The French New Wave (Nouvelle Vague) is a film movement that began in the 1950s and was spearheaded by film critics writing for the French film journal Cahiers du Cinema.http://www.greencine.com/static/primers/fnwave1.jsp Tired of the formulaic, heavily edited structure of cinema at the time, they embraced the notions of location shooting, long takes, and true interaction among characters. They also held that the film should be considered authored just as a piece of literature is.http://www.greencine.com/static/primers/fnwave1.jsp

Today the impact of the French New Wave has affected how many films are made. Its influenced contemporary American directors such as Martin Scorsese, Paul Thomas Anderson, Quentin Tarantino, and Wes Anderson. http://www.moviemaker.com/directing/article/the_french_new_wave_revisited_3366/ And it has stirred the film industries of other countries to reject their more classical forms and occur their own counter movements.http://www.filmreference.com/encyclopedia/Independent-Film-Road-Movies/New-Wave-THE-GLOBAL-IMPACT-OF-THEFRENCH-NEW-WAVE.html

In 1951 film critics Jacques Doniol-Valcroze and Andre Bazin founded Cahiers du Cinema. http://www.newwavefilm.com/about/history-of-french-new-wave.shtml It soon became the most important film journal in France. When younger critics such as Jean-Luc Godard, Eric Rohmer, and Francois Truffaut arrived at Cahier, it started making waves.http://www.newwavefilm.com/about/history-of-french-new-wave.shtml

These young writers were disdainful of the traditions of French films at the time. The adaptation of mainstream books, studio sets, well established and rote editing techniques were the hallmark of what they felt was wrong with modern cinema.http://www.newwavefilm.com/about/history-of-french-new-wave.shtml Their informal writing style and irreverent comments about movies and directors, especially of those they disliked, made Cahier controversial but widely read.

Eventually the critics decided to make their own movies. With no budgets and no experience, they made a handful of short films.http://www.greencine.com/static/primers/fnwave1.jsp But it was in 1959 that the movement truly broke with the release of Francois Truffaut's debut feature film Les quatre cents coups (The 400 Blows). In the following year, fellow critic Jean-Luc Godard released 'A bout de souffle (Breathless), and the movement became firmly established.http://www.greencine.com/static/primers/fnwave1.jsp

The French New Wave insisted on a naturalistic style. This lead to a few conventions that mark most New Wave films. http://www.greencine.com/static/primers/fnwave1.jsp

• Location shooting instead of in studio or "on the set" shooting, allowing for an obvious existence in a real world.

• Natural lighting *instead of staged camera lights.

• Improvised dialogue and plotting. Much of the story is made up very close to the time of the shooting. Dialogue was often written the same day it was read, or not at all, the actors giving the general idea of the scene.

• Direct sound recording as opposed to recording dialogue and music later in a studio for the best quality. This often lead to dialogue that was muffled or not understandable.

• Long takes that allow the actors time to fully develop a conversation. Sometimes these long take could involve no conversation at all, simply watching the actors. The cameras would follow actors for a long time with no particular goal.

Of course, not all French New Wave films contained all of these concepts. And there were French films and film makers already using these idea in their films, such a Jean-Pierre Melville (Le Cercle rouge) and Jean Cocteau (La Belle et la Bête).http://www.newwavefilm.com/about/history-of-french-new-wave.shtml

With the widespread distribution of Nouvelle Vague media in the 50s, there was a boom of European and American cinematic response. The British New Wave developed closely with its French counterpart with directors such Lindsay Anderson (if...), and John Schlesinger (Midnight Cowboy).http://www.filmreference.com/encyclopedia/Independent-Film-Road-Movies/New-Wave-THE-GLOBAL-IMPACT-OF-THEFRENCH-NEW-WAVE.html In Czechoslovakia the new wave reached its height with directors such as Miloŝ Forman (One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest). Over time, other directors were born from their own countries' "New Wave." Some of whom were Roman Polanski (Rosemary's Baby) from Poland, Bernardo Bertolucci (Last Tango in Paris) from Italy, and Werner Herzog (Rescue Dawn) from Germany.http://www.filmreference.com/encyclopedia/Independent-Film-Road-Movies/New-Wave-THE-GLOBAL-IMPACT-OF-THEFRENCH-NEW-WAVE.html

While the French New Wave was influenced by American directors -- Orson Welles (Citizen Kane), Nicholas Ray (Rebel Without a Cause), John Ford (Stagecoach) -- the film makers' anti-establish methodology lead to a responsive crop of American films.http://www.newwavefilm.com/about/history-of-french-new-wave.shtml Some notable directors are Robert Altman (MASH), Martin Scorsese (Mean Streets), Quentin Tarantino (Pulp Fiction), and Paul Thomas Anderson (Punch Drunk Love). http://www.newwavefilm.com/new-wave-cinema-guide/nouvelle-vague-where-to-start.shtml These film makers have all spoke of their love for the French New Wave, Martin Scorcese in particular, saying "The French New Wave has influenced all filmmakers who have worked since, whether they saw the films or not. It submerged cinema like a tidal wave."http://www.newwavefilm.com/new-wave-cinema-guide/nouvelle-vague-where-to-start.shtml