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CMS2013 Cinema Text and Theory

Subject Cat-nbr Class Term Mode Description Units Campus
CMS 2013 90515 2, 2009 ONC Cinema Text and Theory 1.00 Toowoomba
Academic group: FOART
Academic org: FOA003
Student contribution band: 1
ASCED code: 100700

Contents


STAFFING

Examiner: Andrew Mason
Moderator: Daryl Sparkes


REQUISITES

Pre-requisite: CMS1010 or CMS1011 or other course approved by the examiner.


SYNOPSIS

This course provides students with a study of aspects of the expressive and aesthetic history of cinema, with attention to feature films prior to the 1960s. Key theories of the evolving narrative, anti-narrative and textual dynamics of cinematic forms and the institutional practices of film production will be studied with close reference to a selection of popular and "classic" moving pictures. Considerable emphasis will be placed on viewing and analysing representative films and on the analytic theories and written statements of various seminal film makers and theorists. A selection of "national" cinemas, including American and Australian, will be studied.



OBJECTIVES

On completion of this course students will be able to:

1.
conduct an informed discussion of a selection of theoretic approaches to the analysis of film (assessment items 1, 2 & 3 refer);
2.
display knowledge and understanding of selected classical realist Hollywood and oppositional texts (assessment items 1, 2 & 3 refer);
3.
participate effectively in informed firsthand post-viewing group responses to films screened in lectures (assessment items 1, 2 & 3 refer).


TOPICS


Description Weighting (%)
1. The pre-history of cinema.
 10.00
2. Lumiere, Melies, and the early stages of narrative development.
 10.00
3. Porter, Griffiths, and the emergence of continuity editing.
 10.00
4. German Expressionist cinema, Russian Formalism and Australian film before and after World War II.
 10.00
5. Genre and the classical realist text.
 10.00
6. Auteur film criticism.
 10.00
7. Mise-en-scene film criticism.
 10.00
8. Semiotics of cinema.
 10.00
9. Psychoanalysis and feminist critiques.
 10.00
10. Modern and postmodern cinema.
 10.00

TEXT and MATERIALS required to be PURCHASED or accessed

ALL textbooks and materials are available for purchase from USQ BOOKSHOP (unless otherwise stated). Orders may be placed via secure internet, free fax 1800642453, phone 07 46312742 (within Australia), or mail. Overseas students should fax +61 7 46311743, or phone +61 7 46312742. For costs, further details, and internet ordering, use the 'Textbook Search' facility at http://bookshop.usq.edu.au click 'Semester', then enter your 'Course Code' (no spaces).

Cook, DA 2004, A history of narrative film, 4th edn, WW Norton, New York.

Hayward, S 2006, Cinema studies: the key concepts, 3rd edn, Routledge, London.



REFERENCE MATERIALS

Reference materials are materials that, if accessed by students, may improve their knowledge and understanding of the material in the course and enrich their learning experience.

1981, Pictures and words (videorecording), Australian Film & Television School, North Ryde.

1995, The celluloid heroes (videorecording), Film Australia, Lindfield, NSW.

Cohen, M & Braudy, L (eds) 2004, Film theory and criticism, 6th edn, Oxford University Press, New York.

Cook, P and Bernink, M (Eds) 1999, The cinema book, 2nd edn, British Film Institute, London.

Kaplan, EA 1998, Women in film noir, British Film Institute, London.
(Rev. edn)

Krutnik, F 1991, In a lonely street: film noir, genre, masculinity, Routledge, London.
(Also available online)

Lotman, J 1981, Semiotics of cinema, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.

Merck, M (Ed) 1992, The sexual subject: a screen reader in sexuality, Routledge, London.

Penley, C (ed) 1988, Feminism and film theory, BFI, London.

Penley, C (Ed) 1989, The future of an illusion: film, feminism & psychoanalysis, University of Minnesota Press, Minneapolis.

Thompson, K & Bordwell, D 2003, Film history: an introduction, 2nd edn, McGraw-Hill, Boston.

Webster's Publishing The Australian movie guide (CD Rom) (Available: French's Forest, NSW).



