
A Chronology of Film
A Cultural Timeline From the Magic Lantern to the Digital Screen
WW Norton · Print & ebook · May 27, 2025
An entirely new and delightful perspective on the history of cinema, this illustrated volume uses timelines to trace its development from the earliest moving images to now.
We earn from qualifying purchases.
- Who it’s for
- Timelines connect film milestones with technical, social, and artistic change.
- Themes
- Cinema history, Film and society, Technical innovation
- Genres
- Film History
Nearest books
Matched by what the books are about, then ordered by what their readers also loved. Most of these share its genre: Film History.
The Last Kings of HollywoodPaul Fischer53% match
The Making of Quentin Tarantino's Once Upon a Time in HollywoodJay Glennie, Quentin Tarantino48% match
We Are the MutantsKelly Roberts, Michael Grasso48% match
In the Scene: Jane CampionEllen Cheshire48% match
For younger readers: Film Makers, Imperialism, Digital Filmmaking for Kids for Dummies
Start with three books, and this one can be the first.
Members get a new edition every morning: a route out from their books to essays, research and talks, with the reason for each.
Start with this bookAbout this book
An entirely new and delightful perspective on the history of cinema, this illustrated volume uses timelines to trace its development from the earliest moving images to now. A Chronology of Film presents a fresh perspective on the medium by tracing the complex links between technical innovations, social changes, and artistic interventions in the order that they occurred.
Continue reading
Organized around a central timeline that charts the development of film from the earliest moving images to present-day blockbusters, this volume features key films, film commentaries, and contextual information about the period in which they were produced. By revealing the social, political, and cultural environments in which these films were created, this book reveals new insights into great directors like Alfred Hitchcock, Federico Fellini, Francis Ford Coppola, Martin Scorsese, Jane Campion, Barry Jenkins, Pedro Almodo´var, and Bong Joon-ho and films such as Bonnie and Clyde, The Godfather, Moonlight, and Parasite. The book features lavish film stills, commentaries, and lively “In Focus” features with information about the social, stylistic, technical, political, and cultural events of each period.
Cinema on a Timeline
Timelines connect film milestones with technical, social, and artistic change.
Come here for
- A central timeline from early moving images to today
- Commentaries on key films
Expect
- Context on the periods in which films were produced
- In Focus features on social, stylistic, technical, political, and cultural events
Where it sits
| Film History | 97% |
|---|
Percentages are BookFrontier’s reading of the book.
Publisher categories
- Film & Video Art
- Film & Cinema
- Film Guides & Reviews
- Authors
- Ian Haydn Smith
- Publisher
- WW Norton
- Published
- May 27, 2025
- Format
- Print & ebook
- Theme
- Cinema history · Film and society · Technical innovation
- Reading lane
- Film & Video Art