Performing Arts

During the heyday of the studio system spanning the 1930s, ‘40s, and ‘50s, virtually all the American motion picture industry’s money, power, and prestige came from a single activity: selling tickets at the box office. Today, the movie business is just a small, highly visible outpost in a media universe controlled by six corporations–Sony, Time Warner, NBC Universal, Viacom, Disney, and NewsCorporation. more...

Price: $9.95

A naked-truth collection of interviews with today’s hottest film directors detailing how they made their first films and "broke into" the movie industry. When Nicholas Jarecki graduated from New York University’s film school at the age of nineteen, he knew that he wanted to make movies, but the fortress-like wall around the film industry proved hard to crack. more...

Price: $9.95

Directing: Film Techniques and Aesthetics is a comprehensive manual that has inspired tens of thousands of readers worldwide to realize their artistic vision and produce well-constructed films. Filled with practical advice on every stage of production, this is the book you will return to throughout your career. Directing covers the methods, technologies, thought processes, and judgments that a director must use throughout the fascinating process of making a film. It emphasizes low-cost digital technology, which allows cutting-edge creativity and professionalism on shoestring budgets. And, recognizing that you learn best by doing, the book includes dozens of practical hands-on projects and activities to help you master technical and conceptual skills. Just as important as surmounting technological hurdles is the conceptual and authorial side of filmmaking. This book provides an unusually clear view of the artistic process, particularly in working with actors. It offers eminently practical tools and exercises to help you develop credible and compelling stories with your cast, hone your narrative skills, and develop your artistic identity. This book shows you how to surpass mere technical proficiency and become a storyteller with a distinctive voice and style. This edition has been streamlined and thoroughly revised for greater ease of use. Other updates include:. * current information on digital technology. * an expanded section on directing actors that cross-references thirty exercises. * new questionnaires to help you pinpoint a film's aesthetic needs and assess where your vocational strengths lie; and much more. more...

Price: $49.95

The same thorough, practical handbook updated with the latest forms and technological advances in film production more...

Price: $34.95

From America’s most trusted and best-known film critic, one hundred brilliant essays on the films that define for him cinematic greatness. For the past five years Roger Ebert, the famed film writer and critic, has been writing biweekly essays for a feature called "The Great Movies," in which he offers a fresh and fervent appreciation of a great film. more...

Price: $9.95