Alfred Hitchcoc

k:A Brief Biography

Auteur Theory

SummaryThe Auteur will…“…show a consistency in style and theme”;“…transcend the script by imposing his or her

own style and vision”;…not rely on stars or genre conventions; and…avoid the practice of technical transposition

of script to screen

Remember: Artist vs. Technician

Good evening…

Fun Facts…ish• August 13 1899 – April 29 1980

• Raised as a strict Catholic• Interest in film began around age

16• First worked as an “estimator for

the Henley Telegraph and Cable Company.”

• At a young age, Hitchcock was put in a jail cell by his father as a warning/punishment for bad behavior

Film Career• Found work with Lasky Studios as a title designer

• First directing assignment came with Number 13 (1922) when Lasky studio execs saw promise in him after he took over for an ill director while working on another film (Always Tell Your Wife)

• Career stretched over 50 years with over 60 films as director and work on four TV series (can still see The Alfred Hitchcock Hour on TV)

• Breakout film was The Lodger (1927), a story based on Jack the Ripper

Film Career• Many films are adaptations of novels, short

stories, or other literary sources (Psycho, Rebecca, The Birds, Rear Window, Rope, etc.)

• Nominated for five Best Director Oscars (Psycho, Rear Window, Spellbound, Lifeboat, and Rebecca) – but never won (Academy fail)

• Won 29 other awards – including many Lifetime Achievement awards from various organizations

• Worked with his wife Alma Reville on most films; she worked on the film’s continuity

Film Characteris

tics• Primary Themes in His Work:

1) Wrongful imprisonment/the “wrong man”2) Shared guilt3) Confession of guilt4) The perfect murder

• The Three “Worlds” in His Work1) The world of the mundane (everyday life)2) The world of subjective desire3) The intellectual world

Film Characteris

tics• Stylistic Unity in Hitchcock’s Work

1) Emphasis on editing and montage2) High number of point of view (POV) shots3) Shooting in a confined space

• Narrative Techniques1) Focus on protagonist as he carries out an

investigation2) The protagonist comes under

investigation

Films of Study: Vote!

Dial “M” for MurderLifeboat

The Man Who Knew Too MuchNorth by Northwest

Rear WindowRope

Shadow of a DoubtVertigo

ReferencesBuckland, Warren (2003). Teach

yourself film studies. Chicago: McGraw-Hill. P. 86-91

Needham, Col. (2011). “Alfred Hitchcock Biography.” IMDB.com. Retrieved 3 March 2011 from http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000033/bio