Auteur

Before reading the Wollen article, I thought that an auteur was a director who had creative input in all realms of the filmaking process, not strictly limited to directing. What I gathered from Wollen's article on the Auteur theory, is that that my previously held view of the definition of the auteur is a predominantly European view. He also makes it clear that although we have a potential definition and concept of the auteur, it is not conclusive. He specifically mentions the controversy between conflicting definitions between the auteur and a metteur en scene. An auteur's meaning through film is constructed a posteriori (after the fact) where a metteur en scene creates meaning a priori (before the fact). Now while this makes sense as a concept, I don't fully understand how this can be determined or definite and why one may be valued above the other. I hope we take some time in class to go over these concepts and look at some examples.
I also enjoyed his use of Hawkes as an example of an auteur. Although I have not seen any of the Hawkes' films he mentions in the article (other than The Big Sleep), I was able to use The Big Sleep as a jumping off point to help me conceptualize his use of motifs and themes throughout his vast array of work. Through this example, I came to understand that the auteur theory was more focused on the continuity throughout a director's work in terms of their style and motifs. Wollen makes this clear toward the end of the article by saying "what the auteur theory does, is take a group of films, the work of one director and analyze their structure." The auteur theory is important because it allows for critical analysis of a full body of work of a director, understanding their lasting importance and impact in the world of cinema.