GISDepartment of Global and Interdisciplinary Studies

This course is an introduction to the study and analysis of film. Over the course of the semester you will be exposed to key critical and theoretical approaches in film studies (genre, auteur theory, realism, formalism, etc.), in addition to gaining further knowledge into world cinema history and major film movements.All films screened in class are in their original language with Japanese subtitles.

(1) Students will learn the basic terminology of film form in order to describe and analyze films. (2) Students will learn the key concepts of film authorship and genre. (3) Students will gain an understanding of film history and major film movements. (4) Students will learn, practice, and improve their film writing skills.

Will be able to gain “DP 1” and “DP 4”.

英語 / English

Each class consists of a lecture (50%), film clips (30%), and discussion (20%). There will also be two film screenings. Feedback on quizzes will be provided in class; feedback on written assignments will be sent via the Learning Management System.

あり / Yes

なし / No

授業形態/methods of teaching：対面/face to face

※各回の授業形態は予定です。教員の指示に従ってください。

1[オンライン/online]：Introduction: What is Film Studies?

Course overview and class discussion over questions such as "What is film?"; "What makes a film experience meaningful?"; "Why do we watch films?" etc.

2[対面/face to face]：Early Film History and Approaches to Film

A selection of early shorts (Lumières, Edison, Méliès) and film excerpts (D.W. Griffith, Edwin S. Porter, Mack Sennett).

3[対面/face to face]：Classical Hollywood, the Studio System, and Mise-en-scène

Cleopatra (Cecil B. DeMille, 1934, US); Casablanca (Michael Curtiz 1942, US).

4[対面/face to face]：Soviet montage, Russian Cinema, and the Kuleshov Effect

Potemkin (Sergei Eisenstein, 1925, USSR);
October (Sergei Eisenstein, 1927, USSR).

5[対面/face to face]：Cinematography, Composing the Frame, and Authorship

Selection of Alfred Hitchcock clips.

6[対面/face to face]：Narrative Form I and Information Control

Citizen Kane (Orson Welles, 1941,US).

7[対面/face to face]：Narrative Form II, Camera Angle

Do the Right Thing (Spike Lee, 1989, US); Seven Samourai (Akira Kurosawa, 1954, Japan).

8[対面/face to face]：Editing, and Camera Movement, and the Long Take

Clips from Touch of Evil (Orson Welles, 1958) and Spectre (Sam Mendes, 2015).

9[対面/face to face]：New Hollywood and the Blockbuster Economy

Selections of short clips from early Martin Scorsese films. For their mid-term, students will watch a film in class and write a scene analysis to be submitted the following week.

10[対面/face to face]：Art Cinema and the Festival Circuit

Selection of clips from Michelangelo Antonioni films; The Great Beauty (Paolo Sorrentino, 2013, Italy).

11[対面/face to face]：Genre I: Melodrama, Colour, Affect

Written on the Wind (Douglas Sirk, 1945, US); Far From Heaven (Todd Haynes, 2002, US).

12[対面/face to face]：Genre II: Film Noir and Lighting

Double Indemnity (Billy Wilder, 1944, US).

13[対面/face to face]：Sound, Cinephilia, Discontinuity Editing, and the French New Wave

Cléo de 5 à 7 (Agnès Varda, 1962, France).

14[対面/face to face]：Semester Recap and Final Exam Screening

For their final, students will watch a film in class and write an analytical essay.

Preparatory study and review time for this class are 2 hours each.

All readings will be provided by the instructor and made available online.

David Bordwell, Kristin Thompson and Jeff Smith, Film Art: An Introduction (McGraw-Hill, 2019); Kristin Thompson and David Bordwell, Film History: An Introduction (McGraw-Hill, 2018); Maria Pramaggiore and Tom Wallis, Film: A Critical Introduction, second edition (Pearson, 2008).

Quizzes (5x10%): 50%
Scene analysis: 20%
Final Exam: 30%

Not applicable.

This is a paper-free class. Students will need to access class materials and submit assignments online. No electronic device is required in class, and students should refrain from using them during lectures, screenings, and class discussions.

None.