The Cinema and Its Shadow: Race and Technology in Early Cinema

(Paperback)

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The Cinema and Its Shadow argues that race has defined the cinematic apparatus since the earliest motion pictures, especially at times of technological transition. In particular, this work explores how racial difference became central to the resolving of cinematic problems: the stationary camera, narrative form, realism, the synchronization of image and sound, and, perhaps most fundamentally, the immaterial imagethe cinema's "shadow," which figures both the material reality of the screen image and its racist past.

Reviews

"The Cinema and Its Shadow will make it impossible to teach and write about the narrative/technological history of cinema without paying attention to race. This is a wonderful book."Sabine Haenni, author of The Immigrant Scene: Ethnic Amusements in New York, 1880-1920

"An excellent volume for anyone interested in early cinema, racial representation, and cinematic technology."CHOICE

"Alice Maurices scholarship is deftly written and phenomenally useful to those who study American racism."Journal of American Culture

"Presents a challenging and unique approach not only to black film studies and Asian film studies but also to the study of cinema as a whole."Black Camera

Author Bio

Alice Maurice is associate professor of English at the University of Toronto. Her articles have appeared in journals including Camera Obscura, Moving Image, and Cinema Journal.