Film is not, as is often assumed, a language in which certain combinations of signs refer to certain concepts and in which series of combinations of signs can be arranged into a syntaxis. Film has no sign and no significance. The sentence "John is a villain" cannot be converted into a combination of cinematic signs. It is possible, however, to use a camera to show John kicking a dog. Then it is immediately obvious that John is a villain. People who refer to film as a language are essentially referring to a limited number of signals to which there are a limited number of conditioned responses. John kicks dog = evil, mother kisses child = love, hand shakes hand = brotherhood of man. These signals have nothing to do with film itself. If John kicks a dog on the street, people will think he's evil even without the help of cinematic language. The film is an instrument for the registration, reinforcement and distribution of the signal. All it can do is show, but it can show anything, in any way. Linked to the notion of a film language with its own grammar, there are the film "laws" to be adhered to. These laws stipulate what is allowed and what isn't, mainly what isn't. Certain critics, experts and pseudo-experts invariably cite them as veritable prohibitions. The notion of film language and film laws make a lot of people find the bad films good and the good films bad. Fortunately, neither film laws nor film language exist. Anything goes. Art from Now (Kunst van Nu), August 1963 © 1999 Johan van der Keuken
Film Is Not a Language
Film is not, as is often assumed, a language in which certain combinations of signs refer to certain concepts and in which series of combinations of signs can be arranged into a syntaxis. Film has no sign and no significance. The sentence "John is a villain" cannot be converted into a combination of cinematic signs. It is possible, however, to use a camera to show John kicking a dog. Then it is immediately obvious that John is a villain. People who refer to film as a language are essentially referring to a limited number of signals to which there are a limited number of conditioned responses. John kicks dog = evil, mother kisses child = love, hand shakes hand = brotherhood of man. These signals have nothing to do with film itself. If John kicks a dog on the street, people will think he's evil even without the help of cinematic language. The film is an instrument for the registration, reinforcement and distribution of the signal. All it can do is show, but it can show anything, in any way. Linked to the notion of a film language with its own grammar, there are the film "laws" to be adhered to. These laws stipulate what is allowed and what isn't, mainly what isn't. Certain critics, experts and pseudo-experts invariably cite them as veritable prohibitions. The notion of film language and film laws make a lot of people find the bad films good and the good films bad. Fortunately, neither film laws nor film language exist. Anything goes. Art from Now (Kunst van Nu), August 1963 © 1999 Johan van der Keuken