Portland Community College Dual-Credit Program Proposal For

Allison deFreese_ENG 195: Film as Art_Spring 2014

Portland Community College Dual-Credit Program

Proposal for ENG 195: Film as Art

Minority Perspectives in Film

Course Number : ENG 195

Course Title : Film as Art

College Credit Hours : 4

High School Course Title : Film as Art

Lecture Hours : 40+

Date : PCC Spring 2013 Term/ RAHS-POIC Quarters Three and Four

Meeting Place : Rosemary Anderson High School Library/Portland OIC

Meeting Place : Rosemary Anderson High School /Portland OIC, Room TBD 717 North Killingsworth Ct. Portland, OR 97217 Time : Monday-Friday, 5th Period

Instructor : Allison A. deFreese, M.A., M.F.A. Ph. 503-797-7222, etc. 302 Email: [email protected] or [email protected]

Office Hours : Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday 10:00-10:30AM (Room 22) or by appointment 6th Period and afterschool.

Required Texts :

Screenplays for Casablanca (multiple writers) and Spike Lee’s Do the Right Thing ; excerpts from Sherman Alexie’s The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven ; excerpts from Robert Coover’s A Night at the Movies, or, You Must Remember This ; Henry David Thoreau’s “Civil Disobedience;” movie reviews; scholarly articles on film; essays by film students; film blogs and director interviews (online sources and class handouts)

Recommended Texts: A collegiate dictionary and thesaurus

Required Materials : A three-ring binder with lined paper, flash drive, pocket folder, pens and highlighters

Allison deFreese_ENG 195: Film as Art_Spring 2014

Course Content and Outcomes

As per Portland Community College’s Course Content and Outcome Guidelines for ENG 195, Film as Art, students will:

• Enhance their understanding of film through analysis of film history and form; • Develop visual literacy and analysis skills (course offers a range of tools to study any film); • Analyze ways in which a film may both contribute and react to its time and culture; • Analyze film through studying the techniques by which it was made; and substantiate observations with examples taken from film tradition and from the film itself.

Prerequisites

WR 115 and RD 115, equivalent placement test scores or PAVTEC instructor permission

Intended Outcomes for the Course

Upon successful completion of ENG 195, students should be able to:

1.) Analyze films while demonstrating an understanding of film technique and film as an art medium 2.) Articulate a position, orally and in writing, by situating a film in a cultural context, and substantiating observations with examples taken from that tradition and from the film itself. 3.) Use reflective visual reading, writing listening and speaking skills to recognize, develop and articulate personal standards, predispositions and theories regarding film and critical responses to film.

Outcome Assessment Strategies

Assessment tools may include informal responses to study questions; evaluation of small- and full- group discussion; in-class and out-of-class writing, including informal responses to study questions and other forms of informal writing; analysis of film reviews; frame and/or sequence analyses; presentations by individuals and groups; storyboards; screenplays; and short- and long-essay exams. Both instructor and peer evaluation may be incorporated in the assessment process.

Allison deFreese_ENG 195: Film as Art_Spring 2014

Course Content (Themes, Concepts, Issues and Skills):

• silence • history of film as an art form • classical Hollywood cinema • silent film • Italian neorealism • mise–en–scène • French New Wave • cinematography • independent films • sound avant-garde films • film sources • conflicts • censorship • plot • film production • storyboard • film distribution • screenplay • types and functions of settings • chronological and non-chronological characters time • acting • narrative and non-narrative • frame composition • techniques • symmetrical and asymmetrical • documentary films • composition • horror • lighting • Westerns • use of space • war films • color and colorization • thrillers • camera distances • hybrid films • perspective • animation • angles and point-of-view • Production Code of the Motion shots Picture Producers and Directors of frame/the world outside the frame America, Inc. -- 1930- • moving camera • explicit and implicit meaning • early film editing • auteur theory • scenes • Marxist film criticism • sequences • feminist film criticism • superimpositions • cinéma vérité • juxtapositions • viewer-response criticism • action and reaction • reception theory • parallel editing • genre criticism • fast and slow cutting • psychoanalytic criticism montage • special effects • slow motion • gender issues early film sound • stereotyping • sound effects • music

Allison deFreese_ENG 195: Film as Art_Spring 2014

Competencies and Skills:

• analysis • writing about films • synthesis • visual "reading" • understanding films through • critical reading (for instance, of • contexts, such as society and politics; reviews and critical essays) artistic conventions; financial • understanding roles of • constraints; multiple interpretations • cinematographer, director, etc. of a director; etc. speaking and listening reflectively small-group collaboration

Important Links

Course Outcomes: http://www.pcc.edu/ccog/default.cfm?fa=ccog&subject=ENG&course=195

PCC Dual Credit Website/2013-2014 Student Handbook : http://www.pcc.edu/prepare/head-start/dual-credit/documents/student-handbook.pdf

PCC Student Code of Conduct: http://www.pcc.edu/about/policy/student-rights/documents/student-conduct.pdf

PCC Website: http://www.pcc.edu/

Equal Opportunity Statement: http://www.pcc.edu/about/affirmative-action/eeo-statement.html

Academic Integrity Statement: http://www.pcc.edu/about/policy/student-rights/documents/academic-integrity.pdf

Portland Community College Calendar Link: http://www.pcc.edu/prepare/head-start/dual-credit/documents/student-handbook.pdf Grading

Grading Guidelines:

Allison deFreese_ENG 195: Film as Art_Spring 2014 http://www.pcc.edu/prepare/head-start/dual-credit/documents/student-handbook.pdf

Grading and Evaluations:

• Final grades for ENG 195 will be based on the following

Film Journals: 30% In our course syllabus, you will generally find at least four possible Film Journal topics related to each film we will screen. Respond to at least one journal prompt by submitting a thoughtful, typed reflection, written in MLA format. Your journal entries should be, at a very minimum, approximately 200- 250 words in length and contain specific and relevant examples from the assigned readings and films screened . If you conduct additional research as part of your Film Journal responses, remember to cite your sources . Journal entries will typically be due on at the beginning of class, 5th Period on Fridays , so you will have over a week to reflect on the film(s) we screened the previous week. Since you will be sharing your written observations aloud in class, Film Journals also count toward participation.

