ENGL A270 | HISTORY OF FILM
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ENGL A270 | HISTORY OF FILM
Fall 2021 | Tuesday & Thursday, 4:55-6:10PM
Bobet 216
Instructor: Mike Miley | mcmiley@loyno.edu | 504.865.2286
Office hours: T/Th 4:15-4:45 PM, 6:15-7:15 PM and by appointmentCourse Description
History of Film is an introduction to the rich and troubling history, impact, and legacy of the
motion picture as a commercial narrative art form. The course begins with the creation of the
medium in the 1890s and travels around the globe to reach our extremely uncertain and
precarious present. Although the medium has developed tremendously throughout the decades
due to advancements in style, technology, production, and exhibition, the course will strive to
create a sense of continuity, showing how films speak to the legacy of cinema by pointing out the
ways in which films influence each other and respond to films of the past. The course will pay
particular attention to films and filmmakers who divert from or critique the dominant narratives
and forms of film and film history to provide students with a fuller picture of cinema’s
capabilities.
The goal of the course is not only to educate students on the major figures and developments in
cinema but also to expose them to the dynamic field they participate in as spectators and creators
to give them the necessary context for a creative and compassionate life in the field. Students
who successfully complete the course will be able to demonstrate their knowledge of major
events, figures, and films in the history of cinema and will be comfortable with writing about
film as a narrative art.
Content Disclaimer
This class contains content whose depictions of physical violence, racial prejudice, gender
discrimination, homophobia, sexual situations, sexual assault, suicide, and other sensitive
situations may be problematic or disturbing for some students. Please inform your instructor if
you require further information about the course material or if you feel unable to participate in
any or all of the requirements of the class.
Course Materials
Textbooks
Corrigan, Timothy. A Short Guide to Writing about Film. Any Edition.
Dixon, Wheeler Winston and Foster, Gwendolyn Audrey. A Short History of Film. Third Edition.
Rutgers UP, 2013. ISBN 978-0813595122 ($34.95)
Films
Prerequisite Viewing
Star Wars (dir. George Lucas, USA, 1977)
Pulp Fiction (dir. Quentin Tarantino, USA, 1994)
Course Films
All films will be streaming on the course’s Canvas page. Students will be expected to view these
films prior to the class meetings to discuss them.Week 1 Early cinema mixtape
Week 2 Within Our Gates (dir. Oscar Micheaux, USA, 1920, 79 min.)
The Battleship Potemkin (dir. Sergei Eisenstein, USSR, 1925, 75 min.)
Week 3 Modern Times (dir. Charles Chaplin, USA, 1936, 87 min.)
Un Chien Andalou (dir. Luis Buñuel and Salvador Dali, France, 1929, 16
min.)
Meshes of the Afternoon (dir. Maya Deren, USA, 1943, 14 min.)
Week 4 Citizen Kane (dir. Orson Welles, USA, 1941, 119 min.)
Week 5 Fireworks (dir. Kenneth Anger, USA, 1947, 15 min.)
Bicycle Thieves (dir. Vittorio De Sica, Italy, 1948, 93 min.)
Week 6 Rashomon (dir. Akira Kurosawa, Japan, 1950, 88 min.)
La Jetée (dir. Chris Marker, France, 1962, 28 min.)
Week 7 Psycho (dir. Alfred Hitchcock, USA, 1960, 109 min.)
Week 8 MIDTERM BREAK
Week 9 Cleo from 5 to 7 (dir. Agnes Varda, France, 1962, 90 min.)
Daisies (dir. Vera Chytilová, Czech Republic, 1966, 74 min.)
Week 10 Black Girl (dir. Ousmane Sembene, Senegal, 1966, 65 min.)
The Color of Pomegranates (dir. Sergei Paradjanov, USSR, 1969, 74
min.)
Week 11 Symbiopsychotaxiplasm: Take One (dir. William Greaves, USA, 1968, 75
min.)
Killer of Sheep (dir. Charles Burnett, USA, 1978, 80 min.)
Week 12 Jeanne Dielman, 23 Quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles (dir. Chantal
Akerman, Belgium, 1975, 201 min.)
Week 13 Canoa: A Shameful Memory (dir. Felipe Cazals, Mexico, 1976, 115 min.)
Week 14 The Watermelon Woman (dir. Cheryl Dunye, USA, 1996, 90 min.)
Week 15 Unknown Pleasures (dir. Jia Zhang-ke, China, 2002, 112 min.)
Week 16 Taxi (dir. Jafar Panahi, Iran, 2015, 82 min.)
