Digital Adaptation of a Regency Novel in Emma. (2020, dir. Autumn de Wilde): History, Irony and Palimpsest in Contemporary Period Drama
Abstract
This article, developed around the case study of Emma. (dir. de Wilde, 2020), based on the eponymous novel by Jane Austen, examines the phenomenon of digital adaptation, which traces the influence of previous adaptations of the same text on those created in the era of digital cinema and streaming platforms. The intertextuality in the film Emma. (2020), which is the result of dialogue and controversy with adaptations of eponymous novels created in other socio-cultural circumstances, is complemented by new elements arising from the influence of technical innovations (the digital nature of the film) and new forms of broadcasting and watching movies (a full-length film on streaming services). The study shows that Emma. (2020) is based on the principle of palimpsest, which corresponds to the conventions of digital culture and ensures the revisitability of the picture: the viewer returns to it again in search of new subtexts and quotations. Such an approach to film creation, on the one hand, provides an intellectual and educational subtext and, on the other, corresponds to the model of film distribution (including the possibility of viewing it on streaming services), enhancing its economic advantages.
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References
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