Writing in Waltz Time: Walter Reisch’s Musical Writing in Two Hearts in Waltz Time (1930) Bloomsbury Handbook of Global Screenplay Theory, 2026
Fascinating Rhythm: The Screenwriting of Sound Symphonies for American and European Film of the 1930s Claus Tieber Iluminace, 2025 This paper examines the role of rhythm in screenwriting in the 1930s. By analyzing how the transformation to sound enhanced the musicality of screenplays, the study highlights the emergence of so-called “sound symphonies” and the rhythmic integration of noises in American and German films from that decade. Focusing on the development of this device from the advent of sound until the end of the 1930s, the article reflects how broader shifts in film production shaped screenplay notation practices. The Austrian screenwriter Walter Reisch, who had to migrate to the United States in 1936, serves as a guiding thread throughout this short history of the Sound Symphony. Analyzing several case studies reveals that the evolution of this device and its notation in screenplays was transnational and did not follow a linear path. While early sound films often featured the musicalization of noises as standalone musical numbers, later years saw these elements integrated into larger musical sequences. Despite this shift, screenplay notation continued to vary until the end of the decade, depending on production modes and filmmakers’ backgrounds. Ultimately, this investigation demonstrates that analysis of screenplays can offer valuable insights into film and production history.
The Rhythm of the Night: Abstraction and Sexuality as Destabilisers in Austrian Silent Cinema Claus Tieber Palgrave Studies in Audio Visual Culture, 2023 Diegetic music and musical performances did not start with the sound film in the late 1920s. Looking at musical moments in Austrian and German films, this chapter examines their sources in silent cinema. Two case studies, Seine Hoheit, der Eintänzer and Ein Walzertraum, provide evidence for two interrelated tendencies within musical numbers in silent cinema of the mid to late 1920s: abstraction and sexuality. Musical moments can lead to abstract images and the sublimation of sexuality gets more obvious during these moments. This chapter argues that these two tendencies are closely connected and that their potential to destabilise the form and style of a film must be seen in the sociopolitical context of post-monarchy Austria, and within the precariousness of social values of the time.
From Unheard to Meaningful: When Music Takes Over in Film Anna K. Windisch, Claus Tieber, Phil Powrie Palgrave Studies in Audio Visual Culture, 2023 This introduction lays out the focus of the book on moments in film when ‘unheard melodies’ become heard and meaningful. These filmic instances where music ‘takes over’ and the surreal often becomes the accepted filmic reality are examined in reference to two recent theoretical approaches: ‘musical moments’ (Amy Herzog) and ‘crystal songs’ (Phil Powrie). Divided up into four parts, the book’s chapters apply these two differing but overlapping theoretical concepts to their case studies and discussions. What the Musical Moment Can Do—Theoretical Approaches covers the books’ theoretical foundation by Herzog and Powrie themselves. Part two, How the Musical Moment was Created—Musical Numbers in Silent and Early Sound Cinema, discusses the history of musical numbers from silent to early sound cinema. Then, Musical Dis/Placements—Musical Moments in Global Cinema focuses on the varied manifestations of musical numbers through case studies of different national cinemas. And finally, From Romance to Dystopia looks at the social and political dimensions of musical moments embedded in contemporary cinema, with the goal of evoking further discussions of this rich and foundational filmic element.
Roundtable: Pushing the boundaries of the Screenwriting Research Network Paolo Russo, Rosamund Davies, Alexandra Ksenofontova, Rafael Leal, Ian W. Macdonald, Steven Maras, Claus Tieber Journal of Screenwriting, 2022 This is an abridged and partially elaborated version of a roundtable discussion that took place via Zoom on 17 September 2021 as part of the SRN2021 Research Seminar Series Online and of a follow-up session held via Zoom on 15 November 2021. In keeping with the theme of SRN2021, ‘Pushing Boundaries’, this discussion was an opportunity to raise a few questions about whether and how, as Screenwriting Research Network (SRN), over the years we have defined our own boundaries in terms of scholarship and as a field, as well as how we can keep challenging ourselves when looking at the future. Involving both veterans and younger members of the SRN, it sets forth by taking stock of some significant achievements of the past fifteen years or so to then focus on issues of global outreach as well as methodological openness and rigour. After acknowledging some of the most pressing obstacles and opportunities within and outside academia, the discussion wraps up by looking at the distinctiveness of the SRN as an arena for research and discussion.