Objectives, Assessments, and Grade Percentages
While the course is intended as an introduction to the field of film studies, writing is the skill that
the course will emphasize most. In addition to being tested on film history, students will be asked
to write and revise frequently, with the final goal being a paper where a student demonstratestheir understanding of the scope of film history by being able to write a paper that effectively
argues for a film’s place in cinema history.
Objective Assessment Grade Percentage
Ability to craft a cogent argument
about a film & its contribution to the
art form 4 Short essays 20%
Ability to convincingly argue for a
film’s importance to cinema by
placing it in a historical context Final Paper 20%
Ability to independently learn about a
topic & communicate that knowledge
to one’s peers Presentation (individual or group project) 20%
Ability to engage with others in an
interrogation of cinema style and
history Engagement (Participation + Preparation) 10%
Ability to demonstrate understanding of
cinema history in a broad context Midterm & Final Exam 10% / 20%
Grading scale: 100-90%=A; 92-90=A-;89-87=B+; 86-83=B; 82-80=B-; 79-77=C+; 76-73=C;
72-70=C-; 69-67=D+; 66-60=D; 59% and below = F
Description of Assessments
Short Essays
Based upon your own further reflection and the discussions that we have in class, your
understanding of film will deepen, and these assignments give you the opportunity to flesh out
your thoughts and refine your writing voice and style.
The central question three of these essays should address is:
What did we not get to cover about the film that we should have?
In other words, please continue our discussion by taking the conversation further, deeper, and to
unexplored-but-essential territory. You can choose to discuss the film as a whole, a scene, a
performance or element of the film (cinematography, production design, etc.), or an individual
shot.
Your last short essay will be a preliminary draft of your final paper.
These essays should have:
- a strong thesis statement that clearly articulates the interpretive claim the rest of the
essay will argue.- strong topic sentences that direct each body paragraph.
- specific evidence from the film to support your claims.
These essays should not:
- restate class discussion.
- summarize the events of the film.
- present/paraphrase outside research—these should be your thoughts.
These essays should be double spaced, with the pages numbered in MLA format. These
assignments should be around 500 words and are due in class every other week, although the
due dates will be staggered, so pay close attention to when yours is due.
Please write all of these essays in the same Google Doc that you’ll share with me. Please name
the Google Doc “[LastName] [FirstName] Film Essays”.
Presentation
This can be a group project or an individual project. That’s your choice.
While we cannot cover everything that has happened in film history, we can certainly try, and we
will get closer to our goal if we share the load. You’ll pitch me on your Top 5 topics from a list I
provide you with, along with you (and/or your group’s) reason for why you should be the one(s)
to research that topic. From there, you’ll get lost in this area of film history and emerge from
your journey ready to share your insights about it, along with its importance to film history, with
the rest of the class in the form of a presentation.
Your presentation can be delivered either in class or via Canvas. It should last no more than 8
minutes and should tell your peers what you have learned about your topic and what you think
they need to know in order to put this topic in the context of film history. This presentation
should resemble the type of analysis that we will do in class, so please spend more time on
visual/thematic analysis and less on factual information.
If there is a specific clip you’d like the class to see to prepare for your presentation, please send it
to me in advance so I can share it on Canvas.
Final Paper
This 1,250-word (minimum) paper will grow out of your presentation. You’ll choose a film
related to the topic that you’re covering for your presentation and discuss how the film represents
the topic and contributes to cinema. (Films screened in class will not be allowed. Each member
of the research group will study a different film.) In the paper, you will analyze the film and its
ideas, giving special attention to how it fits into film history as you understand it.
This paper is asking you for your thoughtful and considered opinion as well as your unique
historical perspective and knowledge; support your opinion with evidence and insightful
explanation. Show how this film taps into what came before it and uses its influences to alter the
course of film. How is this film a game-changer, and why is its contribution so important for us
to understand?
Think of this paper as the culmination of what you learned in the class.You may incorporate outside sources into your argument if you like; however, this paper is not
a summary of what others have said about the film: your insights into the film and your
thoughts on its importance should drive the paper.
You are welcome (and encouraged) to start writing this paper as early (and often) as you like. I
will read drafts, thesis statements, fragments, etc. and give you feedback. In fact, your last short
paper will be a preliminary draft of your final paper, where you’ll lay out your basic argument
for the fuller paper.
Engagement
It is essential that you engage fully in our shared learning endeavor. Just showing up is no longer
acceptable. We have to be more than present: we have to be engaged.
Being engaged fully means coming into each session fully prepared (doing all the reading, taking
good notes, writing down questions and insights to share) and then using that preparation to
contribute to everyone’s education and enrichment (asking questions, sharing insights, building
on others’ contributions, etc.).
