Crash Course
Home Video: Crash Course Film History
As the New Hollywood gained steam in the late 70s and early 80s, another revenue stream opened its doors: home video. From Betamax to Laserdisc to Bluray to streaming services, home video revolutionized how we ingest movies. In this...
Crash Course
Marketing: Crash Course Film Production
So you've made a movie. Congrats! But now you have to get people to see it. How you market your movie depends a lot on what your movie is. Is it a massive blockbuster? That means one set of requirements. Is it a small, Indy film? That's...
Crash Course
Movies are Magic: Crash Course Film History
Well, they're not really "magic." Maybe "illusion" is a better way to say it. As we begin this journey of the history of cinema, we need to understand how movies trick our brains into even understanding that a movie is a movie. In this...
Crash Course
World Cinema - Part 1: Crash Course Film History
The world is a big place and cinema isn't limited to just the U.S. and Europe. There are a lot of vibrant and influential film movements and cultures from all over the world. In this episode of Crash Course Film History, Craig talks to...
Crash Course
Independent Cinema: Crash Course Film History
Hollywood was riding high until their formula got to be stale. In places like Italy and France (as well as other places in the world we'll talk about soon) filmmakers were starting to break out of the mold and make daring films that...
Crash Course
The Silent Era: Crash Course Film History
The Silent Era of Hollywood set a lot of things into motion in terms of how movies were made and sold. Big stars were one of the main ways studios tried to make their movies stand apart from one another and get the public to make choices...
Crash Course
Soviet Montage: Crash Course Film History
Russia went and had a revolution in 1917 and cinema was a big part of its aftermath. Even though film stock was hard to come by, we saw the first film school started, and the study of film became hugely important. Russian filmmakers...
Crash Course
Experimental and Documentary Films: Crash Course Film History
It's Craig's last episode of Film and in it he's going to talk about weird stuff... and real stuff. Experimental and Documentary films could each take up their own Crash Course series. The different styles and intents of different...
Crash Course
The Cinematographer: Crash Course Film Production
Who takes the pictures in a movie? Who is responsible for making a movie look good, or creating meaning with light and shadow, or make an action scene clear and thrilling? A lot of the time, that's the job of the cinematographer. In this...
Crash Course
The Birth of the Feature Film: Crash Course Film History
Movies didn't always look like they do now. There was a period (kind of a problematic one) where movies transitioned from short novelties to big, epic, feature films. That's our focus this week as Craig talks to us about the birth of the...
Crash Course
German Expressionism: Crash Course Film History
We've spent a lot of time focusing on France and the U.S. as that's where a significant amount of both infrastructure and business models were initially set up for film. But there were other countries adding their own stories to the...
Crash Course
Where Are My Children: Crash Course Film Criticism
Before the Hayes Code was enacted, movies were a lot more brazen than we sometimes tend to think. Director/Producer Lois Weber spent much of her career making movies that challenged audiences. Her film, "Where Are My Children" is no...
Crash Course
Crash Course Film History Preview
Beginning April 13th, join Craig Benzine (the internet's WheezyWaiter) for 16 weeks of Film History right here on Crash Course. He'll look at the history of one of our most powerful mediums. Film has the ability to communicate with...
Crash Course
Breaking the Silence: Crash Course Film History
Nothing changed movies like the arrival of synchronous sound. NOTHING! Acting, directing, cinematography, and presentation all had to be rethought. Some studios were more quick to take on the challenge while others waited until the last...
Crash Course
The Golden Age of Hollywood: Crash Course Film History
It's time for the glitz and the glamour of big motion pictures that helped keep American spirits up during and after the Great Depression. Sound was a huge change to motion pictures, but there were still a few technological innovations...
Crash Course
Georges Melies - Master of Illusion: Crash Course Film History
After the Lumiere brothers and Thomas Edison got the ball rolling with Vaudeville acts and Actualites, the time was coming for movie magic and fiction to make an appearance. The time was coming of filmmakers like Georges Melies and Alice...
Crash Course
The Language of Film: Crash Course Film History
In this episode of Crash Course Film History, we talk about the development of the language of films by filmmakers like Edwin S. Porter and his films; Life of an American Fireman and The Great Train Robbery.
Crash Course
The Lumiere Brothers: Crash Course Film History
As cinema started to take off, things like "single viewer" devices weren't going to cut it as the medium advanced. In this episode of Crash Course Film History, Craig talks to us about the Lumiere brothers, their invention of the...
Bedtime History
Bruce Lee For Kids
Learn about Bruce Lee, the famous Chinese actor and athlete who amazed audiences across the world with his action-packed films and superhuman martial art abilities.
Wonderscape
Hattie McDaniel: The First Black Oscar Winner
This video tells the story of Hattie McDaniel, the first Black person to win an Academy Award for her role in Gone With the Wind. Learn about her groundbreaking achievements, the criticism she faced, and the barriers she helped to break...
Curated Video
What Does Dirty Dancing Have To Do With Abortion?
This program is a production of Plum Studios and the Center for Asian American Media (CAAM).
PBS
Are Cyborgs Really Monsters?
Advances in technology are always met with some degree of technophobia – and villainization. Anxieties about humans being replaced by machines immediately emerged alongside voices praising their life-enhancing benefits. What is it about...
Great Big Story
How the World_s First Movie Star Changed Cars Forever
Uncover the tale of Florence Lawrence, a silent film star and the inventor of the turn signal for cars.
PBS
The Wilhelm Scream and Iconic Sounds of Horror Cinema (feat. Monstrum's Emily Zarka)
You may not know their names, but the theremin and the wilhelm scream are ubiquitous in horror films. Today, Danielle and special guest Dr. Emily Zarka tell the spooky tales of how these iconic sounds ended up in your favorite movies!