In 1918, the Russian filmmaker Lev Kuleshov conducted a famous experiment. He chose a close-up of the actor Mojukhin and intercut it with three clips: a bowl of soup on a table, a dead woman in a coffin, and a girl at play. After Kuleshov screened the film, the audience purportedly remarked how aptly Mojukhin had reacted to each situation. But, in truth, each shot of Mojukhin was identical—picked precisely for its blankness of expression. The Kuleshov effect, as it came to be known, explains how, when watching film, we automatically form narrative connections between... More >>>