Spring 2024
FILM-ST 284 - The Undead Souths
Instructor: Patrick Mensah
Credits: 4
Meeting: Tu & Th 75 10:00 am-11:15 am and Online
This course will explore themes of the Southern Gothic in works of Cinema and popular Televisual narratives. We will study the development of the lurid motifs of the Gothic that works affiliated with this genre often deploy to invoke a sense of horror and dread, moral corruption, and psychological abjection, all seemingly meant to assimilate the South and its citizens to the category of a degenerate and menacing otherness. The imagery of dismal landscapes, dark swamps, decaying architecture, fanatical and occult religious practices, and the often grotesque or monstrous figures and cultural tropes that aspire to associate the South with an imaginary medieval past, will be examined mostly as marks of an ambivalent ideological struggle surrounding the self-identity of America. Thanks to this regime of gothic tropes and insignia, America, on the one hand, heralds its own self-identity as culturally rich and historically continuous, and yet, it is, at least partly thanks to this same regimen of gothic tropes (understood as figures of otherness), on the other hand, that America also typically (or stereotypically) deals with anxieties arising from its attempts to define its own modern identity, and its identity as modern and exceptional. Such anxieties give rise to instances of negative stereotyping, and practices of cultural exclusion that the course critically interrogates. We also study several important ways in which the Gothic serves as an important voice for the marginalized, while enabling critical reflections on the social and cultural practices of exclusion we have alluded to. The history of slavery, the civil war, and its aftermath, as well as literature produced by certain Southern writers (such as William Faulkner, Thomas Wolfe, Carson McCullers, Flannery O'Connor, Eudora Welty, Truman Capote, Tennessee Williams, Katherine Anne Porter, and others) since the late 19th century, will be identified as important defining contexts of emergence for the Southern gothic, and as the indispensable conditions that have made its deployment into 20th century film and television possible. Due attention will also be paid to the influence of French colonial adventures and interventions in shaping cultures and "gothic" mythologies of the American South, and the Caribbean, as well as the role played by America's own efforts to secure and maintain hegemonic influences on the region.
The course is conducted in English, and requires no prior knowledge of the field. All films are streamed to your computer from the UMass library on demand. Required readings are provided online, and no book purchases are necessary. (Gen. Ed. AT, DU)
UNDERGRADUATE FILM STUDIES CERTIFICATE CATEGORY: III, V
FILM STUDIES MAJOR CATEGORY: N/A (can be exception for elective)
FILM-ST 296F – MMFF
Instructor: Mariana Ivanova
Credits: 1
Meeting: Wednesday 7:30 pm-10:30 pm
Join the audience of students, faculty, and area community at the annual Massachusetts Multicultural Film Festival with films and directors from around the world introduced by leading scholars and filmmakers. This season's theme, "Indigeneities," is a survey of the diverse range of cinematic investigations undertaken by Indigenous filmmakers globally. first and longest-running University-based film festival of its kind, the MMFF brings the best of new fiction, documentary and experimental filmmaking by international filmmakers and seeks to cultivate an appreciation of film and moving image media, to inspire audiences to a deeper understanding of the world's cultures through film, and to celebrate past, present and future achievements of international filmmaking in a university setting. You will attend festival screenings and participate in online discussions with other students about what most interested, inspired, surprised you about the filmmakers, filmmaking, and the subject matter of works programmed in this season's festival.
UNDERGRADUATE FILM STUDIES CERTIFICATE CATEGORY: N/A
FILM STUDIES MAJOR CATEGORY: N/A
FILM-ST 304 – From Berlin to Hollywood
Instructor: Mariana Ivanova
Credits: 3
Meeting: Tu & Th 10:00 am-11:15 am
An introduction to German cinema, treating Weimar Expressionism, Nazi film and
anti-Nazi exile cinema, film in post-WWII East and West Germany, and German film
since the fall of the Berlin Wall. Conducted in English. (Gen.Ed. AT)
UNDERGRADUATE FILM STUDIES CERTIFICATE CATEGORY: III, V
FILM STUDIES MAJOR CATEGORY: N, E
FILM-ST 330 – Film Auteurs
Instructor: Daniel Pope
Credits: 4
Meeting: Monday 4:00 pm-6:30 pm
Discussion: Wednesday 11:15 am-12:05 pm
This class will focus on Alfred Hitchcock . This course will aim to highlight Hitchcock's cinematic models, distinctive style and recurrent themes, within the theoretical framework of the "auteur theory," thus offering students an introductory and comprehensive view of perhaps the most central concept in film studies.
