bird). The pleasure of watching films and movies are influenced by the quality of the color and audio elements. A film’s themes and how it handles those themes in the context of the society in which it is shown influences the audience’s opinion of the film and filmmaking in general. Bergman was able to use these technological enhancements to enrich his films and engage his audiences.
In the 21st century, Ingmar Bergman was able to enhance the filmmaking industry by continuing to take advantage of the technological advancements. One film that Bergman made and was said to have loved the most was Saraband. Even though Saraband was the last film Ingmar Bergman directed, he received an award for best director for the film. The premise of the film is a lady who gets involved with a complicated relationship. The movie clearly depicts the social abnormalities of self-absorbed relationships. Bergman uses this movie to enhance epilog as a style in the production of film. Bergman’s ability to use context, particularly that of the current time, and captivating scenery reflects his great talent which can most definitely be considered art. The vibrancy and vividness of the film’s images are so potent that the action of the story appears to be happening in reality (Koskinen). Relating the film to plays done by students in the 19th century, Bergman was able to communicate a familiar context to a different audience.
Bergman provided a unique musical environment for the actors, which functioned as a way of helping the audience focus on the film. The music enhanced the actors’ performances, enriching it. The audience could better appreciate actors’ performances, as well as engaging the audience’s ability to understand the context of the scenery. The music, as a sound enhancement, partnered with enhanced visuals produces many points of interest and focus for the audience (Pettitt & Brad). Moreover, these enhancements allow the filmmaker to create a scene that is authentic or honest to reality; using the many technological tools available gives a filmmaker like Bergman the ability to truly replicate reality. The advancement of technology in general has resulted in improved capabilities in film production, which Bergman was able to use to compete against other directors.
Filmmaking is no longer the strenuous, time-consuming activity it began as in the 18th and 19th centuries. Technological advancements have given filmmakers a variety of tools which make filmmaking a more natural, easier process. The shift from poetic movie production to fiction by Ingmar Bergman also reflects the technology-related changes in the filmmaking industry. It also enabled filmmakers like Bergman to truly show realistic settings, themes, people, and stories. Enhancements to sound quality and the ability to color film enhanced the storytelling genius of Bergman and the enjoyment of the audiences who view his movies.
- Bird, Robert. Andrei Tarkovsky: Elements of Cinema. Reaktion Books, 2008. Print.
- Brannigan, Erin. Dancefilm: Choreography and the Moving Image. Oxford University Press, 2011. Print.
- Koskinen, Maaret, ed. “Out of the past: Saraband and the Ingmar Bergman Archive.” Ingmar Bergman Revisited: Performance, Cinema and the Arts. London: Wallflower Press, 2008. 19-34. Print.
- Macnab, Geoffrey. Ingmar Bergman: The Life and Films of the Last Great European Director. New York: I.B. Tauris, 2009. Print.
- Pettitt, Greg, and Brad Walker. “DLP Cinema™ technology: Color management and signal processing.” Color and Imaging Conference 2001.1 (2001). Print.
- Singer, Irving. Ingmar Bergman, Cinematic Philosopher: Reflections on His Creativity. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press, 2009. Print.
