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Introduction to Japanese Film (ANS 301M; # 31605) Fall 2019, MW 2:30 – 4 p.m. in PAR 1 Screenings: most Tuesdays 5 p.m. start time in RLP 1.104 Professor Kirsten Cather, [email protected], 471.0031 Cather Office Hours: MW, 11 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. in WCH 4.112
This course will offer a broad survey of Japanese cinema focusing on fictional feature films and also including early silent, documentary, and anime (animated films). The goals of this course are: to gain a familiarity with and appreciation for Japanese films and culture, to learn the basic history of Japanese cinema, to acquire the necessary vocabulary and tools for analyzing films as cinematic texts, and to develop critical thinking skills when viewing, discussing, and writing about film. This class requires no background in Japanese language, film, or history; all films are subtitled in English. Classes will include a lecture component, but will be heavily focused on whole class and small group discussions. Your consistent attendance and active participation are essential to the success of this class and your grade in it.
Format for class and screenings: The basic format will be as follows: each Tuesday, we will watch a new film beginning at 5 p.m. in RLP 1.104. In Wednesday’s class, we will discuss the film, our reactions to it, the key issues it raises, etc. as an entire class and in small groups. For the following Monday’s class, most weeks you will be assigned to read an article or two that relates to this film and/or the issues it raises, and we will discuss the film in the context of these readings. Pop quizzes will often be held at the beginnings of class on either day to make sure that you’ve completed the viewings/readings and are in attendance. These quizzes and frequent in-class assignments individually or in groups will also help you develop the necessary skills of film analysis. No makeups allowed, but your two lowest scores for this category will be automatically dropped.
A note about screenings: Watching the films together with an audience in a theater setting as they were designed to be watched is highly recommended and guaranteed to be more fun than watching alone on your iPhone. If you have a compelling reason for why you cannot attend, please let the TA know and you will need to watch these films on your own. As much as possible, we will put them on reserve for re- watching at the Fine Arts Library (in-house viewing only). Some of the films may not otherwise be available.
Required Viewings, Readings, & Materials: ● All films listed with a call number on schedule below are available for re-viewing at Fine Arts Library (DFA, 3rd floor). Others only shown during screening times and/or in class so it’s important not to miss those sessions. Some also avail. on Kanopy through UT library: https://utexas.kanopy.com/ ● Required readings will be posted on Canvas under Files as PDFs or as web links. ● You will need to purchase the following materials and bring them with you to class: o A notebook that is dedicated to your film viewing notes and lecture/discussion notes. You will need your notes for in-class assignments, discussions, and the occasional open-book quiz. o Feel free to use a laptop if you find it helps with note taking for either lecture/discussion and/or film screenings, but surfing the web, chatting on Facebook, etc., are not allowed in class. o A packet of 3″X5″ index cards. You’ll need to use your index cards for all pop quizzes or the quiz will not be graded. Quizzes will not be returned, but the answers will be given orally immediately following the quiz and grades will be posted on Canvas. o 1
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Grading Policy Grades are assigned as follows: 93-100 = A; 90-92.9 = A-; 87-89.9 = B+; 83-86.9 = B; 80-82.9 = B-; 77-79.9 = C+; 73-76.9 = C; 70-72.9 = C-; 67-69.9 = D+; 63-66.9 = D; 60-62.9 = D-; below 60 = F. As a rule, I do not grade on a curve or round up grades. If you receive an 89.8, you will receive a B+. One exception to this rule is that a grade that is very close to the next grade level, such as an 89.9 or 79.9, may be rounded up to the higher grade if the student has consistently attended class and participated fully in class discussions. Note the following UT grade standards: an “A” is earned for “excellent” work; “B” for “above average”; C for “average”; D for “pass”; and F for “failing.”
Grading Breakdown: ● In-class pop quizzes, in-class and take-home individual and group work = 20% total (2 lowest grades automatically dropped; absolutely no makeups) ● Exams (2 total) = 60% total (30% each; no makeups) ● Participation & Contribution = 5% total (Based on your active participation and contribution in large class and small group-based discussions. Feel free to submit index cards with your interesting, provocative, and/or relevant questions/ideas to me at the start or end of class as well.) ● Final Take Home Essay = 15% total (a 5-page cumulative essay that asks you to consider: What, in the end, is Japanese film to you? What kinds of claims can you make based on the films we have seen and discussed this term?)
