Drama Sci Fi Flashcards
The Term “Science Fiction”:
The realm of science fiction is the realm of the imagination. Without imagination there would be no fiction, hence no Sci-Fi.
Criteria for a successful Science Fiction Film:
Man vs. Some sort of technology. This does not have to be the Root Conflict, but must be integral to the plot.
The film must take advantage of modern film technology. Special effects
Must incorporate a love interest or humanity. Ex. 2001 - Humanity; Star Trek - Every green woman and Kirk
o Romance brings a human element to a script that demands technology.
o Romance equates female interest
History of Science Fiction:
Science Fiction is a form of literature that has been propelled by the advances in science and technology. From the moment
we looked into the heavens man has imagined many things. As a means of understanding the world through speculation and
storytelling, science fiction has antecedents back to mythology, though precursors to science fiction as literature began to
emerge during the Age of Reason with the development of science itself.
The history of Sci-Fi is the history of humanities changing attitudes toward the world, time and space. It is the history of our
growing understanding of the universe. The more we understand about technology, the more we expand Sci-Fi film plots.
o First public viewing of a film was shown on running water to avoid burning the screen
o First audience to see a filmed train dove out of their seats to avoid it.
The Earliest Science Fiction Films:
First Sci-Fi film was A Trip to the Moon (1902). Based on the picture to the side, the film was
not viewing technology or space travel too seriously.
Metropolis (1925) was the first film to view science seriously.
o It showed a future society that was dark and gloomy.
o Most influential Sci-Fi film to date. Most of today’s Sci-Fi films are influenced by it.
o For the next few years, most Sci-Fi films were just as dark, until the stock market crash
of 1929. As a result most audiences felt their current life was dark and bleak. They did
not want to watch films with a future that was the same. They wanted escapism.
Escapist Serials of the 30s:
King Kong (1933) is considered to be one of the greatest fantasy films of all time. It is not Sci-Fi, because Kong’s are just that
big, not as a result of science. It did, however, prove that audiences wanted escapism. Sci-Fi makers would have to adapt.
Sci-Fi serials became very popular
o Low-budget, less-serious, space exploration tales with cliff-hanger Saturday matinees
o No harsh views of the future. Instead, they were films that were very optimistic, and marketed to younger audience.
o Comic book heroes were the popular subjects, such as Flash Gordon and Buck Rogers.
o In the 1950’s, these Sci-Fi serials were shown on television and are the direct cause of filmmaking interest for Lucas
and Spielberg
The Golden Age of Science Fiction Films:
After a dry period during the war years, science fiction films took off during what has been dubbed “the Golden Age of
Science Fiction Films,” although many of the 50s exploitative, second-rate sci-fi flicks had corny dialogue, poor screenplays,
bad acting, and amateurish production values. In response to a growing interest in rocketry and space
Three reasons for the boom of Sci-Fi films in the 1950’s
o Cold war tensions with the Soviet Union gave fuel to thought of a post nuclear world.
o Real human progress in space gave speculation to space travel and the possibilities of aliens from Mars.
o The new knowledge of radiation (due to Hiroshima and Nagasaki) gave rise to many mutant films.
H. G. Wells’ Time Machine and War of the Worlds were two top films of this time.
o Wells is considered to be the Father of Science Fiction.
The Day the Earth Stood Still was an important film due to the twist of having the military as the instigator of the conflict and
the scientists resolving the issue. All Sci-Fi films prior to this had the roles reversed
The Decline of the Sci-Fi Genre:
The 1960’s saw a decline in science fiction genre, due to three reasons.
o Man walked on the moon. Space travel was not as exciting.
o Our heroes of the 1960’s were our astronauts, and three died in an accident. Sci-Fi films reminded us of this.
o A huge influx of Sci-Fi series on television. Why pay for it when it is free?
Two popular Sci-Fi films made during the 1960’s:
o 2001: A Space Odyssey – Amazing special effects
o Planet of the Apes – Advances in make-up
The Rise of the Sci-Fi Genre in the Late 1970’s:
Sci-Fi films were generally unpopular until a sleeper hit in 1977 revitalized the genre, Star Wars.
If Star Wars can make money, “Lets find Shatner!”
o They found him working community theatre, traveling small town to small town
o Living in people’s driveways
o Nimoy makes a deal for past monies lost.
o The Star Trek franchise was reborn.
Television also had a rebirth with The Six Million Dollar Man, Bionic Woman, Battlestar Galactica, Buck Rogers, Space
1999, etc
