This class fulfills the general education requirement in arts at George Mason University.

Transcription

1 Film and Video Studies The Histy of Wld Cinema Syllabus August 25, 2014 December 18, 2014 Adjunct Profess Robert Farr Skype: Robfarr.gmu This class fulfills the general education requirement in arts at Gege Mason University. General Education in Arts Learning Outcomes: * Identify and analyze the fmal elements of a particular art fm using vocabulary appropriate to that fm. * Demonstrate an understanding of the relationship between artistic technique and the expression of a wk s underlying concept. * Analyze cultural productions using standards appropriate to the fm and cultural context. * Analyze and interpret material perfmance culture in its social, histical, and/ personal contexts. * Engage in the artistic process, including conception, creation and ongoing critical analysis. Description and Objectives This course is a survey of the histy of cinema. It exples the development of wld cinema from its beginnings in the late nineteenth century to the present day. Emphasis is placed on maj directs, films and movements that contributed to the development of narrative cinema. The course will investigate several maj film movements and individual films, focusing on their aesthetic, histical, technological and ideological contributions to the evolution of the art fm. In doing so, the principles of narrative construction in film will be considered. The course will enable students to comprehend the evolution of the histy and language of cinema in der to connect the art of filmmaking with the outside fces (i.e., the economic institutions, key figures, histical events and social issues) that profoundly shape and influence it. Course Logistics This course will use a distance learning fmat; the primary meeting space will be on Blackboard 9.1; and we will use other means of keeping in touch such as: , telephone, and Skype. In a typical week: you will read about 50 pages and discuss the material with your classmates accomplish on-line activities and respond to weekly requirements 1

2 wk on assignments to be submitted in the Blackboard assignment drop box accding to the assignment schedule. Though the delivery method is different, it should take you the same amount of time as a typical undergraduate course. Expect to spend 9 to 10 hours on coursewk each week (this includes the time you would have spent in a classroom). It is critical to keep up with weekly requirements. A weekly folder will be available by clicking on Course Contents on the course menu in Blackboard that will specify all required activities and assignments. This course is entirely online. In other wds, all mini-lectures, blogs, quizzes, feedback and the final exam will be online. You will need to access Blackboard 9.1 in der to take the course. If you have not used Blackboard 9.1 befe you will find instructions on how to use it by clicking the help links on the course menu. To Access Blackboard 1. Go to 2. Login using your NETID and passwd 3. Click on the Courses tab 4. Double-click on FAVS-225 (Fall 2014) under the 9.1 Course List heading. You are encouraged to identify at least two other students with whom you may fm a study group. A discussion fum called Student Lounge is included in the course f this purpose. F trouble accessing blackboard, contact the ITU Suppt Center at suppt@gmu.edu. F problems with Blackboard after you have accessed the course, check the Blackboard help links on the course menu. If you do not find the answer there, then courses@gmu.edu." Technology Requirements Once you have accessed the course through Blackboard, click on the Technology Requirements link on the course menu. Make sure that you check the software and hardware requirements to take this course. Pay special attention to the operating systems and browsers that are compatible with Blackboard 9.1. Also, download the most current versions of the software by clicking on the links available. Hardware: 2

3 You will need access to a Windows Macintosh computer with at least 2 GB of RAM and to a fast and reliable broadband internet connection (e.g., cable, DSL). A larger screen is recommended f better visibility of course material. You will need speakers headphones to hear recded content and a headset with a microphone is recommended f the best experience. F the amount of Hard Disk Space required to take a distance education course consider and allow f: 1. the stage amount needed to install any additional software and 2. space to ste wk that you will do f the course. If you are considering the purchase of a new computer, please go to to see recommendations. Software: Many courses use Blackboard as the learning management system. You will need a browser and operating system that are listed compatible certified with the Blackboard version available on the mymason Ptal. See suppted browsers and operating systems. Log in to mymason to access your registered courses. Some courses may use other learning management systems. Check the syllabus contact the instruct f details. Online courses typically use Acrobat Reader, Flash, Java (Windows), and Windows Media Player, QuickTime and/ Real Media Player. Your computer should be capable of running current versions of those applications. Also, make sure your computer is protected from viruses by downloading the latest version of Symantec Endpoint Protection/Anti-Virus software f free at Students owning Macs Linux should be aware that some courses may use software that only runs on Windows. You can set up a Mac computer with Boot Camp virtualization software so Windows will also run on it. Watch about using Windows on a Mac. Computers running Linux can also be configured with virtualization software configured to dual boot with Windows. Note: If you are using an employer-provided computer cpate office f class attendance, please verify with your systems administrats that you will be able to install the necessary applications and that system cpate firewalls do not block access to any sites media types. Required Texts Weekly screenings of selected feature films are required in this class. Students are solely responsible f accessing and screening these films befe the posted due dates. Please review each week s film selection options in the syllabus so that you can anticipate where you will find and screen the film. A Netflix and/ Hulu+ similar 3

