디지털 영화시대의 리얼리즘에 대한 성찰: 바쟁의 리얼리즘 다시 읽기를 통한 우회

Abstract

Over the past decades, digital technology, through its altered features in its relation to the represented objects, has challenged traditional notions of cinematic realism. One of the most frequently discussed models in this context would be Andre Bazin’s emphasis on indexicality in photographic images or the capacity of photographs to evidence the past presence of the pre-filmic event. Noticing that there have been increasing scholarly efforts to reread Bazin’s understanding of realism, this essay seeks to reexamine how realism in film studies has changed along with recent developments in digital technology. More specifically, we refer to Daniel Morgan’s recent study of cinematic realism, which indicates conceptual complexities embedded in the Bazin’s discussion of realism. By suggesting that Bazin’s realism is an effort to convey a certain ambiguity of reality, which is in effect realism itself, Morgan shifts away from the traditional notion of realism, thereby shedding a new light on the discussion of realism and digital technology. It is through Morgan’s suggestion that cinematic realism should be expanded to include “perceptual realism” that digital technology has greatly increased through its technological advance. Also, he highlights that spectators render screen images “realistic” in the context of viewing, thereby bringing spectators to a crucial position in the formation of meaning. Based upon Morgan’s understanding of Bazin’s cinematic realism, this essay seeks to understand how digital technology has expanded the notion of realism. In addition, this essay refers to other scholarly discussions of digital images such as works by Lev Manovich, Stephen Prince, and Gabriel Giralt. In so doing, we seek to showcase how advances in digital technology have maintained, and altered, the boundary of the traditional notion of realism.