STUDENT WORKLOAD REQUIREMENTS

ACTIVITY HOURS
Directed Study 58.00
Examinations 2.00
Lectures 15.00
Private Study 60.00
Seminars 30.00


ASSESSMENT DETAILS

Description Marks out of Wtg(%) Due date Notes
ESSAY 1 2000 WDS 100.00 30.00 07 Sep 2009  
ESSAY 2 2000 WDS 100.00 40.00 26 Oct 2009  
EXAMINATION 2 HOURS 100.00 30.00 END S2 (see note 1)
NOTES
1.
Exam dates will be advised when timetable is finalised.

IMPORTANT ASSESSMENT INFORMATION

  1. Attendance requirements:
    It is the students' responsibility to attend and participate appropriately in all activities (such as lectures, tutorials, laboratories and practical work) scheduled for them, and to study all material provided to them or required to be accessed by them to maximise their chance of meeting the objectives of the course and to be informed of course-related activities and administration. To satisfy course objective (3) above, students should attend all screenings and subsequent tutorial discussions. For this course normal class attendance consists of one three hour lecture and screenings and one two-hour tutorial each week.
  2. Requirements for students to complete each assessment item satisfactorily:
    To complete each of the assessment items satisfactorily, students must obtain at least 50% of the marks available for each assessment item.
  3. Penalties for late submission of required work:
    If students submit assignments after the due date without extenuating circumstances and without prior approval, then a penalty of a maximum of 5% of the assigned mark may apply for each working day late, up to a maximum of 10 working days, at which time a mark of zero can be recorded for that assignment.
  4. Requirements for student to be awarded a passing grade in the course:
    To be assured of receiving a passing grade a student must achieve at least 50% of the total weighted marks available for the course.
  5. Method used to combine assessment results to attain final grade:
    The final grades for students will be assigned on the basis of the weighted aggregate of the marks (or grades) obtained for each of the summative assessment items in the course.
  6. Examination information:
    The exam for this course is a CLOSED EXAMINATION, and candidates are allowed to bring only writing and drawing instruments into the examination.
  7. Examination period when Deferred/Supplementary examinations will be held:
    Any deferred or supplementary examinations for this course will be held during the next examination period.
  8. University Regulations:
    Students should read USQ Regulations 5.1 Definitions, 5.6. Assessment, and 5.10 Academic Misconduct for further information and to avoid actions which might contravene University Regulations. These regulations can be found at the URL http://www.usq.edu.au/corporateservices/calendar/part5.htm or in the current USQ Handbook.

ASSESSMENT NOTES

9. (a) The due date for an assignment is the date by which a student must lodge the assignment at the USQ. (b) All Faculty of Arts assignments must be lodged in the Faculty Assessment Centre on the Ground Floor of Q Block no later than 12 noon on the due date. (c) Students must retain a copy of each item submitted for assessment. This must be despatched to USQ within 24 hours if requested by the Examiner. (d) In accordance with University's Assignment Extension Policy (Regulation 5.6.1), the examiner of a course may grant an extension of the due date of an assignment in extenuating circumstances such as documented ill-health. (e) Students who have undertaken all of the required assessments in the course but who have failed to meet some of the specified objectives of the course within the normally prescribed time may be awarded the temporary grade: IM Incomplete-Makeup). An IM grade will only be awarded when, in the opinion of the examiner, a student will be able to achieve the remaining objectives of the course after a period of non-directed personal study. (f) Students who, for medical, family/personal, or employment-related reasons, are unable to complete an assignment or sit for an examination at the scheduled time, may apply to defer an assessment in the course. Such a request must be accompanied by appropriate supporting documentation. One of the following temporary grades may be awarded: IDS (Incomplete - Deferred Examination; IDM (Incomplete Deferred Make-up); IDB (Incomplete - Both Deferred Examination and Deferred Make-up).

OTHER REQUIREMENTS

  1. If assignments in the course require the use of surveys, interviews, etc., students should be aware of the University and Faculty of Arts ethical requirements/guidelines. (The course syllabus distributed to students in the first week of teaching provides this information.)
  2. Students can expect that questions in assessment items in this course may draw upon knowledge and skills that they can reasonably be expected to have acquired before enrolling in the course. This includes knowledge contained in pre-requisite courses and appropriate communication, information literacy, analytical, critical thinking, problem solving or numeracy skills. Students who do not possess such knowledge and skills should not expect to achieve the same grades as those students who do possess them.
  3. Students will require access to email and have internet access to UConnect for this course.

This version produced 11 Dec 2009.
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