Winter 2014
Monday and Wednesday, 9:35 am - 11:35 am
State Hall 326
Web address for this page:
http://www.shaviro.com/Classes/FilmIntroW2014.html
On Blackboard, log in to: "Winter 2014 ENG/COM 2450/2010 Sec 001 (COMBINED)."
5057 Woodward, Room 9309
Office hours: MW 12:00 pm - 1:00 pm, and by appointment
This class offers an introduction to the study of film. First, we will look at the film experience as a whole. Then, we will take a detailed look at the major formal elements of film (mise-en-scene, cinematography, editing, and sound). Finally, we will put these elements back together again, in order to consider how film narrative works as a whole, and to look at some of the major types of films (genres).
LEARNING OUTCOME: Students will learn how to understand and interpret the basic formal elements of film.
I have not ordered a textbook for this class, because all the available textbooks are excessively expensive. Instead, the lectures will be supplemented by three Concept Guides, giving definitions of key terms in Mise-en-scene, Cinematography, and Editing. These Concept guides will be made available on Blackboard. Lecture slides for each lecture will be available on Blackboard as well. For each film, the online syllabus includes a link to a page listing the director and main actors, and giving some study suggestions and questions for the film.
Some classes will be devoted to the screening of full-length feature films. Other classes will consist of lecture and discussion. Each lecture will be accompanied by a slide presentation and some short film clips. The aim of each lecture/discussion will be twofold: to analyze the films that we have seen, and to discuss more general concepts important for the critical understanding of film.
Many of the films we will watch are old ones, made in the years between 1924 and 1982. Though the class does not survey the history of film in any detail, one of its aims is to introduce you to older films that you may not have seen before, including silent films. black-and-white films, and films in foreign languages (shown with English subtitles). One of the aims of the course is to make you more aware of the variety of film art over the past century. We will also see some recent films in the course of the semester, and a number of recent music videos; one of our tasks will be to consider how these recent films are similar to, and different from, older ones.
Class requirements include regular attendance, participation in discussions, and five short assigned papers (approximately 800 words each). Each assigned paper will count for 20% of your grade. Points may be deducted for non-attendance and for late papers. Points may be added for positive participation in class discussions.
January 6
Screening: Buster Keaton, Sherlock Jr. (1924)
Lecture: Introduction to this class
January 8
Screening and discussion: music videos
January 13
Screening: Alfred Hitchcock, Rear Window (1954)
January 15
Lecture: The film experience
Discussion of Rear Window
January 22
Screening: Martin Scorsese, Life Lessons (from New York Stories, 1989)
Lecture: Film as an expressive medium
January 27
Screening: Josef von Sternberg, The Scarlet Empress (1934)
January 29
Lecture: Mise-en-scene (1)
Discussion of The Scarlet Empress
February 3
Screening: Ridley Scott, Blade Runner(1982)
February 5
Lecture: Mise-en-scene (2)
Discussion of Blade Runner
February 10
Screening: Jean Renoir, Grand Illusion (1937)
February 12
Lecture: Cinematography (1)
Discussion of Grand Illusion
FIRST PAPER DUE (MISE-EN-SCENE)
February 17
Screening: Orson Welles, Touch of Evil (1958)
February 19
Lecture: Cinematography (2)
Discussion of Touch of Evil
February 24
Screening: Sergei Eisenstein, Battleship Potemkin (1925)
February 26
Lecture: Editing (1)
Discussion of Battleship Potemkin
SECOND PAPER DUE (CINEMATOGRAPHY)
March 3
Screening: John Ford, Stagecoach (1939)
March 5
Lecture: Editing (2): The Continuity System
Discussion of Stagecoach
March 10-12: SPRING BREAK, NO CLASSES
March 17
Lecture: Editing (3): more about continuity editing
March 19: NO CLASS
March 24
Screening: Tony Scott, Domino (2005)
March 26
Lecture: Editing (4): Other Editing Styles
Discussion of Domino
March 31
Screening: Stanley Donen and Gene Kelly, Singin' in the Rain (1952)
April 2
Lecture: Film Sound (1)
Discussion of Singin' in the Rain
THIRD PAPER DUE (EDITING)
April 7
Screening: Francis Ford Coppola, The Conversation (1974)
April 9
Lecture: Film Sound (2)
Discussion of The Conversation
April 14
Screening: Billy Wilder, Double Indemnity (1944)
April 16
Lecture: Film Genres
Discussion of Double Indemnity
FOURTH PAPER DUE (FILM SOUND)
April 21
Screening and discussion: music videos
MONDAY, APRIL 28
FIFTH PAPER DUE (MUSIC VIDEOS)
The Writing Center (2nd floor, UGL) provides individual tutoring consultations free of charge for students at Wayne State University. Undergraduate students in General Education courses receive priority for tutoring appointments. The Writing Center serves as a resource for writers, providing tutoring sessions on the range of activities in the writing process: considering the audience, analyzing the assignment or genre, brainstorming, researching, writing drafts, revising, editing, and preparing documentation. The Writing Center is not an editing or proofreading service; rather, students are guided as they engage collaboratively in the process of academic writing, from developing an idea to editing for grammar and mechanics. To make an appointment, consult the Writing Center website:
http://www.clas.wayne.edu/writing/
To submit material for online tutoring, consult the Writing Center HOOT website (Hypertext One-on-One Tutoring):
http://www.clas.wayne.edu/unit-inner.asp?WebPageID=1330.
For more information about the Writing Center, please contact the Director, Jule Wallis (phone: 7-2544; email: au1145@wayne.edu).
Plagiarism is a very serious matter and should be recognized as such. The University has a very strict policy on plagiarism. Always refer to your sources when quoting, paraphrasing, or using the ideas ofother writers. When paraphrasing, place in quotes any phrase of four words or more that comes directly from the source being used.