Hankering is a word we have heard in the South for decades, and I would have categorized it as slang. However, according to Webster’s Dictionary, it is a transitive verb and an accurate word, not slang. Hankering is associated with yearning, longing, or a desire for something. You may think it sounds like slang and may want to eliminate it from your everyday use, but it is a proper word.
“Kris had a hankering for hotdogs and ate them several times each week for lunch.”
“Sadie had a hankering for sweets and indulged her desires with just a few donuts and coffee each morning.”
“Jack ate all the pizza even though he knew his roommates had a hankering for pepperoni.”
Cineastes is a more complex term and is not commonly used as a slang term for a filmmaker. It is plural for cineast, which can be spelled with or without an “e” at the end. It is derived from two French words, “cine” and “aste.” “Cine” is short for cinema and “aste” is used like you might identify a gymnast, one who participates in gym sports.
As a further use of the word, it seems to be expanding to mean someone who is a real fan or is addicted to film watching.
“As a professional cineaste, George produced many blockbuster movies that won several awards.”
“After the release of Star Wars, many young fans became cineastes and binge-watched the series over and over.”
“Game of Thrones has become so popular that many people watch it religiously, like cineastes.”
Both of these words have an addiction component to them when used. Therefore, combining them into a single sentence is not so hard.
“With a hankering for science fiction movies, the addicted cineaste spent the weekend exploring Star Trek films.”
“Her hankering for the golden age of Hollywood caused the cineaste to host an evening screening of iconic classic films.”
“The cineaste had a constant hankering for storytelling and eagerly awaited the local film festival each year.”
