Cinema has become the most influential art form of 20th century from its marginal beginnings. India holds eminent position in film making in the world. It produces highest number of films every year.
Whatever may be the quality of the film, they continue to be the popular mass media. Earlier, cinema was a simple means of mechanical recording, preserving and reproducing moving visual images.
With the development of film technology, the art of cinema developed a language of its own. Kumar says, that cinema is called ‘the seventh art’, and its language has developed over the past 70-80 years to a specialized and sophisticated level. Opinion differ, however on whether cinema is a ‘pure’ art form or a ‘bastard’ art (1989: 137).
‘Cinema’ and ‘films’ are used interchangeably but there is a difference between these two terms. Cinema has specific means to create imaginary time and space, and utilization of these means defines how cinematic a film is.
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Imaginary time can be created through movement by means of montage, camera movements and movement within the frame and through sounds of human voice, music and noise.
Space can be created through image with the help of size of shots, camera angle, depth of field, montage and through sound ‘off screen’.
Films are made of stories dance, music, drama, photography, painting, architecture and many other things that we call cinema.
Films mean the particular movies that we see with all the elements they contain and cinema means the sum of the means made possible only by film technology which distinguish cinema from other arts.
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The greater the number of imaginaries of time and space, the more cinematic the film will be.
The term ‘movies’ is used for the films when attempt is to provide enjoyment and relaxation.