4 account is highly recommended. While some titles are available via streaming on the internet, many are available solely on DVD. The GMU library may also have some titles. Please plan and arrange to get copies of the films in advance. The Sty of Film by Mark Cousins A Sht Guide to Writing about Film by Timothy Crigan (7 th Edition later) Online Course Environment The goals of this class include creating an equitable learning environment. We will uphold all published university policies regarding the Hon Code, sexual harassment, and equal opptunity. Appropriate adjustments will be made f students with special needs. Within one week of the start of the semester ( of your diagnosis), please send a letter from the Office of Disability Resources at , have Disability Suppt Services write me directly, confirming and describing your special needs and identifying the kinds of adjustments that will be needed f you to succeed. The infmation will be kept confidential. Add/Drop Dates First day of classes; last day to submit Domicile Reclassification Application; Payment Due Date August 25 Lab Day, university closed September 1 Last day to add classes all individualized section fms duelast day to drop with no tuition penalty September 2 Last day to drop with a 33% tuition penalty September 16 Final Drop Deadline (67% tuition penalty) September 26 Midterm progress repting period ( level classes) grades available via Patriot Web Selective Withdrawal Period (undergraduate students only) Columbus Day recess (Monday classes/labs meet Tuesday. Tuesday classes do not meet this week) September 22 - October 17 September 29 - October 24 October 13 Incomplete wk from spring/summer 2014 due to instruct October 24 Incomplete grade changes from spring/summer 2014 due to registrar October 31 Thanksgiving recess November Last day of classes December 6 Reading Days December 8 9 4

5 Reading days provide students with additional study time f final examinations. Faculty may schedule optional study sessions, but regular classes exams may not be held. Exam Period Wed December 10 Wed December 17 Assignments & Grade Percentages Attendance and class participation 25% Weekly quizzes 25% Participation in online discussion groups 25% Final Term Paper 25% Grade Scale: % A % A % B % B % B % C % C % C % D % D % F Late Wk Policy: Late wk is any wk not turned by the specified due date. All late wk will receive a one-letter grade reduction f each week it is late. Academic Integrity Students must be responsible f their own wk, and students and faculty must take on the responsibility of dealing explicitly with violations. The tenet must be a foundation of our university culture. [See Hon Code Students must adhere to the guidelines of the Gege Mason University Hon Code [See MasonLive/ Students are responsible f the content of university communications sent to their Gege Mason University account and are required to activate their account and check it regularly. All communication from the university, college, school, and program will be sent to students solely through their Mason account. [See 5

6 Patriot Pass Once you sign up f your Patriot Pass, your passwds will be synchronized, and you will use your Patriot Pass username and passwd to log in to the following systems: Blackboard, University Libraries, MasonLive, mymason, Patriot Web, Virtual Computing Lab, and WEMS. [See Responsible Use of Computing Students must follow the university policy f Responsible Use of Computing. [See Students with Disabilities Students with disabilities who seek accommodations in a course must be registered with the Gege Mason University Office of Disability Services (ODS) and infm their instruct, in writing, at the beginning of the semester [See University Libraries University Libraries provides resources f distance students. [See Writing Center The Gege Mason University Writing Center staff provides a variety of resources and services (e.g., tuting, wkshops, writing guides, handbooks) intended to suppt students as they wk to construct and share knowledge through writing. [See You can now sign up f an Online Writing Lab (OWL) session just like you sign up f a face-to-face session in the Writing Center, which means YOU set the date and time of the appointment! Learn me about the Online Writing Lab (OWL). Counseling and Psychological Services The Gege Mason University Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) staff consists of professional counseling and clinical psychologists, social wkers, and counsels who offer a wide range of services (e.g., individual and group counseling, wkshops and outreach programs) to enhance students' personal experience and academic perfmance [See Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (FERPA), also known as the "Buckley Amendment," is a federal law that gives protection to student educational recds and provides students with certain rights. [See Learning Outcomes By the end of the course, students will be able to: 1. Identify and discuss the maj film movements, films, and directs of the 20 th century. 6

