The Capacities of Haptic Perception in Persian-Islamic Art and its Function in Cinematic Expression The Case of “The Green Fire”

Document Type : Research Article

Authors

1 Assistant Professor, Faculty of Cinema and Theater, University of Art, Tehran, Iran.

2 M.A. in Dramatic Literature, Arts faculty, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran.

3 Instructor, Faculty of Cinema and Theater, University of Art, Tehran, Iran.

Abstract

Problem statement: Recently, in contrast to the hegemony of optical-based approaches to cinema, a new mainstream in film studies has emerged that its focus is on the capacities of tactile perception in cinematic experiences. Based on haptic ideals, this approach is a kind of tendency toward generating senses and evokes emotional responses. In opposition to the dominant paradigms of film theories based on distance and perspective (optical visualization), haptic visualization provides a theoretical context in which the dynamics of the experience of watching a film could be analyzed. The main question of this study is how the haptic perception is emerged in Persian-Islamic Arts and what are the effects of this emergence on the viewers’ perceptions? Here, it is presumed that the Persian-Islamic Arts, with the haptic features embedded in, have the quality of presenting a different manner of seeing to their onlookers.
Research objective: Seemingly the paradigms of the haptic perception are inherent to the Persian-Islamic Arts and this special feature can lead to new entries in cinematic expression for Iranian film industry. The objective of this essay is to attain the methods in which the haptic visualization is represented in Persian-Islamic Arts and to understand how it is appeared in films created in this context.
Research method: The following essay is compiled by using library resources and tries to define the notion of “haptic perception” by the aid of descriptive-analytical method. Furthermore, the haptic capacities of Persian-Islamic Art are explored by evaluating the case studies.
Conclusion: This study shows that according to the haptic visualization characteristics in Persian-Islamic Art, the filmmakers have the opportunity to use it in order to elaborate their narratives. Regarding this objective, The Green Fire (2008), directed by Mohamad Reza Aslani, is analyzed as an Iranian film that has been successful in stimulating viewers’ haptic perception by cinematic techniques.

Keywords


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