COMM 365: Images on Film

Fall 2010

T (2:00-4:00); R (2:00-4:00)

Honsey Hall #129

Instructor: Kurt Paulsen

Phone: 344-7732

E-mail: kpaulsen@blc.edu

Office: Honsey Hall 231

Required Text: Anatomy of Film, 6th Ed. by Bernard Dick.

Supplemental Readings: Throughout the semester I will provide you with additional readings (both critical and popular) in connection to technique, genre, and theory.

Course Description:

Through critical viewing of landmark films and a study of film theory, students expand their understanding of film as a central aspect of communication in our era (BLC catalogue). 

·       Critical Viewing; Film Theory; Communication: Our primary approach to films in this class (and an approach that I hope you continue to use after this course) will be to consider films as texts (not unlike other kinds of texts—novels, stories, poems, advertisements, etc.) that can be “read” critically, and that a critical reading of filmic texts can be a challenging and rewarding process that will tell us a great deal about ourselves, our culture, our time, and our values and beliefs.  In order to aid our critical viewing, there are three primary categories that we will use to open up the potential meanings of the films that we view:

1)    Technique: Film is an art form that brings together a number of different components in the creation of the final product: scripts, acting, directing, camera work, editing, musical scores, production, and others, all of which have to cohere, and, at least, appear to work in concert.  During the course we will develop a working vocabulary and familiarity with some of the technical devices used to make films.

2)    Theory: How did artists and thinkers, producers and consumers respond to moving pictures in the 1890s? How has film as an art form developed since its beginning, and what role does film have in our contemporary culture?  Are movies products of their culture or do they shape that culture?  How do audiences react to and interpret what they see?  Theorists (philosophers, literary critics and scholars, cultural studies scholars, linguists, and film scholars) have posed and attempted to answer these and other questions about the artfulness of film and the relationship between film and the societies and cultures that interact with and are impacted by the medium.  We will engage with a number of different theoretical perspectives, which will help us to gain a philosophical and historical context as we attempt to answer the above questions as well as others that we will frame in regard to the specific films we view.

3)     Aesthetics: How are the films we will view artful?  How do the various techniques used combine and coalesce to create a complex and challenging text?  What kinds of stories are being told and how are they being told in the films we will view?  How do they communicate their particular messages?  In all of the films that we view, we will attempt to answer the above questions.

·       Landmark Films: While some of the films we will view might be considered “landmark” films, others I have chosen are not (although, arguably, all of them attempt something beyond the formulaic constraints of their particular genres).  I chose the films, in part, because of my own interests and my familiarity with the particular films.  I also chose them because of the ways in which they are atypical examples of films within particular genres—most of them amalgamate two or more genres (with varying degrees of success), which, in and of itself, should provide some interesting topics for discussion and analysis.  In addition, the techniques they employ are often experimental and innovative, and the “visions” of each are complex and rich, so that their analysis in a course like this is warranted.  Finally, I think all of the films operate in a way that will likely make us a bit uncomfortable (challenging our notions of what a film should be, of the purposes that art should serve, presenting challenging visions of humanity and reality), which is an ideal place to be in order to learn and grow.    

Graded Requirements:

1)    Electronic Responses (30%): After each viewing students will write an electronic response and post it on the discussion board on Campusweb.  The purpose of these responses is first to give each of you an opportunity to provide a “gut” response to the film; thus it’s appropriate to say that you loved or hated; liked or disliked the film.  But, I want you to move beyond a simple thumbs up or down and discuss in some detail why you liked or disliked the film.  In order to accomplish this you can discuss plot, the “look” of the film (which could include setting, props, costumes, cinematography, etc.), the characters, the acting, the sound, etc., etc.  Because these are informal, you don’t need to be too concerned with spelling or grammar; or structure (I’m not looking for a formal essay in these responses with a thesis, intro., body, and conclusion), but you do want your responses to be readable.  You should plan on writing at least a full single spaced page in each of your responses, and I recommend that you write them as soon after viewing the film as possible.  The responses must be posted on the Wednesday after the viewing by 12:00 noon in order to receive credit.  We will use these responses as part of our discussion.  I will provide samples of effective responses.

2)     Scene analysis paper (20%): A 3-4 page paper that offers a close analysis or “reading” of a particular scene from one of the films that we view in class.  The goals of this paper are to describe and contextualize the scene and to utilize the filmic vocabulary we will be learning.  As you describe the scene, you will need to use appropriate terms in order to discuss editing, mis-en-scene, cinematography, sound, etc.

3)    Two Exams (10% each): You will take two exams, a midterm and a final, based on the readings, class discussion, and screenings.  The exams will be short answer, multiple choice, and true-false in format.

4)    Final Paper  (30%) An 8-10 page paper that offers an analysis or “reading” of a film of your choosing. The film must be cleared by the instructor before hand.   The goals of this paper are to describe and contextualize the film and to utilize the filmic vocabulary we will be learning.  As you describe the film, you will need to use appropriate terms in order to discuss editing, mis-en-scene, cinematography, sound, etc. You should adobt a critical framework to help focus your criticism of the films thematic elements.

5)    Attendance: Your presence in all of your courses is important—it is especially crucial in a course like this.  It is important to me that we view the films in a relatively controlled environment and that you are always actively participating in the course.  In order to do this effectively you must be here.  Every unexcused absence after two will result in the deduction of a letter grade and six or more absences is an automatic F.

A word on academic integrity:

The MLA Handbook* has defined plagiarism as follows:

1.     repeating another’s sentences as your own

2.     adopting a particularly apt phrase as your own

3.     paraphrasing someone else’s argument as your own

4.     presenting someone else’s line of thinking as though it were your own.

In short, to plagiarize is to use someone else’s work as your own, without crediting or citing the source.  Direct word-for-word copying is permissible if the material appears in quotation marks and if the source is cited.  Rephrasing and summarizing is permissible if the source is cited.

The instructor reserves the right to fail any student involved in plagiarism.

*  MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, Dissertations (New York, Modern Languages Association, 1977)