Sponsored film
Encyclopedia
Sponsored film, or ephemeral film, as defined by film archivist Rick Prelinger
, is film made by a particular sponsor for a specific purpose other than as a work of art: the films were designed to serve a specific pragmatic purpose for a limited time. Many sponsored, or ephemeral, films are also orphan works, since they lack copyright owners or active custodians to guarantee their long-term preservation.
The genre is composed of advertising films, educational films, industrial video
s, police training films, social guidance film
s, and government-produced films. While some may borrow themes from well-known film genres such as western film and comedies
, what defines them is a sponsored rhetoric to achieve the sponsor's goals, rather than those of the creative artist.
The films are often used as b roll in documentary film
s, for instance the social guidance film The Terrible Truth appears, desaturated, in Ron Mann
's film Grass
as an example of what he perceives as hysteria over drug abuse
, as well as an example of the slippery slope
fallacy.
Prelinger and other film archivists generally consider the films interesting for their sociological, ethnographic or evidential value: for instance, a mental hygiene film instructing children to be careful of strangers may seem laughable by today's standards, but the film may show important aspects of society which were documented unintentionally: hairstyles, popular fashions, technological advances, landscapes, etc.
Prelinger estimates that the form includes perhaps 400,000 films and, as such, is the largest genre of films, but that one-third to one-half of the films have been lost to neglect. In the late 20th century, the archival moving-image community has taken greater notice of sponsored film, and key ephemeral films began to be preserved by specialized, regional and national archives.
Rick Prelinger
Rick Prelinger is an archivist, writer and filmmaker, and founder of the Prelinger Archives, a collection of 60,000 advertising, educational, industrial, and amateur films acquired by the Library of Congress in 2002 after 20 years' operation.Rick has partnered with the Internet Archive to make...
, is film made by a particular sponsor for a specific purpose other than as a work of art: the films were designed to serve a specific pragmatic purpose for a limited time. Many sponsored, or ephemeral, films are also orphan works, since they lack copyright owners or active custodians to guarantee their long-term preservation.
The genre is composed of advertising films, educational films, industrial video
Industrial video
An industrial video is a video that targets “industry” as its primary audience. An industrial video is a type of sponsored film which prioritizes pragmatism over artistic value...
s, police training films, social guidance film
Social guidance film
Social guidance films constitute a genre of films attempting to guide children and adults to behave in certain ways. Typically shown in school classrooms in the USA from the 1950s through the 1970s, the films covered topics including courtesy, responsibility, sexuality, drug use, and driver...
s, and government-produced films. While some may borrow themes from well-known film genres such as western film and comedies
Comedy film
Comedy film is a genre of film in which the main emphasis is on humour. They are designed to elicit laughter from the audience. Comedies are mostly light-hearted dramas and are made to amuse and entertain the audiences...
, what defines them is a sponsored rhetoric to achieve the sponsor's goals, rather than those of the creative artist.
The films are often used as b roll in documentary film
Documentary film
Documentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...
s, for instance the social guidance film The Terrible Truth appears, desaturated, in Ron Mann
Ron Mann
Ronald "Ron" Mann is a Canadian documentary film director focusing primarily on aspects of Canadian and American popular culture. He does most of his work through his company Sphinx Productions, while also running a film distribution company on the side called 'FilmsWeLike'. Mann has also put...
's film Grass
Grass (1999 film)
Grass: History of Marijuana is a 1999 Canadian documentary film directed by Ron Mann, premiered in Toronto Film Festival, about the history of the United States government's war on marijuana in the 20th century.-Overview:...
as an example of what he perceives as hysteria over drug abuse
Drug abuse
Substance abuse, also known as drug abuse, refers to a maladaptive pattern of use of a substance that is not considered dependent. The term "drug abuse" does not exclude dependency, but is otherwise used in a similar manner in nonmedical contexts...
, as well as an example of the slippery slope
Slippery slope
In debate or rhetoric, a slippery slope is a classic form of argument, arguably an informal fallacy...
fallacy.
Prelinger and other film archivists generally consider the films interesting for their sociological, ethnographic or evidential value: for instance, a mental hygiene film instructing children to be careful of strangers may seem laughable by today's standards, but the film may show important aspects of society which were documented unintentionally: hairstyles, popular fashions, technological advances, landscapes, etc.
Prelinger estimates that the form includes perhaps 400,000 films and, as such, is the largest genre of films, but that one-third to one-half of the films have been lost to neglect. In the late 20th century, the archival moving-image community has taken greater notice of sponsored film, and key ephemeral films began to be preserved by specialized, regional and national archives.
See also
- Design for DreamingDesign for DreamingDesign for Dreaming is a musical sponsored film about a woman who dreams about a masked man taking her to the 1956 General Motors Motorama at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel and Frigidaire's "Kitchen of the Future." The entirety of the dialogue is sung, though the actors...
- Industrial musicalIndustrial musicalAn industrial musical is a musical performed internally for the employees or shareholders of a business, to create a feeling of being part of a team, to entertain, and/or to educate and motivate the management and salespeople to improve sales and profit...
- InfomercialInfomercialInfomercials are direct response television commercials which generally include a phone number or website. There are long-form infomercials, which are typically between 15 and 30 minutes in length, and short-form infomercials, which are typically 30 seconds to 120 seconds in length. Infomercials...
- Non-conventional literature