How are the authors chosen?
If there’s one thing to emphasise above all others about the books it’s that we hope they will be admired in their own terms, not just as guidebooks to a particular film. Many of the books in both series could be read and enjoyed by someone who didn’t know the film in question – because of the quality of the writing and the way text and stills work together on the page. So we look for authors who are excited about the 20,000 word format – who want to write more than an extended review or a long academic article. Academics and critics make up the backbone of the series: not just film specialists, but writers working in other disciplines. In addition there are writers from other fields, or even people whose first profession isn’t writing, but have a passion for a film or a particular approach to it that merits the attention of a wider audience. The eclectic choice of writers isn’t, we hope, gratuitous. It comes from a belief that there is no fixed way of writing about films. More and mor