Short-answer Essay 1 with Revision (Journal 1): 10% Prepare a list of your “top five” movies; then write a critical review about one of these films (approximately 300-500 words). Cite at least one source (Wikipedia is not considered a reliable source at the college level ) and include a “Works Cited” page. Use MLA formatting guidelines. (A handout with specific guidelines will be distributed in class).

Essay 2 with Revision: 15% (First Draft, 5%, Revised Draft 5%, Works Cited/Bibliography Page, 5%) This 750-100 word essay will involve extended research about the work of a major American director whose full-length movies we haven’t screened in class, or a film movement or a film genre (i.e., westerns, documentaries, avant garde movies, etc.). Unless you’ve recently seem a film that meets the criteria for this essay, you will probably need to screen at least one additional film. Directors you might consider could include Steven Spielberg, Woody Allen, Orson Welles, Elia Kazan, Billy Wilder, Sam Peckinpah, Francis Ford Coppola, John Huston, Todd Haynes, The Coen brothers, Michael Moore, Martin Scorsese, Ang Lee (Taiwanese-born), John Ford, Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton, Lee Daniels, Quentin Tarantino, Robert Rodriquez, Alfred Hitchcock, Stanley Kubrick, David Lynch, Miranda July (director with local connection), Gus Van Sant (director with local connection) or Kelly Reichardt (director with local connection). (A handout with specific guidelines will be distributed in class).

“Preview Reports,” research and class discussions 35% Students should come to class on time each Monday prepared to discuss the director(s) whose film(s) we will be screening on the following Tuesday. Students will conduct background research about the director to be screened that week and his or her films. Please arrive to class by 9:00AM each Wednesday (1:30PM for afternoon students) prepared to give a brief “Preview Report” about your research and findings.

Allison deFreese_ENG 195: Film as Art_Spring 2014

Course Final: An Original Short Film with Presentation 10% Create an original short film (3-10 minutes) to be presented in class along with a typed, a page-long explanation about how it was influenced by film genres or movements covered in class and/or films viewed in class. Alternative options for the final assignment could also include writing a scene for screenplay you would like to shoot, preparing a storyboard or abstract for a film, or preparing a scrapbook with still images for a film idea you have (possibly in the style of La jetée ), preforming a song, creating a Prezi or starting a Term Wiki Blossary.

*Extra Credit 10% Students experiencing extenuating circumstances may make arrangements to earn Extra Credit by: 1. ) completing additional Film Journal assignments for each film screened; 2.) writing an additional essay on a major director (i.e., a fourth essay in keeping with the guidelines for Essay 3); 3.) Attending an additional screening and discussion session at PCC’s Cascade Festival of African Films (February 1st through March 2 nd ) and writing a response. 4.) Revising all course writing assignments based on instructor feedback and submitting them in a final portfolio. Students must make arrangements to receive extra credit in advance and submit all extra credit projects and outstanding coursework no later than 6:00PM June 4, 2013 for work to be considered for grading.

Letter grades will be assigned according to the following criteria:

A= 100%-90% (Excellent: Blockbuster or epic work that exceeds minimum course expectations.)

B= 89%-80% (Good: A semiclassic)

C= 79%-70% (Satisfactory: A “B-list” attempt—contains interesting elements, but has significant flaws or errors)

D= 69%-55% (Poor: This is a college-level course. Plan ahead and give yourself more time to complete the assignments!)

F=54% or lower (Not passing: A complete box office flop)

Late Work Policy : All assignments should be submitted to the instructor at the beginning of the class period on the date due (please see Course Calendar) for participation credit (i.e., Preview Reports and research on assigned topics for full participation in class discussion) and by 6:00PM on due dates for final, hardcopy versions of Film Journal entries and assigned essays (please see Course Calendar). Late students’ participation points will be marked down 5% for each five minutes of class they are tardy; students arriving to class unprepared to present Preview Reports or discuss Required Readings will lose all participation points for that day. Late work will be marked down 5% for each day late (for Film Journal assignments and essays, the first 5% markdown will take

Allison deFreese_ENG 195: Film as Art_Spring 2014 effect at 6:05PM on the night the assignment was due). Work submitted more than 10 days late is failing work (i.e., a 50% or less) and will not be accepted or graded by the instructor. Tests, pop quizzes and in-class writing assignments cannot be made up without making prior arrangements with the instructor or completing a written petition outlining extenuating circumstances. Students are expected to make alternative arrangements to view assigned films on their own if they miss a screening date. Students experiencing extenuating circumstances or illness will be asked to provide documentation (such as a doctor’s letter or court summons) to verify their reason for submitting late work.

Plagiarism Policy : Plagiarism, cheating and academic dishonesty will not be tolerated in this course. Students are expected to submit their own original ideas and writing for each course assignment. Additionally, papers written for other classes may not be substituted for ENG 195 assignments. During the first week of this course, we will examine in detail what plagiarism means and how to avoid it, as well as reviewing guidelines for correctly paraphrasing and citing sources. If a student is caught plagiarizing or cheating in this course, he or she will receive an “F” on the assignment and may face further disciplinary action as outlined in the PCC student handbook. Please ask me if you have any questions about this policy or class expectations.

