How Direct is our Perception of Film?

How natural or ‘direct’ is the way we see and make sense of the world around
us? To what extent is our perception ‘indirect’, and psychologically as well
as socially constructed? Moreover, to what extent, and in what sense, is the
perception of photographic and cinematic images similar to the perception
of our environment?
The answers to these questions divide the field of contemporary film studies.
However, recent developments in cognitive studies suggest that perception
of both the world and film have a direct, as well as an indirect, component.
Thus, even if we assume that certain perceptual functions can indeed be described
as direct, we still have to first take into account an element of psychological
constructionism, and secondly, the extent to which even our immediate
perception — not to mention ourperceptions of human action in real
life or in film — is socially constructed. The question about direct vs. indirect
visual perception is inseparable from the question of what we perceive and
how we make sense of it, in terms of the current situation: we may not be
prepared to relate to the situation in a way that could be described as ‘direct’,
and thus might have to resort to some degree of inference.
All this entails considering and integrating both realist and conventionalist
approaches to perception and the cinematic experience.