7 2. Break down and analyze how narratives are constructed in cinema, in general, and in particular films. 3. Evaluate the subtexts and themes of particular films and defend their assertions through specific, suppting examples found in the films. 4. Appraise how outside fces (i.e. histical events, economic institutions, social issues, key figures) shape the content and fm of various film movements and particular films. 5. Investigate and complete research projects that exple a subject related to film histy. 6. Apply cinematic concepts and terminology presented in the lectures and textbook in the fmation of creative projects. 7. Wk effectively in a collabative environment Course Schedule Session Reading f Quiz Classroom Lectures Film Screening: Choose one. Activities/Assignments/Assessments *Details included in weekly folder. Week 1: August 25 and 27 Cousins 1 Crigan : The sensation of the first movies and cinema up to WWI Find and watch three of the following films on YouTube: -Lumiere actualities -Pter s Life of an American Fireman The Great Train Robbery -Anything by Alice Guy Blache -Anything by Gege Melies 1. Introductions blog 2. Quiz over video lectures and reading due Weds. Sept Online discussion on a topic to Week 2: Weds. Sept. 3. No class on Monday Sept. 1 Week 3: Sept. 8 and 10 Cousins 2 Crigan : The early power of sty American silent film Cousins : Silent film in US and around the wld Watch one of the following: The Kid (Hulu +) The General (Netflix) Metropolis rested version (Netflix) Battleship Potemkin (Netflix) lectures due Mon. Sept. 8 lectures due Mon. Sept. 15. Week 4: Sept. 15 and 17 Cousins 4 stop at European Avant- Guard : Japanese classicism and other genres in wld cinema I Was Bn, But (Hulu +) Rules of the Game (Hulu +) lectures due Mon. Sept

8 Week 5: Sept. 22 and 24 Cousins 4 from European Avant- Guard : Hollywood romance Stagecoach (Hulu +) Casablanca (Amazon Instant) lectures Due Monday Sept. 29. Week 6: Sept. 29 and Oct. 1 Cousins 5 Crigan 3 to page : The devastation of war and a new realism Bicycle Thieves (Netflix) Rashomon (Hulu +) lectures due Monday Oct. 6 Week 7: Oct. 6 and 8 Cousins : Rage and symbolism in 1950s filmmaking Devi the Goddess (Hulu +) Vertigo (Amazon Instant) lectures due Tuesday Oct. 14 Week 8: Oct. 14 and 15 NOTE: No Monday class. We will meet Tues. and Weds. Crigan 3 from page 62 ( The Shot ) to end of chapter Cousins 7 part : The breakdown of romantic cinema The 400 Blows (Hulu +) Breathless (Hulu +) lectures due Monday Oct. 20. Week 9: Oct. 20 and 22 Cousins 7 part 2 Crigan : The coming of modernism Bonnie and Clyde (Amazon Instant) The Graduate (Amazon Instant) lectures due Monday Oct. 27 be assigned in class Week 10: Oct. 27 and 29 Cousins 8 part : Political symbolism around the wld Z (Hulu +) Battle of Algiers (Hulu +) lectures due Monday Nov. 3 Week 11: Nov. 3 and 5 Cousins 8 part 2 Crigan : The rise of the blockbuster in America Easy Rider (Amazon Instant) Taxi Driver (Amazon Instant) lectures due Monday Nov

9 Week 12: Nov. 10 and 12 Cousins 9 part : The extremes of wld cinema The Official Sty (Netflix) Close-Up (Hulu +) lectures due Monday Nov. 17 Week 13: Nov. 17 and 19 Week 14: Nov. 24 Week 15: Dec. 1 and 3 Cousins 9 part 2 Crigan 6 Cousins 10 part 1 Cousins 10 part 2 Crigan : Influence of video and MTV present: Digital CGI takes cinema beyond photography present: Into the future Fast Times at Ridgemont High (Amazon Instant) Do the Right Thing (Amazon Instant) City of God (Netflix) Tsotsi (Netflix) lectures due Monday Nov. 24 lectures due Friday Dec. 5 Reading Days: Dec. 8-9 Final Exam: Dec Citizen Kane (Amazon Instant) Final Exam. Date, time and classroom TBA. 9