Class Participation : Students are expected to both attend and participate in all class meetings. Texting on your phone suggests that you are not fully present and participating in the course and will result in a loss of participation points. Students missing more than four class periods (or four hours of instruction time, including late arrival to class or screenings) will need to arrange to make up seat time with the instructor either before or after school if they wish to receive a passing grade for the course. Students may be exempt if they are able to document extenuating circumstances such as a dentist appointment or court date, etc.

Exams and Final Presentations : Unless a student has prearranged to miss a test or presentation, has an excused absence from school, or can demonstrate that extenuating circumstances prevented him or her from being present for the test, students will not be allowed to make up tests without completing the petitioning process outlined in the Rosemary Anderson High School Student Handbook.

Resources : Dictionaries, thesauruses, source books, student computers and additional readings for ENG 195 are available in the Rosemary Anderson High School Library and online. I will be reviewing important writing and research-related websites throughout the class. Please see me after school or during my office hours (10:00-10:30, Monday-Thursday, and daily afterschool) if you need specific resources or information.

Allison deFreese_ENG 195: Film as Art_Spring 2014

Behavioral Expectations :

· Students are expected to arrive to class on time and be prepared to learn; · Support a learning environment which is positive, free from distractions and which supports their peers’ ability to learn and concentrate; · Turn off cell phones, IPods and texting devices before the beginning of class, and refrain from texting or off-topic conversations during class; · Complete all assignments, tests and essays by their due dates and to make arrangements with the instructor in advance if they are unable to complete an assignment or test; · Set specific goals that will help advance their learning; · Have fun and put their maximum effort into this class!

Consequences for Misbehavior : I will work with each student-one-on-one to assure his or her success throughout this course. As per the Rosemary Anderson High School Student Handbook, students will be encouraged to set behavior-related goals, take responsibility for their behavior during class, and work together with their teachers and peers to find solutions to behavior issues. In the case of repeated or severe behavioral issues, consequences may include being dropped from this course or suspension/expulsion from Rosemary Anderson High School.

Accommodation for Disability : If you have a disability that requires academic adjustments of any kind, please call or visit me during office hours

Information about PCC’s Equal Opportunity Statement is available at this link: http://www.pcc.edu/about/affirmative-action/EEOstatement.html

For More information about PCC’s Dual Credit Program , please visit: http://www.pcc.edu or http://www.pcc.edu/dualcredit

Flexibility Policy : The instructor reserves the right to modify course content and/or substitute assignments and learning activities in response to institutional, weather or class situations .

Allison deFreese_ENG 195: Film as Art_Spring 2014

Course Schedule/Class Outline

The syllabus and course schedule are subject to modification and may be amended by the instructor at any time during the term. Additional readings and assignments may be added or substituted to address the special needs or interests of students in the class.

Unit One

"Melting pots" and Meltdowns: Globalism, Multiculturalism and Privilege

Themes : Character development, plot development, perspective, point-of-view, sequence, storyboard, setting, scene arrangement, juxtapositions, parallel editing, three- act movies (pacing and rise of dramatic tension), audience, chronology, simultaneity, immigration, and Marxist criticism and theory

• Gurinder Chadha, Bend It Like Bekham (2002)

Screening Time : 5th Period

Allison deFreese_ENG 195: Film as Art_Spring 2014

Film Journal Assignments : (Choose at least two topics, and cite at least one of the Required Readings.)

1.) Although the films we will be screening in this course are primarily by American directors, our first film is by a British director born in Kenya, whose family is originally from India. Why might the instructor have chosen to include Bend It Like Bekham in this course? How are the themes of multiculturalism that Chadha depicts in her film similar to (or different from) those faced by immigrant families in the United States? 2.) In his interview with Gurinder Chadha, Paul Fischer says of the film, "…yet being culturally specific, it’s still universal." Do you agree or disagree with his statement? As you screen the film, be on the lookout for culturally specific terms, and references to food, faith, ceremony or clothing, as well as themes or struggles that could be described as “universal.” Record your observations in your Film Journal. 3.)Character Development and Motivation: Consider the following dialogue from the script….

Jess: Anyone can cook aloo gobi, but who can bend a ball like Beckham?

Mrs. Bhamra: What family would want a daughter-in-law who can run around kicking football all day but can't make round chapatis?

How do Jesminder’s values differ from her mother’s? Do Mrs. Bhamra’s values conflict with Jesminder’s personal goals (Goal!), dreams and aspirations? Feel free to write a personal response to this prompt in which you discuss generational and cultural differences between your values and the attitudes of your family or community. 4.) Films, like plays, are often written in three acts. Can you identify the end (or beginning) of the “acts” in Bend It Like Beckham ? In which moments of the film to you detect the most dramatic tension? 5.) Many film critics have said that Bend It Like Beckham is a “good” movie, but not a “great” movie. What do you think? Are such distinctions important in discussing a film, and who should decide which films are included on lists of the best-movies-of-all-time? What criteria do you use in deciding that a movie is really “great”? Is your response to films an emotional one, or do you use other analytical criteria or techniques to form your opinions? Please explain.

Required Reading :

*http://www.metacritic.com/video/titles/benditlikebeckham

Allison deFreese_ENG 195: Film as Art_Spring 2014

* http://www.filmmonthly.com/Profiles/Articles/GChadha/GChadha.html

• Alejandro González Iñárritu, Babel (2006)

Screening Time : 5th Period

Journal Assignments : (Choose at least two topics, and cite at least one of the Required Readings.)

