Transformation of meaning of architectural space in cinema: The cases of "Gattaca" and "Truman show"

Abstract

This study aims to expose the transformation of meanings of architectural space in cinema films and the transformative impact of cinema. And in this exposition, Andrew Niccol's Gattaca (1997) and Peter Wier's "Truman Show" (1998) films have been analyzed in case study in order to uncover the meaning changes of architectural spaces that have taken place in film medium. Since the early 20th century, cinema has developed into an influential mass communication tool due to the advancements in technology. The cinematic and photographic tools have been designed basically as instruments for receiving and recording of images at the beginning but then addition to the functions of recording, they are used in the re-production of reality. In the past, architecture had been influenced from other image and visualization techniques in presentation and representation of space like pictorial perspective. And it is inevitable that it has been under the influences of cinema in the re-production and the representation of space It is essential for architects to be aware of the transformative impact and features of film medium in the representation of space. And In this dissertation the primary visions of the two disciplines on space, architectural space and cinematic space have been comparatively studied. Key words: architecture, cinema, space, representation, architectural space in films, transformation of space.