Course Catalog

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Course Catalog

FILM GENRE: THE WESTERN (FM2096)

The Western has used to examine American myths about history, race, gender and politics on an uncertain frontier. Looking at films from three continents and from directors including Ford, Hawks, Mann, Leone, Greenwald, Reichardt, Peckinpah, Lucas and Kurosawa, we’ll explore how film works to show the limits and possibilities of culture in collision with ideas of itself.

EUROPEAN CINEMA & THE BODY (FM2097)

This course examines the intricate relationship existing between cinema and the body. How is cinematographic art able to represent the creative faculties but also the dark sides of the body : its gestures, desires, needs and pulsions (in sexuality and gender identity) ? How can it account for the cognitive, cultural, political and technological revolutions associated with the body throughout European history (such as the Body Politics or the Technological Body) ? Structured around screenings and classroom lectures, the course addresses these questions by introducing the students to elements of film studies and Body Theory as well as locating each of the screened films in their historical and cultural contexts. The aim of the course is for students to develop an informed appreciation of the issues at stake in the variety of cinematographic representations of the body.

CINEMA & THE POLITICAL (FM2098)

Studies the intricate relationship between politics and cinema : how films represent, document but also problematize the political dimension of cultures, societies and individual experience. Both content of films (themes, plot, contexts) and their forms (narrative structures, mise en scène, cinematography, editing) are analyzed to understand how ideological messages are put together and communicated to the spectator. Studied films include political subjects such as war, 9/11, revolution, electoral politics, issues of race, gender, media, globalization, the politics of history and identity politics. The course is organized around screenings and seminars.

PHOTOGRAPHIE ET LE CINEMA (FM2450)

This course will explore the bridges between photographic imagery and cinematographic imagery. This course will focus on contemporary artists (Cindy Sherman, Sophie Calle, Jeff Wall, Gregory Crewdson, etc.) whose hybrid works econstruct the real and dissolve identity. We will also focus on how the cinematographic eye converges with and complements the photographic eye. Conducted in French, this course combines critical analysis and practice (production of films and photographs). Prerequisites: 1000-level course (preferably in Film Studies, French Studies, ommunications, or Art History). Satisfies FrenchBridge requirement.

FILM DIRECTORS (FM2800)

This course focuses on a single major international film director and the way their work is used to raise questions about the world. Offered every semester to fulfill one of the directors and directing requirements in the major, the course operates according to a consistent methodology: focused review of scholarship, close analysis, cultural reception of the works, work with primary sources, visual film language presentations and conference papers

FRENCH FILM & FICTION NOW (FM3011)

The course aims to introduce students to up-to-date literary and cinematic developments in France, and Francophonie, give students the opportunity to learn about the recent issues in French culture and society and develop their skills in oral and written French. Taught in French (presentations and papers may be written in English).

FILM THEORY & CRITICISM (FM3027)

Examines film theory with two motives: how does it help us read individual films, and what does it tell us about this medium? Studies theorists such as Sergei Eisenstein, Andre Bazin, Robin Wood, Christian Metz, Joan Mellen, Laura Mulvey, and Gaylyn Studlar, in relation to certain seminal films - Potemkin, Citizen Kane, Vertigo, A bout de souffle, and Pulp Fiction.

PARIS REEL & IMAGINED: PERSPECTIVES ON THE CITY OF LIGHTS (FM3034)

Paris has always been a fertile meeting ground for artists and stimulates the imaginations of newcomers and natives alike. Writers, artists and—in the 20th century—filmmakers have come together in this magical space and shared their fascination with a city of lights, communally recognizing its potential to become home to their fantasies and at times, their despair. Students consider how the Parisian urban landscape is imagined differently by French native vs. expatriate or immigrant writers and filmmakers. They study the comparative methods for visualizing the city unique to writers and filmmakers respectively and gain historical perspective on the central place played by Paris in the evolution of literature and cinema. Titles for viewing and critical reading include: Alain Resnais’ Same Old Song, Woody Allen’s Midnight in Paris and its contexts; André Breton’s Nadja; Raymond Queneau’s Zazie in the Metro and André Techiné’s The Girl on the RER. Excerpts from Jean-Luc Godard’s Parisian cycle will also be analyzed.

DIRECTING & PRODUCING THE SHORT FICTION FILM (FM3039)

The course will help you learn to direct and produce complex, personally expressive short fictions films. We’ll do this through incremental exercises designed to help you explore storytelling structures, staging, expressive frames, working with actors, sound design, crew negotiation and editing. We’ll also learn essentials of producing, press and distribution. Conducted from the director/producer viewpoint, the course challenges students to create a film that matches form with content and develops production skills through all stages of the process. The class is also an immersive creative workshop, incubating everyone’s ideas with support from the group. Some students will direct their own films. Others will produce other students’ short films in lieu of directing their own film. For best results, it is advised that you have already taken Principles of Video Production and at least one Film Studies course.

SHAKESPEARE & FILM (FM3048)

This course considers how the language of film can sometimes unlock the secrets of Shakespeare's world and help us to understand his contribution to the evolution of art cinema as well as to blockbuster culture. Focus is given to close readings of Shakespeare's plays, analysis of cinematic adaptations and a study of films such as Al Pacino's Looking for Richard or Shakespeare in Love. Directors Kozintsev, Welles, Godard, Olivier and Kurosawa are also studied.