1.) Overseas Factories Research Project : Where were the clothes you are wearing today made? What are the work conditions like in the textile factories of those countries? Open a drawer in your dresser or closet (shirts or pants are a good place to start) and write down a list of all the countries in which your clothes were made. For an alternative project, you could also take yourself on a fieldtrip to Goodwill and start down a row of dress shirts or blouses to create your list. Pick one foreign country from your list, research the working conditions its factories, and find out how much employees are typically paid for their labor. Keep in mind that some products exported to the U.S. may have been produced in prison factories where workers earn little or no hourly pay. (http://query.nytimes.com/search/sitesearch/#/Get+Serious+About+Chinese+Prison +Labor). 2.) Consider this excerpt from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette article : “‘There are 1,000 Latin Americans, mostly Mexicans, dying like that every year trying to cross the desert, including 200 kids die like that every year,’ said Gonzalez Iñárritu, hoping "Babel" will trigger questions about immigration policies.” Analyze the theme of immigration and movement in Babel . Quote a different passage from at least one of the assigned readings. 11

Allison deFreese_ENG 195: Film as Art_Spring 2014

3.) Gonzalez Iñárritu also states that, “‘These people just came here to work,’ and the nanny is a symbol of the countless others living here as invisible citizens. ‘Millions of Mexicans leave their kids in order to take care of other kids. That's a very painful thing.’” Write a Marxist interpretation of the film, analyzing themes of class, and economic privilege and disadvantage. Quote a different passage from at least one of the assigned readings. 4.) Plot: Take a closer look at the storyboard of the film, and discuss its use of simultaneity and interconnecting stories. Can any one event ever occur in complete isolation on our increasingly globalized planet? Explain your thoughts on this issue, and quote from at least one of our assigned readings. 5.) Dear RD 116 Students: Contemplate the film title Babel . Look up meaning of the word at MerriamWebster.com (http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/babel) and research the story of the Tower of Babel. Address themes of language, communication and miscommunication in the film. Quote at least one source.

Required Reading :

* “Director hopes 'Babel' will spark discussion, questions” Barbara Vancheri, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette http://www.post-gazette.com/stories/ae/movies/director-hopes-babel-will- spark-discussion-questions-458696/

*http://movies.nytimes.com/2006/10/27/movies/27babe.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

*http://www.ign.com/articles/2006/10/26/interview-alejandro-gonzalez-inarritu

* http://www.nthposition.com/globalismandthefilms.php (Read the section at the end about Babel ).

Allison deFreese_ENG 195: Film as Art_Spring 2014

Portland Community College Field Trip Febrary 20 th to screen:

SOUL BOY

Directed by Hawa Essuman

AFRICAN DRUM, BEYOND THE BEAT

Directed by Tariq Richards

Journals due Friday, February 28, 2014): What themes or elements in these movies made them uniquely “African”?

Allison deFreese_ENG 195: Film as Art_Spring 2014

Unit Two

Toward an “American” Identity

Themes : Stereotypes, race theory, character conflicts, musical scores, explicit and implicit meaning, narration, acting styles, montage, frame/the world outside the frame, points of view, road movies, bildungsromans, flashback, slow motion, action and reaction, moving camera, camera distances and angles, color and colorization, and lighting

• Spike Lee, Do the Right Thing (1989)

Screening Time : 5th Period

Film Journal Assignments : (Choose at least two, and cite at least one of our assigned readings)

1.) Fire and Ice: In the opening scene of Do the Right Thing , we learn that the action takes place on the hottest day of the year in Brooklyn, NY in the summer of 1989. The heat is literally oppressive , and visually Spike Lee infuses many of his scenes with intense red or yellow color (and others with cool blue) as conflicts between characters “heat up.” Explore metaphors pertaining to water, fire and heat in the movie, providing specific examples from the film.

Allison deFreese_ENG 195: Film as Art_Spring 2014

2.) Do the Right Thing has been heralded by many critics as the best film of the 1980s. Is Do the Right Thing an “80s” movie? Have the conflicts and racial tensions that the film depicts changed from the 1980s, or are the same issues equally relevant and unchanged today? As you screen the film, make a list of details that seem particular to the 1980s, as well as themes that are universal and/or still pertinent to American society today and write a response. 3.) Film Score and Soundtrack: Examine the effect that Spike Lee’s choice of music throughout the film. Research Public Enemy and explicate the lyrics of “Fight the Power.” How does the film’s soundtrack inform or enhance themes Lee depicts in the movie? 4.) Films that Spike Lee has boycotted: Do you agree with Lee’s objections to racially charged language and stereotypes in certain films (including Quinton Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction and Django Unchained ), his decision not to view films that portray African-American characters negatively or cultivate racial stereotypes, and his attempts to dissuade audiences from viewing such films? After reading Lee’s objections to Django Unchained , would you still pay to watch the movie at a theater? Why or why not? 5.) Consider the characters in Do the Right Thing . Is there a clear hero or villain(s)? If so, who (or what ) are they (is it), and why do you think so? Remember that characters sometimes struggle not only against other people, but also to overcome negative or repressive forces that pose obstacles in their lives. 6.) Spike Lee, like directors/screenplay writers/actors before him including Woody Allen and Charlie Chaplin, often creates roles for himself in his own films; playing characters who may seem “nerdy” or antiheroic in the traditional sense of the Hollywood hero. What effect does a director casting himself (or herself) as a flawed, imperfect hero or an “everyman” have on the overall message or world of a film? 7.) Characters depicted in Do the Right Thing are African American, Korean American, Italian American, Puerto Rican and White. Certainly, one of the film’s central themes is interracial (as well as intra-racial) conflict in America, and how this tension manifests itself in one New York City neighborhood. Choose two racial or ethnic groups portrayed as having a conflict in the film, and elaborate on the source(s) of the tension. 8.) Compare and contrast a scene from Lee’s screenplay with the same scene in the film. What details appear in the film scene that are absent from the screenplay? Imagine you were a director filming the same scene based solely on the screenplay.

