Setting the Scene: Cinematic Syntax as a way of Forming Identity in the Generic City

Abstract

There is a syntax that exists in film, architecture, and the city, elements that come together to form a language. This language creates a relationship between different components, forming a point of view, through space and time, that develops into a narrative. This syntax can be used as a way for an auteur to create an identity for themselves and their work. The identity becomes more unique through the use of the uncanny within the syntax. By creating these unexpected elements, a more memorable experience is formed. This thesis will look at the City Place condo development in Toronto, a place that lacks a sense of identity. It will also explore the cinematic syntax of director Wes Anderson, which adds surreal and kitsch elements to the everyday. By translating Anderson’s cinematic syntax into architecture, these elements will be imposed onto City Place development, forming identity in the generic city.