Standards and Expectations: Careful, thorough viewing/reading of the assigned texts by the date indicated on the schedule. Viewing and reading require your active engagement with the text. Detailed note taking is essential as is bringing your notes and copies of readings to class since you will need to refer to them frequently for group and class discussion/activities. Attendance at all classes and considerate and attentive listening to the lecture. Sleepers and disruptive students will be asked to leave. Active and considerate participation in class and group discussions. Common courtesy is expected. No one should monopolize the class discussion or shrink into the background. Timely completion of assignments. No make-up tests, quizzes, or assignments. Your two lowest grades for in-class work and quizzes will be automatically dropped. Announcements of quizzes and/or homework assignments may be made in the previous class. If you miss class, it is your responsibility to find out what has been assigned.
Official Policies Academic integrity: You are expected to adhere to university requirements on academic honesty and integrity. Behaviors, such as plagiarism, copying of another student’s work, or cheating on an exam, are serious offenses that will result in the grade of an “F” for the course and will be reported to the office of Student Judicial Services, where further disciplinary action may be taken. Please refer to the following website for information on how to avoid plagiarism in your work and/or discuss this with the instructor: http://deanofstudents.utexas.edu/sjs/acint_student.php
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University Electronic Notification Mail Policy: In this course, e-mail will be used as a means of communication with students. You will be responsible for checking your e-mail regularly for class announcements and assignments. As per the University Electronic Notification Policy (please see http://www.utexas.edu/its/policies/emailnotify.html), it is your responsibility to update your email address and to check your e-mail regularly. Accommodations for Students with Documented Disabilities: Students who require special accommodations need to get a letter that documents the disability from the Services for Students with Disabilities area of the Office of the Dean of Students (471-6529 voice or 471-4641 TTY). This letter should be presented to the instructor at the beginning of the semester so that appropriate accommodations can be made at that time. For more information, please see: http://deanofstudents.utexas.edu/ssd/ Use of Canvas in Class: Assignments and some of our readings will be made available on Canvas. You should print these out and bring with you to class. Please allow yourself enough time before an assignment is due. As with all computer systems, there are occasional scheduled downtimes as well as unanticipated disruptions. Canvas is available at http://canvas.utexas.edu. Support is provided by the ITS Help Desk at 475-9400 during business hours on weekdays. Religious Holidays: If you will need to miss class or other assignments due to the observance of a religious holy day, you will be given an opportunity to complete the work you have missed provided you notify me at least one week prior to the absence.
Helpful resources on campus:
Counseling and Mental Health Center: Business Hours: Monday thru Friday, 8:00am - 5:00pm Appointment-Scheduling hours, Monday thru Friday, 8:00am-12:00pm & 1:00pm-4:00pm Phone: (512) 471-3515 - Student Services Building 5th Floor - https://cmhc.utexas.edu/
Counseling and Mental Health Center Crisis Line: 512-471-CALL (2255) (UT Students Only - available every day of the year including holidays)
Student Emergency Services: Our office helps students and their families during difficult or emergency situations. Assistance includes outreach, advocacy, intervention, support, and referrals to relevant campus and community resources. Please note, our office does not provide counseling services. You can access services available through SES by completing an online form, calling 512-471-5017 (M-F 8a-4:30p), or stopping by SSB 4.400 (M-F 9a-4p) for a walk-in appointment.
Behavior Concerns Advice Line (BCAL): 512-232-5050 (24/7) Are you worried about a student in your class, bothered that your roommate has been acting differently, or concerned about the behavior of a co-worker? Do you have concerns but are not sure what to do? If so, contact the Behavior Concerns Advice line at 512-232-5050 or submit your concerns using the online form.
Cases that present an immediate threat to self, others, or property should be considered an emergency and should be directed to The University of Texas Police Department (UTPD) by calling 911.
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Schedule (updated version posted on Canvas) Note: All directors listed with LAST NAME first following the Japanese practice. Films with a call # are available for re-viewing at Fine Arts Library (3.200 Doty FA Building). Films marked with ** are not available elsewhere. Screenings on Tuesdays start at 5 p.m. in RLP 1.104.