Allison deFreese_ENG 195: Film as Art_Spring 2014

What would you change? Would your directing style have been different? Please include direct quotations from the screenplay.

Required Reading :

* http://www.yale.edu/opa/arc-ybc/v29.n21/story3.html

* http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/12/25/spike-lee-goes-after-django- unchained/

* http://www.businessinsider.com/despite-rampant-racial-slurs-in-django-unchained- african-americans-flock-to-theaters-2013-1

*Excerpts from Spike Lee’s screenplay for Do the Right Thing :

http://www.imsdb.com/scripts/Do-The-Right-Thing.html

*Spike Lee and Fuchs, Cynthia. Spike Lee Interviews (read excerpt from the last paragraph of page 150 to the end of page 152)

http://books.google.com/books?id=neaB76iFhCEC&pg=PA151&lpg=PA151&d q=spike+lee+pulp+fiction&source=bl&ots=u- sIBcEKyD&sig=JnpKEkg5PWXxNekiWRdIEtyQG- I&hl=en&sa=X&ei=_0jsUJTQKqHtiwLZ6oHgAQ&ved=0CEMQ6AEwAg#v=o nepage&q=spike%20lee%20pulp%20fiction&f=false

*“Fight the Power” (video) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8PaoLy7PHwk

Allison deFreese_ENG 195: Film as Art_Spring 2014

• Chris Eyre, Smoke Signals (Screenplay by Sherman Alexie) (1998)

Screening Time: 5th Period

Film Journal Assignment : For this week, choose one of the following topics and write an extended journal entry:

1.) Read “I Hated Tonto (Still Do)” and discuss the way stereotypes are portrayed in Smoke Signals compared with other films you’ve seen. Cite at least two sources, including one of last week’s Required Reading about Spike Lee’s views on Hollywood movies and racial stereotypes. (John Wayne’s name makes an appearance both in Smoke Signals , and also in “Fight the Power,” the theme song for Do the Right Thing . Who the bleep was John Wayne anyway? Is he still alive and well in America, or has his character become a stereotype or cliché too)? 2.) Read Sherman Alexie’s short story “This Is What It Means To Say Phoenix, Arizona” from The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fist Fight in Heaven (also available at http://courses.csusm.edu/ltwr325bc/phoenix.html ). Discuss how Alexie adapted

Allison deFreese_ENG 195: Film as Art_Spring 2014 elements from his story in creating the screenplay for Smoke Signals . Cite specific passages from the story that are similar to, or that vary from, scenes in the film.

Required Reading:

*Sherman Alexie, “I Hated Tonto (Still Do)” (LA Times) http://articles.latimes.com/print/1998/jun/28/entertainment/ca-64216

*CBS News, “Sending Smoke Signals” http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-3445_162- 24200.html

*Excerpts from Sherman Alexie’s The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven (class handouts; also see: http://courses.csusm.edu/ltwr325bc/phoenix.html)

Allison deFreese_ENG 195: Film as Art_Spring 2014

• Douglas Sirk, Imitation of Life (1959)

Screening Time : Screening Time, 5 th Period

Film Journal Assignments : (Choose at least two, and cite this week’s Required Reading in at least one of your entries.)

1.) Imitation of Life is a visually stunning film. As you view the film, be on the look for visual metaphors (for instance, scenes in which mirrors appear and characters who “mirror” each other). How does Sirk’s use of images or symbols pertain to Imitation of Life ’s overall themes? 2.) Sirk uses medium and long shots abundantly in the film. As you view the film, take note of two or more scenes where the camera seems to keep its distance from the action or characters. How does the use of such shots affect the emotional distance or intimacy of the film’s characters or content? 3.) Color plays an important part in the film, both in the racially-charged content of the screenplay, and in Sirk’s use of bright colors on screen. As you watch Imitation of Life pay close attention to its use of color. Chose two to three scenes, and write about all the colors you remember. Write a response to the use, or theme, of color in the film. 4.) According to Merriam-Webster Online, a melodrama is “a work (as a movie or play) characterized by extravagant theatricality and by the predominance of plot and physical action over characterization.” Does Imitation of Life contain melodramatic elements? Cite specific scenes or examples.

Allison deFreese_ENG 195: Film as Art_Spring 2014

5.) And finally…I invite you to explore the feminist themes presented in this film. Does the film imply certain characteristics inherent in being a good (or bad) mother (or daughter)?

Required Reading:

*http://dominicambrose.wordpress.com/2009/06/06/imitation-of-life-american-myth/

Unit Three

Love and War

Themes : Genres, Hollywood depictions of love and war, censorship, McCarthyism, propaganda, sound, film sources, film production and distribution, history of film as art and silent films, film production and distribution, frame composition, cinematography, film nior, mise–en–scène , screenplays, shots and editing, camera distances and angles, use of space, lighting, documentaries and “mockumentories,” cinéma vérité , hybrid films, film sources, how films influence art and culture, sequels and revisionism

• Hal Ashby, Harold and Maude (1971)

Screening Time: Tuesday , 3:30-5:30PM, RAHS Library

Allison deFreese_ENG 195: Film as Art_Spring 2014

Film Journal Assignments : (Choose at least two topics listed below, and cite at least one of our Required Readings for this week).

