Things You'll Need:
- Internet access
- The ability to travel to archives and libraries
- Inter-library loan
- Access to movies on film, video or DVD
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Step 1
Choose a subject to research. You may want to write a biography of a great director or movie star. Or perhaps you have a specific theme in mind, such as the way World War II has been depicted in films or a study of a particular ethnic group and the way they have been presented in movies.
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Step 2
Determine which movies to watch. Several Internet sites can help you compile a list of related films. The Internet Movie Database, though flawed, is an excellent place to start because you can search it using a variety of keywords that can help you make a very specific list of appropriate movies. The Turner Classic Movies and American Film Institute websites are also excellent and thoughtful sources.
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Step 3
Find the movies and watch them. Unless you live in a city such as Los Angeles or New York that have many venues which show a wide variety of films of all genres and from all periods, you will probably need to travel to appropriate libraries or film archives. These are too numerous to list here, but some of the major film collections which make their films available to researchers are The Library of Congress in Washington DC and the UCLA Film and Television Archive in Los Angeles, California.
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Step 4
Bring the movies to you. Many of the films you will want to see are available on DVD or videocassette. Home video is invaluable to the researcher because it provides the option of watching a film in great depth and detail, as the viewer can start and stop at will and easily run the film back to study a specific scene as many times as necessary. DVDs are available from thousands of sources, but nearly all commercially available DVDs can be rented by mail through Netflix or Blockbuster.
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Step 5
Seek supporting documentation. The Internet will only be somewhat helpful at this stage, as many of the interviews, studio records, memos, production reports and screenplays are available only in libraries or archives. The Library of Congress in Washington DC is an invaluable resource. So are the Margaret Herrick Library of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in Beverly Hills, California and the Lincoln Center Library for the Performing Arts in New York City. These are some of the top libraries for film research but there are literally scores of others which house the papers of a particular star or director or movie studio. An Internet search will help determine where these will be. For example, a search for "Cecil B. DeMille papers" will lead you to Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah.
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Step 6
Interview experts. Nothing will illuminate your project like the personal viewpoints and reminiscences of people involved in your subject. If you are writing about an actor or filmmaker who is still living, try to arrange a series of interviews with that person. Then try to track down others who worked with him or her, or experts on the subject who might give you a fresh insight--and who may lead you to other, perhaps more obscure, people to interview.