UNDERGRADUATE FILM STUDIES CERTIFICATE CATEGORY: III, V
FILM STUDIES MAJOR CATEGORY: D&G
FILM-ST 345 – Cinema of the Lusophone World
Instructor: Patricia Martinho Ferreira
Credits: 3
Meeting: Tuesday 4:00 pm-6:30 pm
This course is designed as an introduction to Brazilian, Portuguese and Lusophone African cinemas and cultures. The selected films will afford students an opportunity to engage with film theory and criticism, and to examine a variety of topics such as the formation of national identity, gender and family dynamics, social inequalities, rural vs. urban societies, migration, civic agency, race relations, and major political and historical events that have impacted the contemporary societies of the Portuguese-speaking world (Angola, Brazil, Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Mozambique, Portugal, and Tome and Principe). Class will be conducted in English. The films will be shown in the original language with subtitles. Portuguese majors have the choice to complete their assignments in Portuguese.
UNDERGRADUATE FILM STUDIES CERTIFICATE CATEGORY: III, V
FILM STUDIES MAJOR CATEGORY: N, E
FILM-ST 351 – Classical Hollywood Cinema
Instructor: Barry Spence
Credits: 3
Meeting: Wednesday 4:00 pm-7:00 pm & Thursday 1:00-2:15
This is a history of film course focusing on what is sometimes referred to as the Golden Age of Hollywood. An in-depth examination of Classical Hollywood cinema as a distinct mode of film practice, with its own cinematic style and industrial conditions, this course will concentrate on the period from 1917 to the early 1960s. We will look at aspects of the modes of production, the stylistic practices, and the technological developments that defined this period of the Hollywood studio system (as well as during its period of decline), paying special attention to the way this preeminent form of cinema established many of the norms of the immersive film experience. Among other subjects, we will consider the development of classical continuity during the silent era, the ascent of the “talkie,” the establishment of the vertically integrated studio system and the idea of “house style,” the formation of various narrative genres, such as film noir, as well as the effects of such historical phenomena as the Great Depression, World War II, and McCarthyism. We will watch one or two films each week and discuss them (19 films total).
UNDERGRADUATE FILM STUDIES CERTIFICATE CATEGORY: II, V
FILM STUDIES MAJOR CATEGORY: H1, E
FILM-ST 353 – African Film
Instructor: Patrick Mensah
Credits: 4
Meeting: Tuesday 4:00 pm-6:50 pm
Discussion: Thursday 2:30 pm-3:45 pm and Thursday 4:00 pm-5:15 pm
This course offers an introduction to African film as an aesthetic and cultural practice. Students should expect to be familiarized with the key ideas and objectives that have inspired and driven that practice since the early 1960s, and be furnished with the technical tools and methodological skills that would permit them to understand, analyze, and think critically about the artistic and thematic aspects of the films that are screened. They should also expect the course to provide
them with a critical peek into several cardinal issues of social and cultural relevance in contemporary Africa and its history. Issues of interest typically include, the nationstate and its declining status, imperatives of decolonization, economic dependency and structural adjustment programs, orality and changing traditional cultures, diasporic migrations, urbanization and its problems, gender relations, civil wars, child soldiers, gangs, and related themes. Filmmakers studied include, but are not limited to, Abderrahmane Sissako, Gillo Pontecorvo, Ousmane Sembene, Raoul Peck, Jean-Marie Teno, Dani Kouyate, Mweze Ngangura, Gavin Hood, Neill Blomkamp, Moufida Tlatli, Djibril Diop Mambety (please note that this list is subject to change, and shall be updated as future changes are made). The course is conducted in English, and requires no prior knowledge of the field. All films are streamed to your computer from the UMass library on demand. Required readings are provided online, and no book purchases are necessary. (Gen.Ed. AT, DG)
UNDERGRADUATE FILM STUDIES CERTIFICATE CATEGORY: III, V
FILM STUDIES MAJOR CATEGORY: N, E
FILM-ST 360 – Music, Culture, Moving Image
Instructor: Kevin Anderson
Credits: 4
Meeting: Monday 11:15 am-2:15 pm
This course explores the relationship between music and the moving image across multiple forms of media, including Film and Television, Documentaries, Music Videos, Video Games, Commercials, Broadcasts (e.g. news, sports), and Social Media (e.g. TikTok). The scope of the material studied includes examples from multiple cultures and points in the history of the moving image, paying particular attention to hybrid and cross-cultural blends of image and music, and the ways in which this marriage of image and sound service cultural and emotional meanings.