1.) Last Spring, Rosemary Anderson High School/POIC drama students performed a version of William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet at Northwest Children’s Theater. Compare and contrast the plots of Romeo and Juliet and Harold and Maude . What are the similarities and differences between these two works? 2.) Harold and Maude is arguably a love story with some rather unconventional protagonists. To what extent is age, aging or death a theme central to this movie? Would the film be as interesting if Harold and Maude were both teenagers or both octogenarians? 3.) Since its release, Harold and Maude has appeared on banned movie lists over the years and was condemned by the Legion of Decency. How shocking does the storyline seem to you today? Would the film’s themes be considered as controversial in 2013 as they were in 1971? Why or why not? 4.) What genre would you consider Harold and Maude ? Is it a comedy, a tragedy, a dark comedy, a romantic comedy or something completely different? Write a response in which you classify the movie and defend your decision by citing specific examples. 5.) Rosemary Anderson High School serves many students who have either dropped out or considered dropping out of high school. The film’s director, Hal Ashby, himself dropped out of high school. What other famous Americans can you think of whom at one point or other stopped attending school, yet went on to have successful careers? If you undertake additional research on this subject, please remember to cite your sources.

Required Reading :

*http://oldschoolreviews.com/rev_70/harold_maude.htm

*http://marginalminds.blogspot.com/2007/07/hal-ashby.html

*http://www.studentpulse.com/articles/209/the-breakdown-of-censorship-in-american- cinema

Allison deFreese_ENG 195: Film as Art_Spring 2014

• Werner Herzog, Little Dieter Needs to Fly (1997)

Screening Time : Tuesday, 3:30-5:30PM, RAHS Library

Film Journal Assignments: (Choose at least two, and cite at least one Required Reading for this week.)

1.) Little Dieter Needs to Fly is usually classified as a documentary, though its director, Werner Herzog, is known for taking poetic license with the genre, as we will presently discuss. Dieter Dengler’s story was later adapted into a major motion picture, Rescue Dawn . How would your impression of Little Dieter Needs to Fly change if you knew it was purely a work of fiction instead of one man’s story about his actual life or death fight for survival? 2.) Dieter was held as a prisoner of war during the Vietnam War. How much do you know about America’s involvement in Vietnam at the time? Write a summary of how America became involved in the Vietnam War, and what the results of the conflict have been. If your summary requires additional research, please remember to cite your sources. 3.) In the opening scene of the documentary, Dieter describes his need to open and close doors and shows the viewer/cinematographer a small, closeted space where he stores food supplies. In the final sequence, Werner Herzog films an “aircraft graveyard.” Pairing this closing scene with an unusual musical score, he allows the camera to pan out, revealing a landscape which becomes increasingly vaster and

Allison deFreese_ENG 195: Film as Art_Spring 2014

more surreal. What effect does Herzog achieve with the opening and closing scenes of Little Dieter Needs to Fly ? 4.) During filming, Herzog travels to Vietnam with Dieter and instructs the former P.O.W. to reenact episodes from his internment, with Vietnamese actors and extras playing his captors. What are your thoughts on mixing straight documentary with reenactment? Does this sequence potentially raise any moral or ethical issues? Write a response to these scenes and reflect on these issues.

Required Reading :

*http://abclocal.go.com/kabc/story?id=8652396

*http://www.timeout.com/film/features/show-feature/3004/

*http://www.nytimes.com/1983/07/20/movies/film-werner-herzog- documentaries.html

Allison deFreese_ENG 195: Film as Art_Spring 2014

• Michael Curtiz, Casablanca (1942)

Screening Time : Tuesday, 3:30-5:30PM, RAHS Library

(Photo copyright Warner Bros. Pictures)

Film Journal Assignments : (Choose at least two and remember to cite from this week’s Required Readings.) 1.) Before you screen the film, conduct some background research about film noir. What effect does Michael Curtiz’s use of light and shadow throughout the film have on the development of his scenes? Pay special attention to the use of lighting on and shadow on the characters’ faces. Choose a scene from the film (for instance, the one in which Ilsa surprises Rick at home), and analyze how its use of light and shadow foreshadows or accentuates the content and dramatic tension of the sequence. 2.) According to Merriam-Webster Online (a source you should befriend as you embark on your college career), the definition of mise–en–scène includes: “the arrangement of actors and scenery on a stage for a theatrical production,” “stage setting” and “the physical setting of an action (as of a narrative or a motion picture).” Choose a scene from the movie that you found particularly compelling and write a brief mise–en–scène analysis.

Allison deFreese_ENG 195: Film as Art_Spring 2014

3.) Casablanca has inspired many literary and cinemagraphic responses, from the Joyce Carol Oates novel You Must Remember This to Woodie Allen’s movie Play It Again Sam (a line not actually spoken verbatim in the original movie) and Pedro Almodóvar’s El Flor de mi secreto . Read both the title story from Robert Coover’s A Night at the Movies, or, You Must Remember This and the same scene from the Casablanca screenplay . Then choose another short scene from Casablanca that you found memorable and rewrite it, adding your own creative interpretation. 4.) Casablanca was released in 1942, in the middle of World War Two. How could Casablanca have complimented the war propaganda of the time or have been used to boost the morale of American civilians and troops during World War II? If your Film Journal entry requires additional research, please remember to cite your sources.

