The screenplay/film relationship bifurcated: Reading Carl Mayer’s Sylvester (1924)

Abstract

The article explores the question of whether screenplays can be defined and interpreted based solely on their functional relation to film. It argues that another aspect of the screenplay/film relationship is crucial for a more precise definition and reading of scripts, namely the textual simulation of film as a medium. This argument is first made on a theoretical basis and supported by an analogy with the relationship between drama and theatre. The second half of the article illustrates and expands the theoretical claims in a close reading of the silent film script Sylvester written by German screenwriter Carl Mayer and published in 1924. In particular, it is argued, Mayer’s acclaimed ‘expressionist’ writing style does not aim at performing any function in the potential film production, but rather reflects a certain view on the media-related specifics of film and the possibilities of their verbal representation.