Students will be exposed to a wide variety of international, cultural, and historic pairings of music with moving images, and will emerge from the course with a thorough foundation in the following: how and why music pairs with the moving image; how and why the relationship between music and images has varied across time and culture; and the ways in which psychological states, cultural-historical markers, and emotional appeal are targeted through the pairing of sonic and visual stimuli. (Gen. Ed. SB, DU)
UNDERGRADUATE FILM STUDIES CERTIFICATE CATEGORY: II, V
FILM STUDIES MAJOR CATEGORY: E
FILM-ST 386 – Latin American Cinemas
Instructor: Eva Alvarez Vazquez
Credits 3
Meeting: Thursday 4:00 pm - 6:30 pm
This course is an introduction to the rich and diverse cinemas of Latin America. We will explore the historical, cultural, and political contexts in which these films were produced, and analyze how they reflect and shape the social and political realities of their respective countries. Through screenings, readings, and discussions, we will examine the unique aesthetic and narrative strategies employed by Latin American filmmakers, and consider the ways in which they challenge dominant cinematic conventions. The course will trace the emergence of cinema in Latin America in the early 20th century, by exploring the ways in which film was used as a tool for propaganda, education, and nation-building. It will examine the various movements and genres that have emerged throughout Latin America's cinematic history, including the New Latin American Cinema, the Third Cinema, and the contemporary Latin American film industry. Through the analysis of key films, we will consider how these movements have engaged with questions of identity, history, memory, and social justice.
UNDERGRADUATE FILM STUDIES CERTIFICATE CATEGORY:
FILM STUDIES MAJOR CATEGORY:
FILM-ST 387 – The Western in Transnational Cinema
Instructor: Barry Spence
Credits: 4
Meeting: Online
The Western is one of the oldest of film genres. Usually considered the first Western movie, The Great Train Robbery, released in 1903, is arguably the film that established cinema as a commercial industry of formidable potential. From its earliest instances the Western has been a key cultural expression of the American mythos and has played an integral role in the formation of American identity. We can look at the Western as a cultural form rich in themes concerning: the construction of gender identity; racial politics; the establishment of social order in conflict with the lure of frontier self-determination; the romance of the outlaw; narratives of redemption; vigilante retribution versus the rule of law; human resiliency in and conquest of the natural world; the subjugation (or extermination) of indigenous peoples' and this is to name only an obvious few. But the Western has also been a pivotal form in the history of storytelling media in a very diverse range of nations and cultural contexts, from Japan to India to Italy to Germany to Australia to South Africa to Brazil to Mexico.
This course will, on the one hand, examine the cultural history and legacy of the Western genre in the cinema of the United States. We will study iconic and revisionist examples, looking at both formal and thematic aspects of this cinema as well as its historical relationship to American identity and its social policies and politics. On the other hand, a large part of this course will focus on the Western in relation to a highly diverse range of cinema cultures throughout the world. In particular, we will study the genre's impact on, but also its inheritance from, the cinema traditions of Italy, Japan, China, India, South Korea, and nations of the Global South. This course is designed to challenge conventional understanding of the Western genre by exposing students to interdisciplinary theories oriented toward comprehending the diverse cultural, social, and political perspectives embodied by the transnational engagement with the Western. (Gen. Ed. AT, DG)
UNDERGRADUATE FILM STUDIES CERTIFICATE CATEGORY: III, V
FILM STUDIES MAJOR CATEGORY: D&G, E
FILM-ST 390K – Introduction to Screenwriting
Instructor: Tom Benedek
Credits: 3
Meeting: Online
We will study film scripts to learn how they are constructed. Students will work on their own script projects using a series of steps which will guide them through plot and character development and provide a clear path to sound story and character development. Forums for online discussion will be dedicated to discussion of students’ ongoing writing project work and analysis of assigned readings.