Required Reading :

*Excerpts from the screenplay to Casablanca : http://www.weeklyscript.com/Casablanca.txt

*http://www.theartsdesk.com/film/casablanca

*http://voices.yahoo.com/casablanca-mise-en-scene-construction-837657.html

*http://ryuhawk.hubpages.com/hub/Casablanca-1942-Film-Review

*Robert Coover, “You Must Remember This” (From A Night at the Movies, or, You Must Remember This )

Allison deFreese_ENG 195: Film as Art_Spring 2014

Unit Four

Rebels with a Cause: Freedom of Expression, Banned Films and “Art Crimes” in America

Themes: Art and film, documentaries, censorship, graffiti, hip-hop and rap, sanctioned public art, color, music, independent film, avant-garde film, the surrealist movement, Surrealism, Bunuel, Salvador Dali, Fellini, Hitchcock, Spielberg, discussion of major directors and film movements, film and violence, special effects, stereotypes versus satire, feminist criticism, viewer-response criticism, Jungian and Freudian analysis, psychoanalytical criticism, Spaghetti Westerns, religion and philosophy, and Zen and Eastern influences on film

• Tamra Davis, Jean-Michel Basquiat: The Radiant Child (2010)

Screening Time : 3:30-5:30 PM, RAHS Library

Film Journal Assignment: Write an extended Film Journal response to Jean-Michel Basquiat: The Radiant Child in which you comment on two or more elements of film analysis that we’ve covered so far in class. Cite at least two sources from the Required Readings for Unit 4.

Required Reading:

Allison deFreese_ENG 195: Film as Art_Spring 2014

* http://www.artinamericamagazine.com/news-opinion/news/2010-07-21/basquiat- behind-the-interview/ (Art in America interview)

*http://www.basquiatbiography.com/news/artisnotacrime

*TBD

• James Marsh, Man on Wire (2008)

Screening Time : Tuesday, 3:30-5:30 PM, RAHS Library

Film Journal Assignments : (Choose at least two topics from the list, and cite at least one of the Required Readings for this unit.)

1.) Read the paper that Timothy Werwrath wrote as a high school project. What connections does he draw between graffiti and the hip-hop movement? Cite the text at least twice. 2.) In your opinion, what crimes did Philippe Petit commit except perhaps trespassing? How do you feel about his punishment (basically public service)

Allison deFreese_ENG 195: Film as Art_Spring 2014

compared with that of his friend and “accomplice,” who was banned from returning to the United States? 3.) Would you consider Philippe Petit’s performances “art crime,” public art, rebellion against authority, ill-advised publicity-seeking stunts, cries for help, super-human and extraordinary feats or something completely different? 4.) Read Henry David Thoreau’s “Civil Disobedience” and use the text as a launching point for exploring themes found in Man on Wire and/or Jean-Michel Basquiat: The Radiant Child . Use specific quotations from Thoreau’s text.

Required Reading :

*http://www.artcrimes.com/faq/werwath/werwath.html

*Henry David Thoreau, “Civil Disobedience” http://www.transcendentalists.com/civil_disobedience.htm

• Surreal and experimental shorts including Chris Marker’s La jetée , Joseph Cornell’s Rose Hobart , Luis Bunuel and Salvador Dali’s Un Chien Andalou , and clips from Luis Bunuel’s The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie , selected Andy Warhol Screen Tests, Alfred Hickcok’s Spellbound (dream sequence), Federico Fellini’s 8 ½ , Ingmar Bergman’s The Seventh Seal , The Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band (Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds sequence), Jean-Pierre Jeunet’s City of Lost Children , Charlie Kaufman’s Being John Malkovich , Jan Švankmajer’s The Death of Stalinism in Bohemia , scenes from Pedro Almodóvar’s All about my Mother and Talk to Her , David Lynch’s Eraserhead (pencil factory sequence) and Blue Velvet (opening sequence), and first part of David Lynch: Eraser Head Stories (Documentary).

Screening Time : Tuesday, 3:30-5:30PM, RAHS Library

Allison deFreese_ENG 195: Film as Art_Spring 2014

Film Journal Assignments : Select at least of the two directors whose work we screened this week. Locate an additional video clip or clips from their films, and if possible, an interview. Compare or contrast the additional scene(s) with those that we’ve viewed and write two Film Journal entries reporting your discoveries.

Required Reading :

1.) Use this week to catch up on Unit 4 Required Readings.

• Censored films and edited scenes : Many classic movies that have been banned or severely censored in the past may seem “tame” to modern audiences. This week we will focus on both classic and contemporary movies that have been banned or censored by diverse governments, institutions and organizations, both in the U.S. and/or internationally. In class this week, we will explore at least 10 short clips from banned or censored movies, pausing between each screening for commentary and discussion about the reasons the film was censored or banned. Not all of these films are in my permanent collection so depending on availability, scenes we will view may include clips from: Titanic , American Beauty Some Like It Hot , A Clockwork Orange , Full Metal Jacket , Schindler’s List , Monty Python’s Life of Brian , Ben-Hur , Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? , The Great Dictator , The Bohemian Girl , Y Tu Mamá También , Brokeback Mountain , Fahrenheit 9/11 , Pulp Fiction , Seven Years in Tibet , The Tin Drum , Viridiana , Freaks , The Birth of a Nation , Pinky , All Quiet on the Western Front , The Outlaw , The Man with the Golden Arm , Victim or Salt of the Earth , Nosferatu , The Wizard of Oz and the Harry Potter series.

Screening Time : Tuesday, 3:30-5:30PM, RAHS Library

Allison deFreese_ENG 195: Film as Art_Spring 2014

Film Journal Assignments : (Choose at least two, and cite at least two of the assigned readings for this unit.)

