Jeanpaul Goergen. Bibliografie zum deutschen Animationsfilm. Berlin: Berlin-Brandenburgisches Centrum fÖ¼r Filmforschung e.V., 2002. 96 pp. EUR 8.00 (paper), ISBN 978-3-936774-00-9.
Reviewed by Heike Polster (Department of Foreign Languages, University of Memphis)
Published on H-German (November, 2005)
Bibliography of German Animation Film
Supported by the DEFA-Stiftung, Jeanpaul Goergen's "Bibliografie zum deutschen Animationsfilm" aims to contribute to the advancement of animation studies in German-speaking countries. His bibliography offers a systematic, albeit non-comprehensive overview of publications on German animation film. Carrying citations of over 700 sources, it is organized into seven broad categories: film encyclopedia, international bibliographies and filmographies, library holding records, monographs, academic publications, production and distribution catalogues, and film festival publications. Newspaper and magazine articles are not included. The section on reference works features a variety of encyclopedic entries in other European languages. Roughly a third of the entries are in French, the rest are in German, Italian, or English. The section selectively covers publications dating from 1933 through 2001.
The coverage of the bibliography dealing with monographic publications is substantial. As the entries are listed chronologically, browsing through the records becomes a basic, non-narrative tracing of the discourse history on animation film. Starting with 1920s contributions on Silhouetten-Film and expressionist filmmaking, as well as 1930s additions on phenomenology and psychology of Trickfilm, the list of monographs outlines the influence of prevalent schools of thought on animation film in their respective time periods. A prominence of early 1960s Walt Disney work echoes in West German monographs of the respective period, as does the preoccupation of scholars with computer technology in the 1980s. The section's coverage leads up to 2001 with contributions on "The Simpsons" and manga.
The bibliography section on academic publications, which excludes journal, magazine and newspaper articles, maps out technological aspects of animation film making as well as critical approaches to the genre's aesthetic and narrative properties. The two final sections list catalogues and animation film festival contributions. Once more, the bibliography reads less like a listing, and more like a cultural history. An example: In 1989, the event which used to be called "Westdeutsche Kurzfilmtage Oberhausen" turns into "Internationale Kurzfilmtage Oberhausen."
By listing all sources chronologically, the bibliography does not offer a convenient set-up for quick reference. Furthermore, no index is provided. However, as Goergen states in the preface, his intention is to compile a Lesebibliografie rather than an exhaustive coverage of academic publications. Given the lack of density in the research on animation film in Germany, his approach is nevertheless a productive and appropriate undertaking. Decidedly non-comprehensive, Goergen's bibliographic method maps out animation studies' points of contact with other areas of visual art, such as comics, digital imaging, special effects, computer art, puppet theater, and advertising. Goergen thereby locates animation studies within a broader discussion in film and cultural studies, pointing to possible intermedial and interdisciplinary interests. Thus, Goergen's Bibliografie zum deutschen Animationsfilm offers a useful starting point for any scholar with a general interest in German animated film. Supplements are continuously added online at <http://www.filmblatt.de/index.php?id=48,0,0,1,0,0 >.
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Citation:
Heike Polster. Review of Goergen, Jeanpaul, Bibliografie zum deutschen Animationsfilm.
H-German, H-Net Reviews.
November, 2005.
URL: http://www.h-net.org/reviews/showrev.php?id=11258
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