DRAM 2367 Film History
Synonym 40482
Course Calendar
Fall Semester 2006
CLASS #
DAY/DATE
1
Mon/Aug 28
2
Wed/ Aug 30
3
Wed/ Sep 6
4
5
Mon/Sep 11
Wed/Sep 13
6
Mon/Sep 18
7
Wed /Sep 20
8
Mon/Sep 25
9
10
Wed /Sep 27
Mon/Oct 2
11
Wed /Oct 4
12
Mon/Oct 9
13
14
Wed /Oct 11
Mon/Oct 16
15
Wed /Oct 18
15 ½
Thur/Oct 19
16
Mon/Oct 23
17
18
Wed/Oct 25
Mon/Oct 30
RGC 341 MW 7:05-9:20
Instructor: Richard Cutler, Ph.D.
READING ASSIGNMENTS: Virginia Wright Wexman. “A
History of Film” (6th ed.)*
Introduction. Read Chapters 1, “Birth & Childhood of a New
Art,” & Ch. 2, “Rise of the American Film, 1914- 1919” for
next class. See Syllabus for 1st paper topic.
Discuss Shots, sizes, lenses, camera movements, and in-camera
effects. Discuss elements of narratives. Early Americans.
Read Ch. 2, “Rise of the American Film,” for next class.
Discuss Griffith’s “Birth of a Nation,” Stars, and Comedy.
Read Ch. 3, “Great German Silents, 1919-1928” for next class.
Early German films.
German films: Technical Advances & Influence on
Hollywood. Exam review
1st exam, chapters 1-3. Read Ch. 4, “Art and Dialectic in the
Soviet Union: 1925-1929” for next class
Soviet film. Read Ch. 5 for next class. 1st paper due. Topic 2nd
paper topic: Analyze the narrative in a Soviet film in terms of the
elements of Griffith’s film grammar as found in “Birth of a
Nation.” Then, compare film grammar of the Soviet narrative to
the film grammar of a French avant-garde narrative.
Hollywood in the 20s – silent genres & arrival of sound. Read
Ch. 6, “France in the Twenties and Thirties,” for next class.
France in the 20s & 30s – Avant-Garde. Review for exam.
2nd exam, chapters 4 – 6. Read Ch. 7, “Hollywood in the 30s &
early 40s,” for next class.
“Hollywood in the 30s & early 40s.” & Orson Wells. Read Ch.
8, “Italian Neorealism,” for next class. 2nd paper due.
Italian Neorealism. Read Ch. 9, “The Documentary Impulse:
British Film After the War” for next class. 3rd paper topic:
National Film Industries. Describe the different methods of
financing and compare the kinds of films produced as a result in
Britain, the US, Japan, France, and Germany after WWII.
British Postwar film. Review for 3rd exam.
3rd Exam, chapters 7-9. Lecture on Ch. 10, Hollywood in
Transition. Read Ch. 14, “Eastern European Cinema,”
for Thursday night.
No Class. Read Ch. 14, “Eastern European Cinema,” for
tomorrow night.
Meet at 6:30 in the lobby of the Alamo Drafthouse South
Lamar to view Krzysztof Kieslowski’s “Camera Buff.”
Read Ch. 11, “Japanese film,” for next class.
Japanese film. Read Ch. 12, “Films of the Auteurs: The
French New Wave,” for next class.
The French New Wave. Review for 4th exam.
4th exam, chapters 10 - 12 & 14. Lecture on Carl Dreyer. Read
Ch. 13, “Other Western European Cinemas,” for next class.
@Copyright 9/03/2006Richard H. Cutler
Schedule subject to revision at any time.
DRAM 2367 Film History
Synonym 40482
Course Calendar
Fall Semester 2006
19
20
Wed/Nov 1
Mon/Nov 6
21
22
Wed/Nov 8
Mon/Nov 13
23
Wed /Nov 15
24
Mon/Nov 20
25
Wed/Nov 22
26
27
Mon/Nov 27
Wed /Nov 29
28
Mon/Dec 4
29
Wed /Dec 6
30
31
Mon/Dec11
Wed /Dec 13
RGC 341 MW 7:05-9:20
Instructor: Richard Cutler, Ph.D.
Other Western European Cinemas: Scandinavia & Germany
Other Western European Cinemas: Germany & Spain. Read
Ch. 15, “India: A People’s Cinema,” for next class. 3rd paper
due.
India’s Bollywood. Review for 5th Exam.
5th Exam, chapters 13 & 15. Read Ch. 16, “Modernism and
Metaphor: Italy,” for next class. 4th paper: Compare the films
of Italy, the US, and Britain for their elements of modernism
and how they differ from films of the 30s, 40s, & 50s in each of
those 3 countries.
Modern Italian film. Read Ch. 17, “American Reemergence,”
for next class.
Independent American film. Read Ch. 18, “Art cinema Lite:
British Film,” for next class. Skip Ch. 19.
British 60s + cinema. Read Ch. 20, “A Blockbuster Mentality:
The United States,” for next class.
Blockbusters. Review for 6th exam.
6th exam, chapters 17, 18, & 20. Read Ch. 21, “China: Three
Cinemas,” for next class.
Chinese cinema. Read Ch. 22, “Recent National Movements,”
for next class
Recent National Movements. 4th paper due. Read Ch. 23, “The
Digital future,” for next class. I will not accept late papers!
The Digital Future. Review for 7th exam.
7th exam, chapters 21-23.
@Copyright 9/03/2006Richard H. Cutler
Schedule subject to revision at any time.