Edited and written by leading authors in the field, this book offers an examination of American independent cinema through four sections that range in focus from broad definitions to close focus on particular manifestations of independence.

Elusive, subtle, and atmospheric, Lost in Translation was one of the indie hits of 2004, but what was the basis of the film's appeal and how exactly was it marked as distinctly independent? Considering industrial factors, such as strategies in funding and release, to the role of star performance and formal qualities, including the film's low key narrative structure and impressionistic use of visual imagery and sound, this book provides an in-depth analysis of the film's balance of the mainstream from a leading authority on recent and contemporary American independent cinema.

Demonstrates that indie productions continue to thrive, even in the face of difficult economic circumstances. This book explores opportunities for indie films, including the use of low-cost digital video and the pursuit of the internet and social media as alternative means of funding, distribution, promotion and sales.

This book focuses on key formal aspects of video games and the experiences and pleasures offered by the activities they require of the player. A wide range of games are considered, from first-person shooters to third-person action-adventures, strategy, sports-related and role-playing games. Lively and accessible in style, this book is written for both an academic readership and the wider audience of gamers and those interested in popular culture.

What makes today's Hollywood films so successful? Is it the sheer scale of special effects that gives films like ""Jurassic Park"" or ""The Matrix"" their mass audience appeal? Geoff King looks at the underexplored dynamic relationship between narrative and spectacle in contemporary Hollywood cinema. He uses the myth of the American frontier against a range of Hollywood filmsand drawes examples from the digital-effects-based and virtual-reality spectacles, space fictions, action films, war epics and disaster films that now dominate cinema.

This title looks at Hollywood from the Renaissance of the 1960s to the current dominance of the corporate blockbuster. It discusses diverse films, focusing on the interactions between different levels - including the impact on Hollywood of television and advertising.

This book charts the dimensions of one of the most popular genres in the cinema. From lurid comic-book blockbusters to dark dystopian visions, science fiction is seen as both a powerful cultural barometer of our times and the product of particular industrial and commercial frameworks. The authors outline the major themes of the genre, from representations of the mad scientist and computer hacker to the relationship between science fiction and postmodernism, exploring issues such as the meaning of special effects and the influence of science fiction cinema on the entertainment media of the...

Demonstrates that indie productions continue to thrive, even in the face of difficult economic circumstances. This book explores opportunities for indie films, including the use of low-cost digital video and the pursuit of the internet and social media as alternative means of funding, distribution, promotion and sales.

What defines quality in contemporary Hollywood film? Although often seen as inhospitable to such work, the studios of the blockbuster-franchise era continue to produce features that make claims to higher status. Films such as The Social Network, The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford and Mystic River are marked as distinctive from the mainstream norm. But how exactly, and how are such qualities mixed with more familiar Hollywood ingredients, as found in larger doses in other examples such as Blood Diamond and the blockbuster-scale Inception?Quality Hollywood is the first...