Week One (Aug 28): Introductions Wed: **In-class clips of Seven Samurai --How to take good notes while watching/enjoying a film --Glossary (Film Terms)
Week Two (Sept. 4): Mon: OFF for Labor Day Screening: Seven Samurai (Shichinin no samurai, KUROSAWA Akira, 1954, 200 min., DVD 5759) Wed: Discuss Seven Samurai
Week Three (Sept 9 & 11): Unit 1. Early Japanese Film: From Silents to Talkies, Theater to Film Mon: Continue discussion of Seven Samurai In-class practice close reading exercise #1 Screening: Page of Madness (Kurutta ippeiji, KINUGASA Teinosuke, 1926, 60 min., DVD 12382) Wed: Discuss Page of Madness
Week Four (Sept. 16 & 18): Mon: **In-class clips and discussion of early silents & Japan’s “first talkie” The Neighbor’s Wife and Mine** (Madamu to nyōbō, GOSHO Heinosuke, 1931) --Anderson, “Spoken Silents in the Japanese Cinema,” pp.13-33 --Fujiki, “Benshi as Stars,” pp. 68-84 Screening: No screening this week Wed: Continue discussion of Page of Madness --Gerow, “What is This Film” (pp. 1-6) & “Translations of Contemporary Reviews,” pp. 100-105
Week Five (Sept. 23 & 25): Unit 2. Heroines & Auteurs: Geisha, Virgins, & Female Directors Mon: --In-class screening and discussion of early Ozu silent film (TBD) & Good Morning (Ohayō, Ozu, 1959) Screening: Sisters of the Gion (Gion no kyōdai, MIZOGUCHI Kenji, 1936, 66 min., DVD 12266) Wed: Discuss Sisters of the Gion
Week Six (Sept. 30 & Oct. 2): Mon: Continue discussion of Sisters of Gion --Burch, “Mizoguchi Kenji,” 217-218, 224-230 In-class practice test on Sisters of Gion Screening: Late Spring (Banshun, OZU Yasujiro, 1949, 108 min., DVD 4924) Wed: Discuss Late Spring
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Week Seven (Oct. 7 & 9): Mon: Continue discussion of Late Spring --Wood, “Resistance to Definition: Ozu’s “Noriko” Trilogy,” pp. 94-123 Screening: Love Letter (Koibumi, TANAKA Kinuyo, 1953, 98 min.) Wed: Discuss Love Letter
Week Eight (Oct. 14 & 16) Mon: Continue discussion of Love Letter --Readings (TBD) Screening: No screening Wed: Mid-term test on Units 1 and 2 (30%)
Week Nine (Oct. 21 & 23): Unit 3. The Golden Age to New Age and Beyond Mon: Revisit the Golden Age and Enter the New Age In-class clips from ŌSHIMA Nagisa film clips (1960s) & Abnormal Family (SUŌ Masayuki, 1983) Screening: Crazed Fruit (Kurutta kajitsu, 1956, NAKAHIRA Kō, 86 min., DVD 4185) Wed: Discuss Crazed Fruit
Week Ten (Oct. 28 & 30): Mon: Continue discussion of Crazed Fruit --Raine, “Imagining a New Japan: The Taiyozoku Films,” 6 pgs.; “Ishihara Yūjirō: Youth, Celebrity, and the Male Body in Late-1950s Japan,” pp. 202-225 --Shamoon, “Sun Tribe Production and Popular Culture in Post-War Japan,” pp. 1-18 Screening: Woman in the Dunes (Suna no onna, 1964, TESHIGAHARA Hiroshi, 147 min., DVD 266 Wed: Guest Lecturer: Dr. Joe Schaub on Woman in the Dunes
Week Eleven (Nov. 4 & 6): Mon: Continue discussion of Woman in the Dunes --Reading (TBD) Screening: Tampopo (ITAMI Juzō, 1985, 114 min., DVD 107) Wed: Discuss Tampopo
Week Twelve (Nov. 11 & 13): Mon: Continue discussion of Tampopo --Reading (TBD) Screening: Fireworks (Hana-bi, KITANO “Beat” Takeshi, 1997, 103 min., DVD 713) Wed: Discuss Fireworks
Week Thirteen (Nov. 18 & 20): Mon: Continue discussion of Fireworks --Davis, “Therapy for Him and Her: Kitano Takeshi’s Hana-Bi (1997), pp. 284-295 --Davis, “Reigniting Japanese Tradition with Hana-Bi,” pp. 69-75 (note that we will be reading pp. 55-69 during the last week of class; feel free to skim or skip now) Screening: KORE’EDA Hirokazu film (TBD) Wed: Discuss KORE’EDA film 5
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Week Fourteen (Nov. 25); OFF Nov. 27-30 for Thanksgiving) Mon: In-class test on Unit #3 (30%)
Week Fifteen (Dec. 2 & 4) Mon.: Wrap-up & Review Session --Richie, “A Definition of the Japanese Film,” pp. 158-172 --Davis, “Reigniting Japanese Tradition with Hana-Bi,” pp. 55-69 People’s Choice Film Pitch & Voting: Come to class with your 2-minute pitch (video clips welcome) of your recommendation for our final film screening Screening: TBD by People’s Choice Wed: Discuss People’s Choice Film
Week Sixteen (Dec. 9) Mon: Take-home essay due in-class (cumulative, 15%)
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