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Arts & Communication

ARTICLE
Cinematic urbanism: Understanding cities

through film

Tigran Haas*
Department of Urban Planning and Environment, School of Architecture and the Built Environment,
KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Teknikringen 10 A, Plan 1, Stockholm, Sweden

Abstract
This reflective paper explores the unique relationship between cinema and
urbanism, illustrating how films offer a rich and multifaceted lens for understanding
urban environments. Reflecting on a range of films, particularly Blade Runner and
The Truman Show, the paper demonstrates how cinema captures and critiques
cultural and social norms, represents urban spaces, and influences perceptions of
architecture and urban design, especially in pedagogical contexts within urbanism
university programs. These two movies have also been chosen as they represent
paradigmatic cases on which analysis of new and post-urbanism has been done
in urbanism studios. The paper emphasizes the pivotal role of films in shaping and
reflecting our understanding of urban environments. The main crux and objective
of the paper is the exploration and highlights of the educational value of films in
*Corresponding author: urban studies, particularly within two master’s programs, offering insights into cities’
Tigran Haas spatial dimensions and reflections on urban forms’ social life. The study integrates
(tigran@kth.se)
key scholarly perspectives and new cinematic urbanism pedagogics (a seven-step
Citation: Haas T. Cinematic methodology developed in the studios). By weaving together these perspectives,
urbanism: Understanding cities
through film. Arts & Communication. this essay underscores the multifaceted relationship between cinema and urbanism,
2025;3(1):4130. demonstrating how films can serve as powerful tools for understanding and shaping
doi: 10.36922/ac.4130 urban environments and the complex social life of urban forms. The paper ends with
Received: July 3, 2024 general conclusions and recommendations for policy and practice.
1st revised: July 8, 2024
2nd revised: August 14, 2024 Keywords: Cinematic urbanism; Urban spaces; Cityscapes; Psychogeography; Urbanism
studios; Film storytelling; The Truman Show; Blade Runner
3rd revised: August 19, 2024
Accepted: August 20, 2024
Published online: October 8, 2024 1. Introduction: The city, cinema, and urbanism
Copyright: © 2024 Author(s).
This is an Open-Access article With its profound and enduring memory, the city immortalizes its experiences across
distributed under the terms epochs within its labyrinthine streets, majestic edifices, ambient sounds, enduring
of the Creative Commons
AttributionNoncommercial License, myths, rhythmic pulses, and compelling stories. The intricate narrative of a city’s
permitting all non-commercial use, past, present, and future is inscribed in these multifaceted elements, weaving a rich,
distribution, and reproduction in any
medium, provided the original work continuous tapestry of urban existence. When a city is captured through the discerning
is properly cited. lens of a camera, it metamorphoses into a fictional and designable construct, mirroring
Publisher’s Note: AccScience the very essence of cinema. At this juncture, the distinction between viewing a film and
Publishing remains neutral with perceiving a city blurs, as cinema becomes an integral paradigm of urban expression.
regard to jurisdictional claims in
published maps and institutional This intrinsic parallelism between the city and film forms an inevitable symbiosis
affiliations. wherein each continually constitutes and evolves with the others.

Volume 3 Issue 1 (2025) 1 doi: 10.36922/ac.4130