»Postnaturalism« offers an original account of human-technological co-evolution and argues that film and media theory, in particular, needs to be re-evaluated from the perspective of our material interfaces with a constantly changing environment. Extrapolating from Frankenstein films and the resonances they establish between a hybrid monster and the spectator hooked into the machinery of the cinema, Shane Denson engages debates in science studies and philosophy of technology to rethink histories of cinema, media, technology, and ultimately of the affective channels of our own embodiment. With a foreword by media theorist Mark B. N. Hansen.

Based on extensive original research and filled with gorgeous illustrations, Silent Film Sound reconsiders all aspects of sound practices during the silent film period in America. Beginning with sound accompaniment and continuing through to the more familiar sound practices of the 1920s, renowned film historian Rick Altman discusses the variety of sound strategies cinema exhibitors used to differentiate their products. During the nickelodeon period prior to 1910, this variety reached its zenith with carnival-like music, automatic pianos, small orchestras, lecturers, synchronized sound systems, and voices behind the screen. In the 1910s, musical accompaniment began to support a film's narrative and emotional content, with large theaters and blockbuster productions driving the development of new instruments, new music-publication projects, and a new style of film music. A monumental achievement, Silent Film Sound challenges common assumptions about this period and reveals the complex and swiftly changing nature of silent American cinema.

This book provides needed information on the collaborations between filmmakers and theater personnel before 1930 and completes our understanding of how two art forms influenced each other. It begins with the vaudeville and "faerie" dramas captured in brief films by the Edison and Biograph companies; follows the development of feature-length Sarah Bernhardt and James O'Neill films after 1912; examines the formation of theater/film combination companies in 1914-15; and details later collaborations during the talking picture revolution of 1927. Includes detailed analyses of important theatrical films like The Count of Monte Cristo, The Virginian, Coquette, and Paramount on Parade.