UNDERGRADUATE FILM STUDIES CERTIFICATE CATEGORY: V
FILM STUDIES MAJOR CATEGORY: E
FILM-ST 411 – 16MM Filmmaking and Technology
Instructor: David Bendiksen
Credits: 3
Meeting: Wednesday 1:00 pm - 3:45 pm
This course is an introductory workshop in 16mm single-camera filmmaking, linear editing, and film projection intended for students interested in pursuing further creative production and coursework in film, especially toward completion of the Major or Certificate in Film Studies. Because the skills utilized in analog filmmaking can build upon but are in part discrete from those learned in video production, most students will have prior experience with photography or videography, though this is not strictly required. Creative work is complemented by a rigorous selection of readings and screenings. Exploration of technological possibilities to broaden student creativity will be emphasized, and the development of personal vision and style will be stressed.
UNDERGRADUATE FILM STUDIES CERTIFICATE CATEGORY: IV, V
FILM STUDIES MAJOR CATEGORY: E
FILM-ST 416 Untold Screenwriting
Instructor: Daniel Pope
Credits: 3
Meeting: Thursday 3:00 pm - 5:30 pm
This is a course in writing unconventional screenplays, singular film scripts that not only take innovative forms but also tell stories not often found in established film and media production. We will read from an international selection of screenplays, examine clips from unconventional films, and address questions of representation, inclusion, and the work of writing underrepresented characters and untold narratives for the screen. "Untold" signifies in two ways: it can mean boundless or limitless, and it can refer to a narrative that is not yet recounted. We are witnessing the beginnings of a film and media renaissance, with new works emerging and evolving that tell stories not commonly told and take innovative forms that can surprise, edify, delight, and enrich us. We will write screenplays for such works, starting with an appreciation for established forms and conventions of screenwriting, and pushing to expand the boundaries of what stories films can tell, and how.
UNDERGRADUATE FILM STUDIES CERTIFICATE CATEGORY: IV, V
FILM STUDIES MAJOR CATEGORY: E
FILM-ST 417 – Short documentary Filmmaking
Instructor: David Casals Roma
Credits: 3
Meeting: Online
In the same way that fiction films are the mirror of our imagination, documentaries are the mirror of our surrounding reality. But making a documentary requires a creative point of view by the director and the knowledge of some filmmaking techniques. In this course, you will learn how to develop your ideas for documentary, how to write a script, how to plan the production, how to shoot interviews and how to structure your movie in the editing room. Moreover, you will write, shoot and edit a 5-minute documentary during the course. It is important that you can have access to a camera, a computer and editing software to edit your documentary.
UNDERGRADUATE FILM STUDIES CERTIFICATE CATEGORY: IV, V
FILM STUDIES MAJOR CATEGORY: E
FILM-ST 446 – Film Documentary
Instructor: Bruce Geisler
Credits: 3
Meeting: Tuesday 2:30 pm-4:30 pm
We will view, analyze, and discuss films by modern documentary masters such as Michael Moore ("Sicko"), Chris Paine, ("Revenge of the Electric Car"), Seth Gordon ("The King of Kong - A Fistful of Quarters"), Pamela Yates ("Granito") and many others to further the understanding of the documentary craft and art from a filmmaker's perspective. Students will also do pre production (research and treatment) for their own short documentary, along with shorter hands-on exercises in writing narration, interview techniques, etc.
UNDERGRADUATE FILM STUDIES CERTIFICATE CATEGORY: III, IV, V
FILM STUDIES MAJOR CATEGORY: D&G, E
FILM-ST 490V – Visiting Filmmaker Series “VIDEOGRAPHIC TELEPHILIA”
Instructor: Ariel Avissar
Credits: 3
Meeting: TBA
The course will introduce and offer practice in the videographic study of television, a relatively underdeveloped subfield within videographic film and moving image studies. The course will combine intensive hands-on practice with theoretical studies and written assignments, aiming to creatively integrate videographic creation with theoretical and analytical thought. Students will focus on works of television of their own choosing, experimenting with various aspects of videographic TV studies. Students should have rudimentary proficiency in the use of a digital editing platform, or a willingness to independently learn basic editing as they go along.
