iconogenic voice, narration; contradicted iconogenic voice, narration
"Iconogenic," (a contraction of ikona ("icon" in Russian) and genos ("race, stock" in ancient Greek) means "what creates images."
- An iconogenic voice is a voice that narrates a story, which is being visually rendered on screen. Generally, the person who narrates is first shown on screen (synchresis: perfect synchronization between body and voice), but quickly a new shot occurs (in classical cinema, often through a dissolve effect), as the voice that continues its narration becomes a voice-over.
- Since story-telling usually focus on events that have already taken place, iconogenic narrations tend to correspond to flashbacks.
In Stanley Donen's Singin' in the rain (1952, USA), the main character Don Lockwood narrates to a whole audience in awe the story of how he became such a great actor. However, Don's contradicted iconogenic voice conjures up images (through flashback) that are in constant contradistinction with his narration, creating a comic effect.
[E. G.]
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