What happened when

Science Fiction

Science Fiction - general search term - science fiction film*

A selection of books

• Fantastique : interviews with horror, sci-fi & fantasy filmmakers. Volume I / edited and with an introduction by Tony Earnshaw ; foreword by Bruce G. Hallenbeck.
• Science fiction film : a critical introduction / Keith M. Johnston.
• Science fiction experiences / by Angela Ndalianis.
• Historical dictionary of science fiction cinema / M. Keith Booker.

Crime & Film Noir

Film Noir - general search - film* noir

Crime film - general search - crime film*

Gangster film - general search - gangster* film*

A selection of books

• Film noir reader / edited by Alain Silver and James Ursini.
• Born to lose : the gangster film in America / Eugene Rosow.
• Neo-noir / Douglas Keesey.
• The yakuza movie book : a guide to Japanese gangster films / Mark Schilling.
• Women in film noir / edited by E. Ann Kaplan.

Musicals

Musical film - general search term - musical* film*

A selection of books

• Genre, the musical : a reader / edited by Rick Altman.
• The Hollywood film musical / Barry Keith Grant.
• Popcorn : fifty years of rock 'n' roll movies / Garry Mulholland.
• The international film musical / edited by Corey K. Creekmur and Linda Y. Mokdad.Music on film book series

See also Bollywood

The library has an extensive collection of film musical and soundtrack cds, vinyl records, and online.

Comedy

Comedy film - general search term - comedy film*

A selection of books

• Another fine mess: a history of American film comedy / Saul Austerlitz.
• The musical comedy films of Grigorii Aleksandrov : laughing matters / Rimgaila Salys
• Sounding funny : sound and comedy cinema / edited by Mark Evans and Philip Hayward.
• Film Comedy / Geoff King
• I'll have what she's having : behind the scenes of the great romantic comedies / Daniel M. Kimmel.

Children

Children's film - general search term - children* film*

Another search term is children in motion pictures

• The child in film : tears, fears and fairytales / Karen Lury
• Children's film in the digital age : essays on audience, adaptation and consumer culture / edited by Karin Beeler and Stan Beeler.
• Contemporary children's literature and film : engaging with theory / edited by Kerry Mallan and Clare Bradford.

Teenagers

Teenagers - general search term - teen* film* or teenagers in motion pictures

• Teen movies : American youth on screen / Timothy Shary.

Researching documentary

Documentary films have been an important filmmaking method since early cinema. It is essentially the filmic depiction of an aspect of reality. A common term for documentary is 'cinema verite'.

Documentary film - general search (documentar* film*)

State Library Victoria holds many resources about documentary film. It may be worth using filters and specific search terms to locate the item you require.

DVD/Video documentary - there is a significant collection of documentary DVD/Video held at State Library Victoria that can be viewed.

A selection of books

• Documentary film classics / William Rothman.
• Imagining reality : the Faber book of the documentary / [edited by] Kevin MacDonald and Mark Cousins.
• Australian post-war documentary film : an arc of mirrors / Deane Williams.
• Documentary screens : non-fiction film and television / Keith Beattie.
• The art of record : a critical introduction to documentary / John Corner.

Melodrama

• Melodrama is a well-known film genre where the dramatic elements of the film are heightened.
• Melodrama - general search term - melodrama motion picture*

A selection of books

• Melodrama in contemporary film and television / edited by Michael Stewart, Queen Margaret University, Edinburgh, UK.
• Maternal horror film : melodrama and motherhood / Sarah Arnold, University College Falmouth, UK.
• The melodramatic public : film form and spectatorship in Indian cinema / Ravi Vasudevan.

Animation

Animation - general search - Animat* (with filters used)

There are extensive resources available at the State Library Victoria about animation.

Using a country with the animat* search term may be helpful in narrowing the results - animat* Japan*

Animation studios

• Walt Disney Company
• Studio Ghibli
• Warner Brothers
• Pixar

A selection of books

• Animation : a world history / Giannalberto Bendazzi.
• Animation. 4 vol. set. / Chris Pallant.
• French animation history / Richard Neupert.
• Historical dictionary of animation and cartoons / Nichola Dobson.

Action/Superhero

Spectacular explosions, special effects, and tales of daring feature strongly in this genre. The big-budget comic book/superhero film are included as action films.

• Action films - general search term - action film*
• Martial arts - general search term - martial arts film*
• Superhero and comic book films - general search term - superhero film*

A selection of books

• Ink-stained amazons and cinematic warriors : superwomen in modern mythology / Jennifer K. Stuller.
• Chasing dragons : an introduction to the martial arts film / David West.
• Blood, guns, and testosterone : action films, audiences, and a thirst for violence / Barna William Donovan.
• The 21st century superhero : essays on gender, genre and globalization in film / edited by Richard J. Gray II and Betty Kaklamanidou.
• Disaster movies : the cinema of catastrophe / Stephen Keane.