Casting a Shadow

"Director Alfred Hitchcock carefully cultivated his reputation as the solitary genius behind his films. In reality Hitchcock was a deeply collaborative artist, working intensely with actors, producers, cinematographers, screenwriters, editors, and production designers to create what the public knew as "an Alfred Hitchcock picture." This illustrated book presents multiple perspectives on Hitchcock as artist and provides a rare view into the working documents - sketches, production and costume designs, drawings, storyboards, and camera-angle diagrams - that helped shape his cinematic style." "With an introduction by Will Schmenner and four original essays from leading film scholars, this volume offers insight into Hitchcock's work and working methods. Scott Curtis examines Hitchcock's cinematic skills through a detailed categorization of the drawings from his productions. Tom Gunning explores Hitchcock the artist by looking at his use of the frame and the art of painting within his movies. Bill Krohn's close reading of I Confess reveals some of the thematic and ideological concerns that occupied Hitchcock. Jan Olsson addresses the strategies Hitchcock used to control his publicity. A combination of images and text, Casting a Shadow reconsiders director Alfred Hitchcock as the shepherd of a collective vision that shaped 20th-century art with some of the most memorable movies of our time."--Jacket.