Format: hybrid (in person and online)
Language: russian, english
Mail: aftertheoryafterfilmtape@gmail.com
Organizers:
Elizaveta Berestova, graduate of the Faculty of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Saint Petersburg State University; MA student at ITMO University (Digital Methods in Humanities Research)

Sofia Gabbasova, graduate of the Faculty of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Saint Petersburg State University; MA student at European University at St. Petersburg (Museum Studies and Curatorial Strategies)

Caprari Stefania, graduate of the Faculty of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Saint Petersburg State University; MA student at Saint Petersburg State University (Theory and History of Art (with additional qualification “Museum Curator”))

Three “Grand Theories”— psychoanalysis, semiotics, and Marxism — dominated the academic field in the third quarter of the last century. Film theory was not an exception and also fell under their sway. Films began to be decomposed into signs, viewed as conduits of ideology, and seen as representations of psychoanalytic concepts, regardless of whether the director was familiar with the name of Jacques Lacan or not.

However, it gradually became clear that theory was becoming self-referential, and films were turning into a site for structuralist battles. A major update in theoretical thought was already underway in the 1980s. Examples include the two volumes of Gilles Deleuze’s Cinema and the direct criticism of “the Grand Theories” in the collection of essays Post-Theory: Reconstructing Film Studies, published in 1996 and edited by David Bordwell and Noël Carroll.

However, another player entered the game, one that also decided to “rebuild” film theory: digital technology. This innovation began to be actively introduced into the filmmaking process in the 1990s, and its use ultimately led to the loss of indexicality in cinema, which was previously praised by André Bazin and other proponents of ontological film theory. Now a film is no longer a “frame” and not even a “window” that could allow the spectator to focus on a fragment of “the true reality.”

In addition, technology itself is not entirely stable. In the 1990s and early 2000s, it tended to help create a semblance of realism — here, one might recall the special effects in Jurassic Park or The Matrix. However, in recent years, there has been a growing attraction to deliberately artificial images, such as those in films produced by A24 studio. There has also been some further notable development of computer programs responsible for visual effects, and the scope of artificial intelligence has expanded — and, as a result, the familiar concept of “cinema” continues to elude us.

These theoretical and technical shifts raise a number of important questions in film theory. Should we change the way we talk about the essence of cinema if images no longer have indexicality? What new approaches to film analysis can be used to prevent the discussion of theory from becoming self-referential? Or could “Grand Theories” still be useful in discussions of modern cinema in case they are applied “moderately”?

We invite you to discuss these and other questions in our section. Perhaps you were impressed by a particular film that was recently released, and you were able to translate your thoughts about it into a methodological approach. Or maybe you have come up with a third type of image, continuing Deleuze’s idea, like Patricia Pisters or Steven Shaviro? We also welcome interdisciplinary presentations if, for example, cinema is part of your broader field of interest!

Olga Davydova, PhD (Cultural Studies), lecturer at State University of Film and Television and ITMO University, author of the book Evolution of Nonfiction Film, or How to Watch Documentaries. Fields of interest: film theory, photography research.

Lev Manovich, media researcher and theorist, Presidential Professor at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York, author of the books "The Language of New Media", "Software Culture Theory", and "Artificial Aesthetics: Generative AI, Art and Visual Media".