COURSE GOALS AND OBJECTIVES: Students will learn and practice basic videographic skills; become familiar with notable existing works of videographic television studies; apply videographic practices as a means of studying serialized television texts; and create videographic works that express their critical and analytical insights.
UNDERGRADUATE FILM STUDIES CERTIFICATE CATEGORY: III, IV, V
FILM STUDIES MAJOR CATEGORY: E
FILM-ST 590N – New Directions in Videographic Scholarship
Instructor: Daniel Pope with Ariel Avissar and Barbara Zecchi
Credits: 3
Meeting: Tuesday 4 pm-6:30 pm
Film criticism, film scholarship, filmmaking—from its inception at the turn of the millennium the video essay in its many forms offers an expanding array of creative, intellectual, and scholarly means of self-expression. In this graduate seminar, we will create videographic essays in film scholarship. What is possible when the mode of enquiry departs from the printed word and inhabits the form of the media it examines? Making a videographic essay is much like making a film, often with similarities to documentary and the essay film. As such, we will engage not only film analysis and film scholarship but also video editing, visual composition, sound design, and other aspects of moving image media. We will examine a wide array of videographic essays and explore the unique analytical and expressive opportunities the medium offers. With this foundation, we develop the critical, creative, and technical skills necessary for making effective video essays addressing films and film theory, directors, genres, national cinemas, and cultural and social issues. Open to graduate students and advanced undergraduates.
UNDERGRADUATE FILM STUDIES CERTIFICATE CATEGORY: IV, V
FILM STUDIES MAJOR CATEGORY: E
Art
Art 230-01 - Image Capturing, Analog
Instructor: Jenny Vogel
Credits: 3
Meeting: TuTh 1:00PM - 3:45PM
Introduction to photographic tools and methods. The balance between self-inquiry and the importance of process and materials as vehicles of meaning. Theory explored through class critiques and slide presentations. Photography examined and discussed both from a personal point of view and in its wider cultural context.
UNDERGRADUATE FILM STUDIES CERTIFICATE CATEGORY: V
FILM STUDIES MAJOR CATEGORY: N/A
Art 230-02 - Image Capturing, Digital
Instructor: Susan Jahoda
Credits: 3
Meeting: TuTh 1:00PM - 3:45PM
Introduction to photographic tools and methods. The balance between self-inquiry and the importance of process and materials as vehicles of meaning. Theory explored through class critiques and slide presentations. Photography examined and discussed both from a personal point of view and in its wider cultural context.
UNDERGRADUATE FILM STUDIES CERTIFICATE CATEGORY: V
FILM STUDIES MAJOR CATEGORY: N/A
Art 231 - Photography II
Instructor: Susan Jahoda
Credits: 3
Meeting: TuTh 1:00PM - 3:45PM
In-depth exploration of techniques and materials including zone system, large format, and non-silver processes. Slide lectures, discussions, and readings. Prerequisite: ART 230 or consent of instructor.
UNDERGRADUATE FILM STUDIES CERTIFICATE CATEGORY: V
FILM STUDIES MAJOR CATEGORY: N/A
Art 275 - Digital Imaging
Instructor: Amanda Boggs
Credits: 3
Meeting: MoWe 1:25PM - 4:10PM
This course explores the creative possibilities of digital image creation and manipulation. Through demonstrations, creative technical assignments, students explore the digital workflow in independent projects involving sustained inquiry into self selected theme.
Prerequisite: Art 104, 110, 120, or 131
UNDERGRADUATE FILM STUDIES CERTIFICATE CATEGORY: V
FILM STUDIES MAJOR CATEGORY: N/A
Art 375 - Moving Image
Instructor: Jenny Vogel
Credits: 3
Meeting: TuTh 4:00PM - 6:45PM
This course explores digital video and sound within the context of contemporary art practices. Students learn basic skills and concepts used in experimental digital video production through small-scale projects. Prerequisites: ART 104, 110, or 120
UNDERGRADUATE FILM STUDIES CERTIFICATE CATEGORY: V
FILM STUDIES MAJOR CATEGORY: E
Art 290STA - Intro to Computer Animation
Credits: 3
Through short, hand-drawn 2D animation projects, students are introduced to primary animation skills such as timing & spacing, the 12 Principles of Animation, believable acting, and various professional workflows. Students gain experience working in a variety of animation and video editing programs and practice all parts of the animation pipeline, including pre-production, post-production & project management.
