Film Research: The Basics

1. Film Research: The Basics Gary Handman ghandman@library.berkeley.edu 3-8666

2. Film Research: The Basics Gary Handman ghandman@library.berkeley.edu 3-8566

3. The point of all this... • Describes organization of library information • Point out some unique aspects of film as a research topic • Discuss how to select article databases (and determine what’s in them) • Discuss how to develop search strategies • Introduce a group of basic moves and features common to many online catalogs and indexes. • Practice using these features in selected databases

4. The Information Universe What Does It Contain?

5. The Information Universe • Books • Journals (Magazines) & Newspapers • Government docs • Maps • Media (video, sound recording, etc.) • Computer files (e.g. CD-ROMS, data files) • Dissertations • Manuscripts • & THE WEB… The guy next to me is soooo hot!

6. Not all books or journals are created equal Why/when books? Why/when journals The Information Universe

7. Writing About Film… Scholarly/ In-depth Current Pop and fan Historical Industry

8. Sources for Film & Scholarship and Research • Periodicals (aka magazines, journals, serials) • Newspapers • Pop periodicals: Reviews • Scholarly and professional periodicals • Reviews • Critical analysis/scholarly writing • Books • From schlocky to scholarly • Biography, genre writing, individual films, individual directors • Web Sites (more about this later…) • Other online databases

9. Periodical Articles: Reviews? Critical Writing? What’s the diff? • Reviews: • Assessment of aesthetic and content merits of a film • Found in popular periodicals, film periodicals, and (less often) in more scholarly journals • In pop periodicals: Current and Historical (older) • Usually cover current releases, more pop theatrical releases • Tend to be relatively short and relatively superficial (with some exceptions and depending on the publication and who’s doing the writing) • Interesting sources of info about audience reception and “current think”

10. Periodical Articles:Reviews? Critical Writing? What’s the Diff? • Critical analysis: • Discuss films in: • broader historical, cultural, political, artistic context and/or • Focus on a specific aspect of a film, film genre, or filmmaker • Found in books and scholarly or film-related journals • Tend to be longer, more substantive than reviews (with some exceptions and depending on the publication and who’s doing the writing) • Often include notes, bibliographies, other scholarly apparatus

11. …But how do you locate this stuff? Robert DeNiro Taxi Driver

12. The Information Universe Library Catalog(s) Journal/Newspaper Indexes (article databases)

13. OskiCat: UCB Library holdings only • MELVYL (CDL cat): All 9 UC Campuses Library Catalog(s) • An inventory of what the library owns • Search by Author, Title, Subject • Whole books and print and electronic journals, NOT what’s inside of those publications

14. The Information Universe: Books Call # Get da Book in da Stax Look it Up in Pathfinder or MELVYL by Author, Title, or Subject: Doherty, Thomas Patrick. Teenagers and teenpics: the juvenilization of American movies in the 1950s Philadelphia : Temple University Press, 2002. UCB Main PN1993.5.U6 D53 2002

15. The Information Universe: Finding Articles • Article Databases (Indexes/Abstracts) • Allow subject/author searching in a group of journals in a particular discipline or topical area. • Produced by different commercial publishers; often look/act differently from one another. • Some indexes also offer: • Abstracts • Full-Text • UC e-Links

16. All databases are not created equal (or by the same company)… full text! links to UCB holdings

17. Two possibilities: • Links you to full-text in ANOTHER article database • Or • Flips you over to MELVYL so you can locate a physical copy of the journal at UCB or elsewhere.

18. Choosing an Articles database (index) • Look at the listings of article databases available via the library www.lib.berkeley.edu: includes listings by SUBJECT, NAME, etc. • General Databases are often good places to start (particularly for newsy/topical issues) • Listings of subject-specific electronic resources

19. Gary’s Desert Island Index/Article Database List No Now Playing

20. GH Desert Island Index/Article Database List: Current • Academic Search Complete • MLA Bibliography • International Index to the Performing Arts • JSTOR No Now Playing

21. GH Desert Island List: Film reviews 1945-1980 • Readers Guide Retrospective • International Index to the Performing Arts • JSTOR • New York Times (ProQuest) • Periodicals Archive Online No Now Playing Off-line: Variety Film Reviews (in MRC)

22. The Information Universe (Now) Online is Cool • But Remember: Not everything is online!!!!!: • Article Databases: Generally only go back 10-20 yrs online (some exceptions – e.g. Historical Newspapers) • Not every publication is indexed • Fairly small (but rapidly growing) subset of the books and journal universe is currently available in full-text

23. The Information Universe • Remember Also: • Not every topic has lots written about it, either in books or journal lit. • --Research on very current topics • --Research on radically specific topics • --Research on topics off the beaten academic track or off the pop culture radar

24. How to Begin? Before you click: THINK • Formulate a concise, concrete statement of the research problem • Formulate your search in terms of • keywords and key phrases: The impact of televisionadvertising and television violence on school performanceandpre-adolesecentsocial interaction.

25. Commercials Ads …etc. Children Youth Adolescents …etc. Academic achievement Grades …etc. Socialization, relationships, peer interaction…etc. Media TV…etc How to Begin? Before you click: THINK • Think of synonyms for key words/phrases The impact of televisionadvertising and television violence on school performanceandpre-adolesecentsocial interaction.

26. The Information Universe • What to do if nothing is turning up: • Tweak your topic: Broaden it / select a different angle • Rethink your search strategy (new keywords, new concepts, etc.) • Bail out completely and choose another topic

27. A few cautionary words about research on the Net The Net Google Rocks! Google Scholar google.scholar.com LibraryLand

28. Common Search Features: • Basic and Advanced Search Screens • Trunction: “wild card” that allows you to scoop up broader results:*# or ? Depending on db • --e.g.: Advertis* will give you: • advertise, • advertising, • advertisers, • advertisements • Search by keyword or by phrase • Search specific fields (e.g., SUBJECT, TITLE) • Use of AND, OR, NOT • <Bob Dylan and Robbie Robertson> • < Bob Dylan or Bruce Springsteen> • < Bob Dylan not Bruce Springsteen >

29. Common Search Features: --Save list of good stuff --Mail Articles/Citations to yourself

30. http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/MRC/ • FilmBibMenu.html • a growing listing of bibliographies on various film topics and individual films compiled by MRC (includes bibs for genres, filmmakers, national cinemas, and individual film).

31. Connecting from off-campus PROXY Server!

32. …being driven over the edge by your research? Call me: Gary Handman 643-8566 ghandman@library.berkeley.edu