Peter Wollen was an English film theorist and filmmaker. He studied English at Christ Church, Oxford. Both political journalist and film theorist, Wollen's Signs and Meaning in the Cinema (1969) helped to transform the discipline of film studies by incorporating the methodology of structuralism and semiotics. He taught film at a number of universities and was Professor Emeritus at the University of California, Los Angeles, at the time of his retirement.
Semiotics are maybe not my bag, baby, but Wollen's collection is far ranging and has a lot of worthwhile essays. His gloss on the history of revolutionary art in the early Soviet Union is beautifully succinct, and the more 'creative' essays at the back half of the book showcase his artistic side more than I expected going in to this book.