“The Represented Face in Film: A Cognitive Cultural Approach”
The represented face, whether photographed or animated, is so ubiquitous and important to screen narratives that it deserves special consideration. In this talk I define and defend what I call a “cognitive cultural” approach to narrative theory and illustrate its usefulness with an analysis of some key functions of facial representation in The Silence of the Lambs (1991). I begin by arguing that biology and psychology have much to offer studies of visual narrative, using as an example Steven J. Gould’s “A Biological Homage to Mickey Mouse.” I go on to summarize the most important research into the uses of the face in narrative film. My analysis of The Silence of the Lambs, finally, is meant to show that cognitive cultural studies of film, by exploring the intersection of mind, brain, film, and culture, not only helps us understand the film medium generally, but also particular films in their broad social and historical context.
Carl Plantinga is professor of film and media at Calvin College. Among his books are Moving Viewers: American Film and the Spectator’s Experience (2009) and as co-editor, Passinate Views: Film, Cognition, and Emotion (1999). He is currently working on a book entitled Spectator Judge: Affect and Ethics in Narrative Film and Television. Plantinga is past president of the Society for Cognitive Studies of the Moving Image and is Associate Editor of Projections: The Journal for Movies and Mind.
This event is co-sponsored by the Multicultural Center.
More information about Carl Plantinga can be found here.
