History of the French New Wave

At about mid-20th century cinema movement which emerged some very influential on the development of film industry in the world. One of the cinema movement of the largest and most influential at that time was the French New Wave. French New Wave was pioneered by such names, François Truffaut, Jean-Luc Godard, Claude Chabrol, Eric Rohmer and Jacques Rivette. Unlike other cinema movement, French New Wave originally came from the young critics who likes to write in a journal influential cinema in Paris named, Cahiers du Cinema. Truffaut and his colleagues have extensively covered the works of such great director, Alfred Hitchcock, John Ford, Orson Welles, Jean Renoir, Roberto Rosselini and dub them as an auteur. They greatly admired auteur because each has a personal vision so that the films they have distinctive features and unique characteristics. Critics are also fond of young people to criticize mainstream French films of the time that they consider too much emphasis on the storyline without any cinematic vision.

 Not satisfied with simply doing them eventually provoked criticism also to produce films. They help each other to lend money, cameras and equipment, exchanging scripts and began making short films in locations around them. Armed with knowledge of cinema that they have no thought at last they are able to produce unique works that are considered a breakthrough in the history of cinema. Films such as The 400 Blows (Truffaut), Les Cousins (Chabrol) and Breathless (Godard) marks the emergence of a new cinema movement called French New Wave. The films are not only commercial success but also succeeded in making a variety of international recognition until the movement is not only influential in France but also spread throughout Europe until the whole world. French films of New Wave in general have unique characteristics such as, the use of documentary-style hand camera, a minimal production budget, using a rough script, the film crew are small, the use of non-professional or amateur actors, filmed in real locations (non-studio ) and they work outside the mainstream film industry.

The theme of the films are influenced French New Wave films or director who becomes their favorite. As many Chabrol films inspired by the work of Hitchcock, while Godard inspired many of the classic gangster movies of Hollywood. But the privilege of French New Wave is not visible from the theme but rather to the technical aspects. Some observers have commented on the film The 400 Blows a theme considered is not something new. Godard defended his colleague, not a matter (theme) that makes the film special but how those materials are treated or in other words not the content is important, but stressed on how to package the contents. In Breathless, Godard uses the theme of simple criminal filmed on the streets, cafes and apartments in the city of Paris. Godard uses only makeshift lighting contained in the set. He also sometimes let his players to improvise with the dialogue. Last Godard uses his trademark editing style, jump-cut to make into a film Breathless is a very unique and the subject of debate watchers cinema everywhere.

The influence of French New Wave until now have never lost. Practically every independent film that exist around the world to some extent influenced by this movement. This is evident with the emergence of independent cinema movement in the United States, Britain, Germany and others just a few years after the French New Wave movement emerged. Great directors of today like, Martin Scorcese, Robert Altman, Steven Soderberg, until Quentin Tarantino often uses elements that appear in films French New Wave. French New Wave movement not only offers valuable works of art and the original film but more than that could indicate that the reform and development in the field of film industry can also be done by young men brave and talented which is based only from their love of cinema. Godard had once said, "We are all critics before making movies. And I love all kinds of filmSinemalah that makes us or at least I wish to make a movie. I did not know anything about life except through cinema "