UNDERGRADUATE FILM STUDIES CERTIFICATE CATEGORY: V
FILM STUDIES MAJOR CATEGORY: N/A
Communication
COMM-140 - Introduction to Film Studies
Credits: 3
Instructor: Brendan McCauley
Meeting: TuTh 2:30PM - 3:45PM
Discussion: Tu 4:00PM - 6:00PM
This course offers an introduction to the study of film as a distinct medium. It introduces the ways in which film style, form, and genre contribute to the meaning and the experience of movies. Topics include film as industrial commodity, narrative and non-narrative form, aspects of style (e.g. composition, cinematography, editing, and sound), and the role of film as a cultural practice. Examples are drawn from new and classic films, from Hollywood and from around the world. This course is intended to serve as a basis for film studies courses you might take in the future.
UNDERGRADUATE FILM STUDIES CERTIFICATE CATEGORY: I
FILM STUDIES MAJOR CATEGORY: n/a
COMM-345 - Contemporary World Cinema
Credits: 3
Instructor Anne Ciecko
Meeting: MoWe 4:00PM - 6:00PM
This course offers an overview of recent filmmaking from around the world including narrative fiction feature films, documentary, short-form work, and other digital/audiovisual media. Developing tools of film analysis and criticism, we will explore representational strategies and issues of context: current events, cultural, political, social, historical, and economic circumstances that impact the production, exhibition, marketing, distribution, and reception of films. All undergraduates are welcome. No prior background in film studies is required, only an openness to diverse cultures and representations.
UNDERGRADUATE FILM STUDIES CERTIFICATE CATEGORY: III, V
FILM STUDIES MAJOR CATEGORY: E
COMM-393B - S-Intermediate Video Art Production
Credits: 3
Instructor:Ayanna Dozier
Meeting: MoWe 2:30PM - 3:45PM
This is an intermediate video production/theory course for students interested in exploring a wide range of approaches to narrative, documentary and experimental videomaking. Students will gain experience in production and postproduction techniques and will learn to think about and look critically at the moving and still image. The class will concentrate on the development of individual approaches to directing, performance, text, sound and image. Students will complete several collaborative and individual projects for the course and will also write responses to critical readings and weekly screenings. The course will include workshops in non-linear editing, cinematography, and lighting. Enrollment with permission of instructor by application only.
UNDERGRADUATE FILM STUDIES CERTIFICATE CATEGORY: V
FILM STUDIES MAJOR CATEGORY: E
COMM 441 - Intermediate Digital Filmmaking
Credits: 3
Instructor: Kevin Anderson
Meeting: Tu 12:45PM - 3:45PM
A hands-on introduction to single-camera filmmaking using digital video camcorders and non-linear editing. Production assignments will foster student skills in the art of visual storytelling: from pre-production, shot composition and lighting to continuity editing and post production audio.
Prerequisite: COMM 231 and 331
UNDERGRADUATE FILM STUDIES CERTIFICATE CATEGORY: IV, V
FILM STUDIES MAJOR CATEGORY: E
COMM 444 - Film Styles & Genres
Credits: 3
Instructor: Shawn Shimpach
Meeting: Mo 1:25PM - 2:15PM
Lab: Mo 2:30PM - 5:15PM
Why do we put certain films into categories? What constitutes a film genre, how do we recognize it, and what do we do with it? This course examines these questions and more by considering a specific genre over the course of the semester. We will learn to think of genre as a way of comparing and contrasting different films. Genre will also be thought of as a way of creating expectations and measuring experience and meaning. The power of film genre is that it allows us to understand film as a text and film as a social practice at the very same time.
UNDERGRADUATE FILM STUDIES CERTIFICATE CATEGORY: III, IV, V
FILM STUDIES MAJOR CATEGORY: D&G, E
COMM 445 - Screenwriting
Credits: 3
Instructor: Bruce Geisler
Meeting: TuTh 11:30AM - 12:45PM
An examination of the art, craft, and business of screenwriting from theoretical and practical perspectives. Topics include screenplay format and structure, story, plot and character development, dialog and scene description, visual storytelling, pace and rhythm, analysis of professional and student scripts and films.
