thesis

L'"avant-garde" cinématographique en France durant les années vingt : idées, conceptions, théories

Defense date:

Jan. 1, 1989

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Institution:

Paris 1

Directors:

Abstract EN:

The films produced by the french "avant-garde" movement during the twenties are important in number but avery few of them have survived to our time. So it is practically impossible to make a large survey about them today. But it is somehow easier to study the ideas and the theories expressed by the "avant-garde" filmmakers and film critics. The first wave of the movement (1919-1924) is represented by the famous figures of ricciotto canudo, louis delluc and emile vuillermoz. Those three have put the accent about the moving pictures as an art, the seventh and the last of the arts system in canudo's opinion. Therefore all the artistic elements of the art of the movies were taken into consideration, for example the nature, the decoration, the editing, the relationship with the other arts and especially music, etc. The second wave of the movement (1924-1930) has as a leading figure the female director germaine dulac who has got a lot of young disciples during that period. The major theory of that second wave is turning around the idea that the movies are an independent art which must find its whole elements in itself. That is what was called "cinema pur" (using abstract elements in the film and finding its material only in the movement and the rhythm). This second period is also dominated by the expression of the dream in the films; that last theory is especially due to the surrealistic movement.

Abstract FR:

Les films realises par l'"avant-garde" francaise durant les annees vingt l'ont ete en nombre considerable mais bien peu ont survecu de nos jours. Aussi est-il pratiquement impossible d'operer une vaste etude sur le sujet aujourd'hui. Par contre, il semble relativement plus facile d'etudier les idees et les theories exprimees par les cineastes et les critiques d'"avant-garde". La premiere "avant-garde" (1919-1924) a pour figures principales celles de ricciotto canudo, louis delluc et emile vuillermoz. Ces trois personnages ont mis l'accent sur le fait que le cinema est un art, le septieme et le dernier selon la theorie des sept arts de canudo. Ainsi, tous les elements artistiques qui composent un film sont pris en consideration, par exemple la nature, la decoration, le montage, de meme que les relations avec les autres arts et principalement la musique, etc. La seconde "avant-garde" (1924-1930) a pour figure principale celle de la realisatrice germaine dulac qui a eu beaucoup de jeunes disciples durant cette periode. La theorie majeure de cette seconde "avant-garde" tourne autour de l'idee que le cinema est un art independant qui doit rechercher ses propres elements en lui-meme. C'est ce qu'on a appele le "cinema pur" ou la cinegraphie integrale". Ce type de cinema utilise des elements quasi-abstraits et recherche son materiau dans le mouvement et le rythme. La seconde "avant-garde" est aussi fortement caracterisee par l'expression du reve dans les films; cette derniere theorie est principalement due au mouvement surrealiste.