Review of Cinematic Storytelling by Jennifer Van Sijl (2005)

Patrick Charsky

11/6/2019

Cinematic Storytelling is a book about the nuts and bolts of making a film. If you ever wonder how films are shot or put together this book is an introductory text that shows how it’s done. The book was published in 2005 and has become a bestseller. Written by Jennifer Van Sijl who is an award-winning filmmaker and film Professor. The book is meant to educate filmmakers and film students in the conventions of making films. The book can be used by film professionals and film students alike.

The book’s structure is built around 100 film conventions that filmmaker’s need to know. Each convention is presented with an explanation, an example and an excerpt from the script along with shots from the film. The explanations are short and to the point. The illustrations show the important parts of the film. I found the excerpts and shots from the film to be very useful and much better than other books who present only cartoon illustrations.

The structure of the book is a major positive. I am an advanced beginner who doesn’t know a whole lot about cinematography. After this book I felt like I had upped my level of understanding with regards to filmmaking techniques. The book is not authoritative like some books about a specific text on a topic like editing, cinematography, or props, the book does introduce each topic and educates the reader to a sufficient level. It inspired me to look into other aspects of filmmaking that the book alluded to.

The books explanations are clear and succinct. I enjoyed reading each convention and found the information easily understandable from a non-specialist point of view. I’m a screenwriter and this book showed me how films are shot, edited, and made in a variety of ways. I found the explanations easy to understand with ample illustrations, excerpts, and frame grabs from great movies. The explanations were detailed, but not overwhelming. They educated and will serve as reference points for my efforts to produce films.

Some of the explanations seemed redundant. I found some conventions to be repeated when they didn’t have to be. I also found some of the explanations to be hard to understand. Aside from this the book had few flaws. It was well made, structured, and explained. A great text.

The book should appeal to filmmakers and film students alike. Filmmakers will find this book useful because it explains useful conventions to use when writing or shooting films. Film students should find the book useful in its explanations of films. And its use of great films to illustrate the points made in the book. A very useful text.