THE EXPRESSION OF THE POLITICAL IN FRENCH CINEMA THE TECHNIQUES OF REALISM AND FANTASY FOR THE EXPRESSION OF THE POLITICAL IN FRENCH CINEMA FROM ITS ORIGINS TO THE NEW WAVE By

ii This study examines the relationship between film techniques and politics in French cinema. The first filmmakers established the basic techniques of cinema, using realism to record events, and fantasy to create amusements. Narrative film developed as a combination of these techniques. Cinema of the twenties was closely associated with the European art movements of Dadaism, Surrealism and Expressionism. By the thirties, the political polarisation and the threat of a second World War caused filmmakers to project political opinions and to portray societal problems. Narrative film became an important means of influencing public opinion, although not always in the directions intended. With the New Wave, autobiographical content and