Magical History Tour – Voice, Language & Speech in Film

For the second time, the Magical History Tour is dedicated to the subject of voice, language and speech in cinema. The powerful role played by the voice in film does not just become apparent due to acoustic characteristics, the tone of the actors' voices and the seeming unity they form with the cinematic image but also makes itself particularly felt when both voice and language stand in contrast to these images and diverge from them. It is this type of formal tension that represents the underlying idea and starting point for the plots of many of the films we will be presenting in this series. Linguistic playfulness, our desire to speak, excessive use of the voice, particular stylization techniques and the conflict between different registers and styles of speech will also be highlighted using a range of different film examples. By deliberating moving away from standardized patterns of speech and by creating new linguistic and vocal landscapes, these films do not just reveal new opportunities for identification and create new axes of meaning, but also mark verbalism as an independent means of artistic impression, which goes far beyond its function as the vehicle for a particular text.