1.) As stated above, classic movies that have been banned or severely censored in the past may seem “tame” to a modern audience. Were there some clips we viewed that, in your opinion, clearly would have no reason to be banned or censored today? Which ones and why? 2.) H. Rap Brown and others have been attributed with saying, “violence is as American as cherry pie.” In Great Britain, “bloody” is a swearword. At Rosemary Anderson High School, one word that students are frequently chastised for saying in class is “f***.” Many of the banned or censored movies on the list above were not banned for their violent content, but because their ideas conflicted with government propaganda, or because they contained sexual content or references to drugs. In your opinion, why does American television still cut some romantic scenes from movies, yet allow massacres, bloodshed and carnage to be aired? 3.) Read the CNN article about words that were censored or banned from American television in the in the past (for instance, the word “pregnant” was cut from a 1952 episode of I Love Lucy ). Would any of these terms be prohibited today? What 30

Allison deFreese_ENG 195: Film as Art_Spring 2014

words, if any, might still be banned? Are there any terms (or content) that, in your opinion, should still be banned from television considering that shows may be viewed by audiences of all ages, including children? Finally, say a few “words” of your own about how the internet’s effect on censorship. 4.) Read the CBS News report about web censorship in China. Take a moment to reflect on films that have been banned because their views conflicted with the official government propaganda of the time (i.e., The Great Dictator , banned in Germany; Schindler’s List , banned in Indonesia; or Seven Years in Tibet, banned in China) and record your thoughts. Are there ever instances in which you feel a government could be justified for interfering with the creative, artistic or journalist expression of its citizens or “protecting” them by withholding or censoring information?

Required Reading :

*http://www.cbsnews.com/2100-205_162-531567.html

*http://articles.cnn.com/2007-07-31/living/censorship_1_tweety-bird-elvis- tea?_s=PM:LIVING

*http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/greenslade/2012/dec/11/journalist-safety-press- freedom?INTCMP=SRCH

*http://www.nytimes.com/1990/06/08/opinion/l-violence-as-american-as-apple-pie- 908790.html

* http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2001/may/24/books.booksnews

*Some movies on our screening list may contain themes of violence could be disturbing to some viewers. With prior notice, students will have the option to make arrangements with instructor to view an alternative film.

Allison deFreese_ENG 195: Film as Art_Spring 2014

Course Assignment Schedule and Screenings Calendar

◄ December ~ January 2014 ~ February ► Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 1 2 3 4

5 6 7 8 9 10 11

12 13 14 15 16 17 18

19 20 21 22 23 24 25

26 27 28 29 30 31 Notes: Top Five Movie List Course Overview Vocabulary Drill: Writing/Research & Favorite Movie and Introduction TermWiki Lab Review—pre-write Glossaries

Allison deFreese_ENG 195: Film as Art_Spring 2014

◄ January ~ February 2014 ~ March ► Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 1

2 3 Syllabus quiz / 4 5 6 7 8 Gurinder Chadha Screening/Discussion Screening/Discussion Class discussion, Top Five Movie Required Readings Bend It Like Beckham List & Favorite Due , Class discussion themes Movie Review: Journal 1 d ue Writing/Research Lab

9 10 11 12 13 14 15 Sherman Alexie and Screening/Discussion Screening/Discussion Class discussion, Typed Bend It Like Smoke Signals Required Smoke Signals Beckam Journals Readings themes due. due , Class discussion Writing/Research Lab

16 17 18 19 20 21 22 Spike Lee and Do the Research for African Cascade Festival of Typed Bend Smoke Right Thing Required Films African Films: Signals Journals due. Readings African Drum: Beyond Writing/Research due , Class discussion the Beat and Soul Boy Lab President’s Day

23 24 25 26 27 28 Notes: Spike Lee and Do the Screening: Do the Screening: Do the Do the Right Thing Writing/Research Right Thing Required Right Thing Right Thing discussion Lab Readings Cascade Festival of due , Class discussion, African Films continued Reflection due

Courtesy of WinCalendar.com

Allison deFreese_ENG 195: Film as Art_Spring 2014

◄ February ~ March 2014 ~ April ► Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 1

2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Babel Required Screening Babel Screening Babel Discussion Babel , Writing/Research Readings privilege and Lab due , Class immigration Do the Right discussion, Thing Journal Entries due Revision Essay I Due

9 10 11 12 13 14 15 Imitation of Life Screening Imitation of Screening Imitation of Imitation of Life Babel Journal Required Life Life Discussion Entries due Readings Writing/Research due , Lab

16 17 18 19 20 21 22 Censored and Screening Banned Surrealism Required Screening Surrealist Imitation of Life Banned Films Film Shorts Readings due Film Shorts Journals due Required Writing/Research Readings due Lab

23 24 25 26 27 28 29 SPRING BREAK

30 31 Notes

Allison deFreese_ENG 195: Film as Art_Spring 2014

March ~ April 2014 ~ May ► Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Screen Analysis, Casa 1 2 3 4 5 Blanca Final Final Final People’s Choice: Projects/Essay II Projects /Essay Projects/Essay Musical Film!

II II Censorship and Surrealism Journals due

6 7 Final Projects 8 9 10 11 12 DUE! Final Project Final Project Final Project People’s Choice:! A Final Project Presentations Presentations Presentations Comedy of Presentations Documentary! Final Papers/ Essay II Due (to be considered for an A or B grade) 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 Screenings TBD

20 21 22 23 24 25 26 Screenings TBD

27 28 29 30 Notes: Screenings TBD