Ryan's Blogland: Collages / Montage Theory

Collage

Collage in traditional terms, means “to glue”, and dates back to 200 BCE in China. It surfaced again in the 10^th, 13^th, 15^th, 16^th and 19^th centuries in a variety of other places. Nowadays, collage has exploded in our society, from traditional collages with paintings and photomontages, to digital, literal, and musical collages. Photo-collages can be useful for grouping memories within a lifetime, whereas digital collages can be used to overload society’s consumers with commercial information. We are surrounded by collages everyday whether you know it or not, for example, the walls of my room come together as a collage filled with posters, pictures, paint textures, and corkboard. Altogether, the collage that the walls of my room produce is a representation of my living space.

Sergei Eisenstein

I found that the wiki biography of Eisenstein presented him as a total failure. To see at the end that he was capable of realizing 17 films, (not all finished) nonetheless that is an accomplishment in itself. There seemed to be much conflict with Eisenstein and his filmmaking methods between him and the USSR, Mexico, as well as the United States. The fact that he was clear in his methods of producing film, made Eisenstein a revolutionary visionary for the film industry worldwide, however, this sternness in his beliefs on how to create a proper film brought along conflict with the USSR’s government. Also, after losing the deal he had made in the United Sates, as Paramount Pictures did not like his script, he “failed” once more by not completing his Mexico film “Que Viva Mexico,” I believe that the fact that he didn’t have any clear ideas on the film’s structure lead him to believe he could not be replaced, since he was guaranteed freedom to pursue this project as he saw fit. Stalin was able to prove him incorrect by ordering his return to the USSR.

Soviet Montage Theory

Eisenstein introduced the five methods of montage as follows:

Metric
Rhythmic
Tonal
Overtonal
Intellectual

I believe these methods are used as the foundation of modern films. Now that I am aware of these methods, I can apply them to the films I’ve seen, as well as the videos I’ve produced. In the wiki example of Metric from Eseinstein’s “Oktober” it is quite clear that there is no direct relation to the frame at which it switches from the first clip where the small people are running around in a panic away from gunfire, to the second clip where the gunner is firing. The point is that it toggles back and forth between those clips not specifying the image presented in their own respective clips, but switching back and forth like that informs the audience visually. Now that I can think in terms of methods of montage, I believe I have used Rhythmic montage in my video “Frenemies” (click here to see) in the scene where Ricardo is in the bar taking shots of vodka. The character is seen consuming shots of vodka at an alarming pace from a multitude of angles. The Tonal montage encapsulates the emotion of the images presented. Whereas the Overtonal montage uses all of the previously mentioned methods of montage and simulates a collage within itself to create a complex emotionally-tied experience for the audience. Finally the intellectual montage is when the filmmaker uses a collage of images to produce an abstract idea. Such as the scene in “The Matrix Revolutions” where Neo is propped up in the form of a cross just like the symbol of Christianity (Jesus propped on the crucifix).

Collages Chosen:

Ipod Collage - Commercial Use