Library
Watch this. Read that.
Every lesson is paired with a film and a text. The list isn't long — it's the right list. Show up to studio having seen the screening.
Screenings — paired with this semester's lessons
Directing
Children of Men
Dir. Alfonso Cuarón · 2006 · 1h 49m
"Crew choreography under pressure — the Bexhill long take only works because every department knew its job and its hazard."
Pairs with · On-set Roles, Communication & Health and Safety
Cinematography
In the Mood for Love
Dir. Wong Kar-wai · 2000 · 1h 38m
"Christopher Doyle and Mark Lee Ping-bing on hallway light, contrast and the rhythm of withheld desire."
Pairs with · Lighting — Key Setups, Mood & Tone
Sound
The Conversation
Dir. Francis Ford Coppola · 1974 · 1h 53m
"Walter Murch's sound design — listen first, watch second. The film argues sound is authorship."
Pairs with · Production Sound Fundamentals
Editing
Raging Bull
Dir. Martin Scorsese · 1980 · 2h 09m
"Thelma Schoonmaker on rhythm and percussion — the boxing match as music, cut to breath."
Pairs with · Editing — Cutting, Transitioning & Assembling
Cinematography
Moonlight
Dir. Barry Jenkins · 2016 · 1h 51m
"James Laxton on framing close — how shot size and movement build a character across three chapters."
Pairs with · Camera Types, Framing & Movement
Screenwriting
Lady Bird
Dir. Greta Gerwig · 2017 · 1h 34m
"Page one through five — premise, voice and specificity arrive simultaneously. The pre-production foundation visible on screen."
Pairs with · Pre-production — Script, Storyboard, Shot List & Risk
Readings — the working bibliography
- Book
In the Blink of an Eye
Walter Murch
The cut as emotional punctuation. Murch's rule of six and why story trumps continuity.
Silman-James, 2nd ed.
- Book
On Directing Film
David Mamet
Make every shot a question and an answer. Ruthless economy from a writer-director.
Penguin, 1992
- Book
Sculpting in Time
Andrei Tarkovsky
Time pressure inside the frame. A philosophy of cinema as observed duration.
University of Texas, 1986
- Essay
What is Neorealism?
Kogonada
Side-by-side reading of De Sica and the post-war Italian frame. Watch twice.
Sight & Sound video essay
- Podcast
Team Deakins Podcast
Roger & James Deakins
Working cinematographers in conversation. Practical, generous, no hype.
Weekly, all episodes free