Joyce E. Jesionowski's book "Thinking in Pictures: Dramatic Structure in D. W. Griffiths Biograph Films" challenges the traditional view of Griffith as a pioneer and mythmaker in early cinema, highlighting his role in shaping a new relationship between film and its spectators. She argues that Griffith's Biograph films, made between 1908 and 1913, demonstrate his awareness of cinema as an art of construction and his ability to harness audience perception as the central engine of cinematic drama. Jesionowski emphasizes Griffith's systematic exploration of cinematic structure, which remains foundational to narrative film.

Format: Hardback
Length: 224 pages
Publication date: 27 May 2022
Publisher: University of California Press

Thinking in Pictures: Dramatic Structure in D. W. Griffiths Biograph Films by Joyce E. Jesionowski offers a rigorous reconsideration of Griffiths reputation as both pioneer and mythmaker in early cinema. While Griffith has often been credited—sometimes uncritically—with “inventing” film technique,Jesionowski situates his Biograph work within a broader international context in which many cinematic devices,from fades and dissolves to intercutting and camera movement,were already in practice. Rather than attributing to Griffith the discovery of technique,she argues that his significance lies in shaping a new relationship between film and its spectators. Griffiths Biograph films,made between 1908 and 1913,reveal an evolving consciousness of cinema as an art of construction,not simple reproduction,and demonstrate his awareness that audiences co-create meaning by filling narrative and visual gaps. For Griffith,cinematic storytelling became a contract with viewers,asking them to “see thoughts” in silence and to participate imaginatively in the drama. Jesionowski shows how Griffith refined this collaborative mode of viewing into a distinctive visual and narrative system. Through intercutting,spatial elision,and repetition of images,Griffith achieved a plausibility that critics such as Frank Woods and Hugo Münsterberg recognized as simultaneously illusionistic and constructed. The Biograph films reveal a process of learning to harness audience perception as the central engine of cinematic drama,converting movements in space into relationships between characters and emotions. Jesionowski emphasizes Griffiths ability to subjugate acting,scenery,and pictorial beauty to the larger organizational moment in which narrative coherence emerges from the arrangement of sho.

Thinking in Pictures: Dramatic Structure in D. W. Griffiths Biograph Films by Joyce E. Jesionowski

Joyce E. Jesionowski's book, "Thinking in Pictures: Dramatic Structure in D. W. Griffiths Biograph Films," offers a critical reassessment of Griffith's reputation as a pioneer and mythmaker in early cinema. While Griffith has often been credited with "inventing" film technique, Jesionowski argues that his significance lies in shaping a new relationship between film and its spectators. Griffith's Biograph films, made between 1908 and 1913, demonstrate an evolving consciousness of cinema as an art of construction, rather than simple reproduction, and highlight his understanding of audiences' role in co-creating meaning by filling narrative and visual gaps. Jesionowski contends that Griffith's Biograph films reveal a process of learning to harness audience perception as the central engine of cinematic drama, converting movements in space into relationships between characters and emotions. She emphasizes Griffith's ability to subjugate acting, scenery, and pictorial beauty to the larger organizational moment in which narrative coherence emerges from the arrangement of shots.

Griffith's Biograph Films: A New Relationship Between Film and Its Spectators

Jesionowski's book challenges the notion that Griffith was the sole inventor of film technique. She argues that many cinematic devices, such as fades and dissolves, intercutting, and camera movement, were already in practice before Griffith's work. Instead, Griffith's significance lies in his ability to shape a new relationship between film and its spectators. Griffith's Biograph films, made between 1908 and 1913, demonstrate an evolving consciousness of cinema as an art of construction, rather than simple reproduction. They reveal a process of learning to harness audience perception as the central engine of cinematic drama, converting movements in space into relationships between characters and emotions. Jesionowski emphasizes Griffith's ability to subjugate acting, scenery, and pictorial beauty to the larger organizational moment in which narrative coherence emerges from the arrangement of shots.

Intercutting, Spatial Elision, and Repetition of Images in Griffith's Biograph Films

Jesionowski highlights Griffith's use of intercutting, spatial elision, and repetition of images in his Biograph films. These techniques allowed Griffith to achieve a plausibility that critics such as Frank Woods and Hugo Münsterberg recognized as simultaneously illusionistic and constructed. By intercutting, Griffith was able to create a sense of continuity and coherence between shots, while spatial elision allowed him to create a sense of depth and space. Repetition of images helped to reinforce the narrative and emotional impact of the film. Jesionowski argues that Griffith's use of these techniques was a key factor in his success as a filmmaker.

Griffith's Biograph Films: Learning to Harness Audience Perception as the Central Engine of Cinematic Drama

Jesionowski argues that Griffith's Biograph films reveal a process of learning to harness audience perception as the central engine of cinematic drama. By asking viewers to "see thoughts" in silence and to participate imaginatively in the drama, Griffith created a contract with viewers that required them to engage with the film on a deeper level. Jesionowski emphasizes that Griffith's films were not just about telling a story, but about creating a shared experience between the audience and the film. Griffith's use of intercutting, spatial elision, and repetition of images helped to create a sense of immersion and engagement that was unique to his films.

Griffith's Ability to Subjugate Acting, Scenery, and Pictorial Beauty to the Larger Organizational Moment in Which Narrative Coherence Emerges from the Arrangement of Shots

Jesionowski argues that Griffith's ability to subjugate acting, scenery, and pictorial beauty to the larger organizational moment in which narrative coherence emerges from the arrangement of shots is one of his most significant contributions to cinema. By focusing on the larger organizational moment, Griffith was able to create films that were both visually stunning and emotionally resonant. He was able to create a sense of tension and release that was unique to his films, and he was able to create characters that were both complex and relatable. Jesionowski emphasizes that Griffith's ability to subjugate acting, scenery, and pictorial beauty to the larger organizational moment in which narrative coherence emerges from the arrangement of shots is a key factor in his success as a filmmaker.

Conclusion

In conclusion, Joyce E. Jesionowski's book, "Thinking in Pictures: Dramatic Structure in D. W. Griffiths Biograph Films," offers a rigorous reconsideration of Griffith's reputation as a pioneer and mythmaker in early cinema. While Griffith has often been credited with "inventing" film technique, Jesionowski argues that his significance lies in shaping a new relationship between film and its spectators. Griffith's Biograph films, made between 1908 and 1913, demonstrate an evolving consciousness of cinema as an art of construction, rather than simple reproduction, and highlight his understanding of audiences' role in co-creating meaning by filling narrative and visual gaps. Jesionowski's book is a must-read for anyone interested in the history of cinema and the art of filmmaking.

Weight: 454g
Dimension: 229 x 152 x 15 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780520362673