UNDERGRADUATE FILM STUDIES CERTIFICATE CATEGORY: IV, V
FILM STUDIES MAJOR CATEGORY: E
COMM 447 - Advanced Documentary Production
Credits: 3
Instructor: Robbie Leppzer
Meeting: Th 3:00PM - 6:00PM
This course is a workshop-style class in digital film production, in which we will take a deep dive into advanced techniques and aesthetics of cinematography, lighting, sound recording and editing. Through hands-on exercises and production of two short films, students will develop a solid practice in the technical skills needed to create visually and aurally compelling moving images and sound. Students will learn how to manage and organize large amounts of raw footage, edit sequences and create engaging story structures using Adobe Premiere.
Prerequisites: At least one hands-on production course from among the following: COMM 331, 346, 347, 441, 493L, or 493Z
UNDERGRADUATE FILM STUDIES CERTIFICATE CATEGORY: IV, V
FILM STUDIES MAJOR CATEGORY: E
COMM 490STA - Advanced Digital Cinematography
Credits: 3
Instructor: Robbie Leppzer
Meeting: Th 11:30AM - 2:30PM
This course is a workshop-style “hands-on” class in digital film production, in which we will take a deep dive into advanced techniques and aesthetics of cinematography. Utilizing a state-of-the-art high-end professional 4K camera, students will learn how to master technical settings, including exposure, aperture, shutter speed, focus, ISO, depth of field, white balance, gamma assist, recording formats and codecs. Visual composition, lenses, camera support and various filming techniques will be examined, along with workshops on lighting and basic audio recording and editing in Adobe Premiere. Through hands-on exercises and production of two short films, students will develop a solid practice in the technical skills needed to create visually compelling moving images. With an emphasis on documentary techniques, students with an interest in all film genres will be welcome. Prerequisite: COMM 331
UNDERGRADUATE FILM STUDIES CERTIFICATE CATEGORY: IV, V
FILM STUDIES MAJOR CATEGORY: E
COMM 494BI - Countercultural Films
Credits: 3
Instructor: Bruce Geisler
Meeting: We 12:20PM - 2:20PM
An exploration of the counter-cultural movements of the 1960s and 70s and later, hosted by someone who was there and lived to tell the tale. Through the medium of documentary and fiction films, we will delve into the musical, sexual, artistic, political and spiritual upheavals that rocked America and Europe back then and that continue to reverberate today. This course satisfies the Integrative Experience requirement for BA-Comm majors.
UNDERGRADUATE FILM STUDIES CERTIFICATE CATEGORY: III, IV, V
FILM STUDIES MAJOR CATEGORY: E, can count as I.E.
Comparative Literature
COMP-LIT 350: International Film
Instructor: Barry Spence
Credits: 4
Meeting: Thursday 4:00-7:00 + a Friday discussion section
We will screen films from across the globe studying examples of a range of lesser-known subgenres of the Horror film, such as Giallo (Italian genre mixing slasher horror with detective mysteries), Fantastique (French genre mixing gothic horror with fantasy erotica), and Jiangshi (Hong Kong genre mixing slasher horror with Kung Fu). And we will consider in equal measure the so-called dystopian film. We will look at the interrelationship connecting these two modes, which can be seen at work in films like Battle Royale. This course will include a primary focus on gender issues, will examine the representation of women, and will screen (transgressive) examples of these modes by women filmmakers. The intention of this course is to expose students to a cultural diversity of these vital contemporary film genres beyond the conventional Hollywood fare. Weekly film screenings and discussion. (Gen. Ed. AT)
UNDERGRADUATE FILM STUDIES CERTIFICATE CATEGORY: III, V
FILM STUDIES MAJOR CATEGORY: D&G, E
Italian
ITALIAN 429 - The Neorealist Window
Instructor: Andrea Malaguti
Credits: 3
Meeting: TuTh 2:30PM - 3:45PM
The course examines those films produced in Italy right after WWII that not only signed the birth of a modern democratic nation out of a millenary tradition, but also influenced filmmaking on a global level by providing the most decisive alternative to Hollywood.
UNDERGRADUATE FILM STUDIES CERTIFICATE CATEGORY: III, IV, V
FILM STUDIES MAJOR CATEGORY: N, E