German Expressionism
Distorted shadow cinema
German Expressionism is an early 20th-century artistic movement originating in Germany, characterized by distorted forms, stark contrasts, and intense emotion over realistic representation.
In visual art and theater, it emphasized subjective experience and psychological states.
The term most often refers to a style of 1920s cinema—films like *The Cabinet of Dr.
Caligari* and *Nosferatu*—featuring angular sets, dramatic shadows, and nightmarish atmospheres that influenced film noir and horror genres for decades.
- KandinskyBauhaus painting instructor
- Nosferatu1922 German vampire film
- Weimar RepublicGermany's 1919-1933 parliamentary government
- Die BrückeExpressionist artist collective
- Der Blaue ReiterExpressionist art movement, Munich
Fritz Lang · chiaroscuro · Bertolt Brecht · primitivism · street scenes · distortion · grotesque imagery · inner turmoil · Franz Kafka · avant-garde · symbolism · silent film · mise-en-scène · allegory · lighting effects · dystopia · psychological · nightmare
- film genreshorror, comedy, drama, action, romance
- Horror FilmsThe Exorcist, Halloween, The Shining, Friday the 13th, Night of the Living Dead
- art museumspaintings, The Louvre, galleries, permanent collection, exhibitions
- art historyart history, Renaissance, Baroque, Impressionism, modern art
- directorial approachescinema verite, storyboarding, long takes, handheld camera, documentary style
- ExpressionismEdvard Munch, The Scream, Der Blaue Reiter, woodcuts, Kandinsky
German ExpressionismFrench Impressionism
Light-focused nineteenth-century painting movement
Rococo · Neoclassicism · Impressionism · Art Nouveau · High Renaissance
German ExpressionismFrench Impressionism
Light-focused nineteenth-century painting movement