Here’s a detailed description of what engagement would look like, both in and out of our class
meetings:
LEVEL OF PREPARATION PARTICIPATION
ENGAGEMENT (outside of class) (in class)
Animated Participation
I attend class and I speak
Exemplary Preparation daily.
I read and view the material and I try to advance the
I am fully engaged. take notes, and/or I read carefully, conversation by presenting
thinking of questions to ask the evidence to support my ideas.
teacher and my peers. I present related research,
implications, or complexities
in the text/situation/topic.
Occasional Participation
Novice Preparation
I attend class daily.
I read and view the material but
I speak occasionally—mainly
I am occasionally may not take notes, and/or I read,
when called upon.
engaged. but I may not annotate the texts nor
Sometimes I present general
think of questions to ask the teacher
evidence to support my
and my peers.
position.Inadequate preparation Inadequate participation
I’m not sure how to Sometimes I do the reading and My participation is
be engaged; I need viewing and I don’t spend a lot of inconsistent.
some direction. time trying to understand the I participate only when
material. prompted.
No Participation
No Preparation
I am I rarely speak in class. I may
I neither read nor research before
disengaged. distract others and derail
class.
discussions.
Reading and Viewing
I do hope (and expect) that you’ll read and view all the material that’s part of the course.
Naturally, the feature films are the most important, but it will be more difficult to put them into
context without doing the reading. At the end of the day, you’ll get more out of the class if you
engage fully with this material.
Expectations for Viewing Course Films
Viewing these films on a computer screen is not ideal because they were made to be seen in a
large space with a crowd. But since we cannot do that, I would respectfully request that you
watch these films in a single sitting and without any other distractions (other than a notebook)
whenever possible. I realize that may not always happen, but it’ll happen more often if we make
a determined effort for it to happen. If you want to organize virtual watch parties with your
classmates, have at it, so long as you don’t distract each other.
All supplementary reading and viewing assignments can be found on Canvas on the
Modules page, organized by week.
Attendance
This semester is (once again) unusual and I understand that a variety of factors and events may
complicate your ability to attend class. I’m taking a compassionate approach to attendance and
simply ask that you make every effort to attend our meetings because learning together is the
best thing for your social, emotional, and mental wellbeing. In the event that you do have to
miss a class, please let me know.
Discussion
Being able to talk about films is an important part of learning about cinema, so discussion will be
an important part of our meetings. Students are expected to come to class prepared to participate
and contribute to the establishment of a learning environment in which each member of the class
is respected.What this means is:
• We cannot keep quiet. If we keep our thoughts to ourselves, we cannot learn from
each other, so everyone must strive to be an active member of the discussion on a
daily basis.
• In order to do so, students must feel comfortable being able to speak their minds,
which means that no one should treat another person’s contribution with anything
other than total respect, both intellectually and emotionally. Please assume positive
intent unless someone demonstrates otherwise.
• Students get to ask any cinema-related question they want. No question about film is
stupid, and many questions that seem stupid on the surface actually initiate valuable
and engaging discussions that benefit the entire class. These moments cannot take
place if the question isn’t asked, so please don’t hold back if you have a question.
Consulting with Me
I am here to help you in every way that I can. Not only that, I like talking to you. Please make
full use of me. Even in these unusual times, I will find time to work with you.
I will be available immediately after our class to talk with you, but I would also love to schedule
meetings at other times. The best way to do that would be to email me and we can schedule a
meeting from there.
I will schedule at least one one-on-one conference with you near the middle of the semester to
talk with you about your work.
Again, please do not hesitate to contact me about anything. I’m here to help.
Outside Writing Assistance
Writing assistance is available within the Office of Writing and Learning Services (OWLS),
located inside the Pan-American Life Student Success Center (Monroe Library, second floor).
Writing tutors can assist student writers at any stage of the writing process from brainstorming to
revising. Tutors do not write or edit papers, but they do help student writers improve their own
writing, strengthen their critical thinking skills, engage in writing as a process, and begin to
understand the importance of revision to the writing process. Tutoring is free. Visit us on the
second floor of the Monroe Library, call us at 865-2990, or make an appointment
at https://loyno.mywconline.com/.
NOTE: This is not a Common Curriculum course.DAILY SCHEDULE AND ASSIGNMENTS
THIS SYLLABUS IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE THROUGHOUT THE SEMESTER
All changes will be posted in Canvas via an announcement and (shortly after) a revised
syllabus.
Week 1: Cinema’s First 30 Years (1890-1920)
Tues 8/24 Introduction to the course: Why study film history?
