Film Research: The Basics

1
Film Research The Basics
Gary Handman ghandman_at_library.berkeley.edu 3-8666
2
Film Research The Basics
Gary Handman ghandman_at_library.berkeley.edu 3-8566
3
The point of all this...

1. Describes organization of library information
2. Point out some unique aspects of film as a
   research topic
3. Discuss how to select article databases (and
   determine whats in them)
4. Discuss how to develop search strategies
5. Introduce a group of basic moves and features
   common to many online catalogs and indexes.
6. Practice using these features in selected
   databases

4
The Information Universe
What Does It Contain?
5
The Information Universe

• Books
• Journals (Magazines) Newspapers
• Government docs
• Maps
• Media (video, sound recording, etc.)
• Computer files (e.g. CD-ROMS, data files)
• Dissertations
• Manuscripts
• THE WEB

The guy next to me is soooo hot!
6
The Information Universe
7
Writing About Film
8
Sources for Film Scholarship and Research

• Periodicals (aka magazines, journals, serials)
• Newspapers
• Pop periodicals Reviews
• Scholarly and professional periodicals
• Reviews
• Critical analysis/scholarly writing
• Books
• From schlocky to scholarly
• Biography, genre writing, individual films,
  individual directors
• Web Sites (more about this later)
• Other online databases

9
Reviews? Critical Writing? Whats the diff?
Periodical Articles

• Reviews
• Assessment of aesthetic and content merits of a
  film
• Found in popular periodicals, film periodicals,
  and (less often) in more scholarly journals
• In pop periodicals Current and Historical
  (older)
• Usually cover current releases, more pop
  theatrical releases
• Tend to be relatively short and relatively
  superficial (with some exceptions and depending
  on the publication and whos doing the writing)
• Interesting sources of info about audience
  reception and current think

10
Periodical Articles
Reviews? Critical Writing? Whats the
Diff?

• Critical analysis
• Discuss films in
• broader historical, cultural, political, artistic
  context and/or
• Focus on a specific aspect of a film, film genre,
  or filmmaker
• Found in books and scholarly or film-related
  journals
• Tend to be longer, more substantive than reviews
  (with some exceptions and depending on the
  publication and whos doing the writing)
• Often include notes, bibliographies, other
  scholarly apparatus

11
(No Transcript)
12
The Information Universe
Library Catalog(s)
Journal/Newspaper Indexes (article databases)
13
Library Catalog(s)

• An inventory of what the library owns
• Search by Author, Title, Subject
• Whole books and print and electronic journals,
  NOT whats inside of those publications

14
The Information Universe Books
Look it Up in Pathfinder or MELVYL by Author,
Title, or Subject

Doherty, Thomas Patrick. Teenagers and teenpics
the juvenilization of American movies in the
1950s Philadelphia Temple University Press,
2002. UCB Main PN1993.5.U6 D53 2002

15
The Information Universe Finding Articles

• Article Databases (Indexes/Abstracts)
• Allow subject/author searching in a group of
  journals in a particular discipline or topical
  area.
• Produced by different commercial publishers
  often look/act differently from one another.
• Some indexes also offer
• Abstracts
• Full-Text
• UC e-Links

16
All databases are not created equal (or by the
same company)
17

• Two possibilities
• Links you to full-text in ANOTHER article
  database
• Or
• Flips you over to MELVYL so you can locate a
  physical copy of the journal at UCB or elsewhere.

18
Choosing an Articles database (index)

• Look at the listings of article databases
  available via the library www.lib.berkeley.edu
  includes listings by SUBJECT, NAME, etc.
• General Databases are often good places to start
  (particularly for newsy/topical issues)
• Listings of subject-specific electronic resources
  

19

Garys Desert Island Index/Article Database List
No
Now Playing
20
GH Desert Island Index/Article Database List
Current

• Academic Search Complete
• MLA Bibliography
• International Index to the Performing Arts
• JSTOR

No
Now Playing
21
GH Desert Island List Film reviews 1945-1980

• Readers Guide Retrospective
• International Index to the Performing Arts
• JSTOR
• New York Times (ProQuest)
• Periodicals Archive Online

No
Now Playing
Off-line Variety Film Reviews (in MRC)
22
The Information Universe (Now)
Online is Cool

• But Remember Not everything is online!!!!!
• Article Databases Generally only go back 10-20
  yrs online (some exceptions e.g. Historical
  Newspapers)
• Not every publication is indexed
• Fairly small (but rapidly growing) subset of the
  books and journal universe is currently available
  in full-text

23
The Information Universe

• Remember Also
• Not every topic has lots written about it,
  either in books or journal lit.
• --Research on very current topics
• --Research on radically specific topics
• --Research on topics off the beaten academic
  track or off the pop culture radar

24
How to Begin? Before you click THINK

• Formulate a concise, concrete statement of the
  research problem
• Formulate your search in terms of
• keywords and key phrases

The impact of television advertising and
television violence on school performance and
pre-adolesecent social interaction.
25
How to Begin? Before you click THINK

• Think of synonyms for key words/phrases

The impact of television advertising and
television violence on school performance and
pre-adolesecent social interaction.

26
The Information Universe

• What to do if nothing is turning up
• Tweak your topic Broaden it / select a
  different angle
• Rethink your search strategy (new keywords, new
  concepts, etc.)
• Bail out completely and choose another topic

27
A few cautionary words about research on the Net
The Net
Google Rocks!
Google Scholar google.scholar.com
LibraryLand
28
Common Search Features

• Basic and Advanced Search Screens
• Trunction wild card that allows you to scoop
  up broader results or ? Depending on db
• --e.g. Advertis will give you
• advertise,
• advertising,
• advertisers,
• advertisements
• Search by keyword or by phrase
• Search specific fields (e.g., SUBJECT, TITLE)
• Use of AND, OR, NOT
• ltBob Dylan and Robbie Robertsongt
• lt Bob Dylan or Bruce Springsteengt
• lt Bob Dylan not Bruce Springsteen gt

29
Common Search Features --Save list of good
stuff --Mail Articles/Citations to yourself



30
http//www.lib.berkeley.edu/MRC/ FilmBibMenu.htm
l a growing listing of bibliographies on
various film topics and individual films compiled
by MRC (includes bibs for genres, filmmakers,
national cinemas, and individual film).
31
Connecting from off-campus
PROXY Server!
32
being driven over the edge by your
research? Call me Gary Handman 643-8566 ghandman_at_
library.berkeley.edu