What's the Name of That Book??? discussion

I read the book probably about 3 years ago, but I think it came out in the 90s.

The cover was dark I think but don't quote me on that, I'm not sure anymore if I read the german version where the cover could have been different from the original. The title could have had the word crow in it, but again I'm not sure maybe I'm confusing it with a different book.
The book was quite long, I think it had around 800-1500 pages.

I'm pretty sure the author is not that popular and hasn't written a lot of other books.

Unfortunately I don't remember the exact plot, but from what I do remember, the protagonist is a film student from New York or Chicago or Houston I think and is into old movies (think golden age of hollywood (not sure if they're actually hollywood movies they could also be old German movies?). The book starts when he's still in college or high school and ends when he's about 30-40 I think.
He somehow discovers secret/hidden messages in these old movies that were made by this one director (I'm pretty sure it was a German name, it might have been something with Fritz). The director was not allowed to hide those things in his movies for some reason so many of his movies were destroyed or lost and the director himself is thought to have died in a plane accident (I think). The protagonist tries to find the movies and analyzes them and discovers how the director hid these secret messages (through certain camera settings and cutting techiques).
At some point the protagonist is so intrigued by the movies and the director, he tries to find the director because some insiders believe the plain crash is just a cover up to hide the fact that the director is actually banished on a deserted island. The protagonist somehow finds the island where the director is and wants to talk to him about these secret messages.
At the end the protagonist somehow ends up on the same deserted island and is now banished as well and finds out the director brought many of his movies that were thought to be lost.
I believe at one point in the book the protagonist traveled to Denmark to meet an actress that was basically the director's muse and also knew about the hidden messages. He questions her about the movies and their secret messages. I think it might have been her that planted the idea that the director isn't actually dead but banished on an island.

Throughout the whole book there is a lot of technical details on how movies were filmed, recorded, cut, and played and how and why sometimes when you played a movie it was immediately destroyed because it was in such a bad condition.

These details are super messy and I don't even really remember the plot, but I really hope someone knows what book I'm talking about.

Flicker by Theodore Roszak

Ed: if it was the German translation you read that's Schattenlichter

Yes, that's it!

Thank you so much, I honestly don't know how you were able to figure that out given my truly terrible description.

Looking at the titles I realize I did in fact read the German translation.

Honestly, your description made it really easy!