Thurs 8/26 Material due:
Read A Short History of Film, Ch. 1
Read Paul Schrader on the Birth of Narrative
Watch Lois Weber’s Suspense
Watch “D. W. Griffith: Cinema’s Original Sin”
Fri 8/27 Last Day to Add Classes
Week 2: The Peak of the Silent Era (1920-1927)
Tues 8/31 Material Due:
Watch Within Our Gates and Battleship Potemkin
Read A Short History of Film, Ch. 2
Read Paul Schrader on the Close-Up
Thurs 9/2 Material Due:
Read A Short History of Film, Ch. 3
Read Paul Schrader on Editing
Watch material on Movie palaces and German Expressionism
Fri 9/3 Last Day to Drop
Week 3: The Arrival of the Talkie (1927-1936)
Tues 9/7 Material Due:
View Modern Times, Un Chien Andalou, and Meshes of the Afternoon
View material on the arrival of sound
Read Paul Schrader’s essay on Sound
Thurs 9/9 Material Due:
Submit Top 5 Research Topics
Read “The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction” by
Walter BenjaminView material on “The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical
Reproduction”
View material on Leni Riefenstahl and the Nazi takeover of Ufa
Week 4: The Hollywood Studio System (1936-1945)
Tues 9/14 Material due:
View Citizen Kane
Read Ch. 4 in Short History of Film
Read Paul Schrader’s Essay on Movement
View material on The Studio System
Thurs 9/16 Material due:
Group A Essays Due
Read the Hollywood Production Code
View material on Technicolor and the Production Code
Week 5: Italian Neorealism (1945-1950)
Tues 9/21 Material due:
Read SHOF Ch. 5
View Fireworks and Bicycle Thieves
View Martin Scorsese on Neorealism
Thurs 9/23 Material due:
Group B Essays Due
Complete Research Module on Canvas
View material on HUAC and Court Cases
Read article on the Consent Decree
Week 6: Challenges to Hollywood’s Hegemony (1950-1960)
Tues 9/28 Material due:
View Rashomon and La Jetee
Read SHOF Ch. 7
Thurs 9/30 Material due:
Group A Essays Due
Read Paul Schrader’s essay on film speed
View material on television and Method Acting
Week 7: The Master of Suspense, Marketing, and Cinema (1960)Tues 10/5 Material due:
View Psycho
View material on Psycho’s promotional campaign
Read SHOF Ch. 6
Thurs 10/7 Material due:
Group B Essays Due
View material on the Auteur Theory
Read Paul Schrader’s essays on color and widescreen
Read New Oscars Criteria
Week 8: Midterm
10/14 Midterm Exam (in class)
Week 9: Global New Waves (1960-1968)
Tues 10/19 Material due:
View Cleo from 5 to 7
Read SHOF Ch. 8
Thurs 10/21 Material due:
Group A Essays Due
Declare Final Paper Films
View Daisies
Week 10: Decolonizing Cinema (1965-1975)
Tues 10/26 Material due:
View Black Girl and The Color of Pomegranates
Thurs 10/28 Material due:
Group B Essays Due
Week 11: The New Hollywood (1968-1980)
Tues 11/2 Material due:
Read SHOF Ch. 9
View Symbiopsychotaxiplasm: Take One and Killer of Sheep
Thurs 11/4 Material due:
Group A Preliminary Draft of Final Paper Due
View material on the Birth of the BlockbusterWeek 12: The Gaze (1975-present)
Tues 11/9 Material due:
View Jeanne Dielman, 25 Rue du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles
Thurs 11/11 Material due:
Group B Preliminary Draft of Final Paper Due
Read “Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema” by Laura Mulvey
View material on Laura Mulvey
Week 13: Latin American Protest Cinema (1970-present)
Tues 11/16 Material due:
View Canoa: A Shameful Memory
Thurs 11/18 Material due:
Presentations Due
Fri 11/19 Last day to withdraw
Week 14: American Indies (1989-1999)
Tues 11/23 Material due:
Read SHOF Ch. 10
View The Watermelon Woman
Thurs 11/25 *** Thanksgiving Break ***
Week 15: The Digital Tun (1989-present)
Tues 11/30 Material due:
View Unknown Pleasures
Thurs 12/2 Material due:
View material on CGI
Week 16: Superheroes, Streaming, and the End of Cinema—Oh my! (2001-present)
Tues 12/7 Material due:
View Taxi
Read excerpt from Film After Film by J. HobermanThurs 12/9 Material due:
Final Paper Due
December 16 (Thursday): Final Exam, 4:30-6:30You can also read
