Combining and Defining Auteur Film and Film Auteurism

Abstract

This paper provides a concise overview of the history of film as a dynamic visual medium, analyzing European cinema of the nineteenth century and Hollywood films of the 1930s and 1940s. It argues that early films cannot be classified as auteur films due to the lack of a systematic auteur theory guiding their creation. Furthermore, it highlights that although Alfred Hitchcock is widely recognized as the first auteur director of Hollywood cinema, his relationship with producers at the time was notably strained. The paper concludes that the concept of auteur film necessitates that the director is entirely responsible for the artistic achievements of the film and consistently reflects their worldview and philosophy of life in their work. Additionally, auteur theory serves as a logical framework for directors to create films and as a methodology for critics to retrospectively analyze a director’s creative style and interpret their films.