Australian Institute for Mobility Overseas
Italian Cinema, Story-telling & Film 2019 Draft Syllabus
Course Information
Name: Italian Cinema, Story-telling & Film
Teaching Universita Cattolica del Sacro Cuore Institution: Location: Milan, Italy Dates: 29 June – 27 July 2019 Duration: 4 weeks Course contact 70 hours of academic classes plus additional cultural activities hours: and self-study Pre-requisites: Students should have completed at least one year of studies in the following areas: Arts, Media, Creating Writing, or Film & Screen Media Production Course The program is equivalent to 12 ECTS. equivalencies
Course Descriptions and Learning Outcomes Academic classes (70 hours) The program is divided into two modules and is taught by Professor Mara Perbellini.
Module 1: Creative Italian Storytelling: from Literature to Cinema to other forms of fiction (35 hours)
Adaptations have long been a mainstay of Hollywood, Cinecittà and the television networks. Many of the most successful international films are indeed adaptations of novels, plays or true-life stories. This course provides participants with a new knowledge of Italian humanities, from literature to theatre, from cinema to biography. It is a great opportunity to learn creative techniques in writing and discover the Italian culture through the arts of time: poetry, literature, playwriting and screenwriting.
The course will analyse some of the most important adaptations of Italian literature for the seventh art, identify the resistance of literature and discover masterpieces of Italian Cinema. Students will gradually develop an understanding towards the changes from the source material to the new text.
This course includes a creative experience through literature and cinema: the writer’s lab. Each student will be given tools to write a story and develop it into a short film screenplay.
Australian Institute for Mobility Overseas www.aimoverseas.com.au Page 1 of 8 Method of Teaching Lecture and Lab. Readings of stories and excerpts of novels and plays. Screening and analysis of clips of important films adapted from literature, theatre and true-life stories. The source material will be compared to the adaptation, revealing the essence of each medium.
Course Assessment Attendance and class participation: 20% Final exam: 40% Creative work: Short story 20% Short film script 20%
Course readings and Materials
Readings to be completed prior to the course • Carlo Collodi, Pinocchio
Required readings • Linda Seger, The art of adaptation: turning fact and fiction into film, Owl Book, NYC 1992. • Robert Mc Kee, Story: Substance, Structure, Style and The Principles of Screenwriting, Harper Collins Publishers, NYC • Luigi Pirandello, The wheelbarrow (short story) • James Joyce, The Dead • Italo Calvino, Invisible Cities (some excerpts) • Banana Yoshimoto, Kitchen (an excerpt)
Required films: • Pinocchio (2002) by Roberto Benigni. • Il divo (2008) by Paolo Sorrentino (some clips in class).
Draft Course Structure and Schedule (Note: this is the 2018 schedule to be used as a guide, the 2019 schedule will be provided to you prior to departure or upon arrival)
Note: Prof. Perbellini will be the main instructor of this course and will teach most of the classes. Prof. Provenzi will teach the lessons highlighted in grey.
Week 1
Lesson 1 part 1 Introduction to narrative techniques: clear vision. The dramatic moment. Screening of short film.
Lesson 1 part 2 Why we need stories. The different forms of narrative and the beginning of the writing process: “In a hole in the ground there lived a Hobbit”.
Lesson 2 (3 h: 9-11.50 am) Guidelines to short film. Text and subtext. Exercise on location
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Lesson 3 The importance of having a theme: how to find it in a book and how to find your own story. Characters: their roles, their arc of transformation and how to brainstorm from characters (exercise: let’s build a story together)
Lesson 4 Field study
Week 2
Lesson 5 Screening of location film. The story triangle. Script format.
Lesson 6 The structure of a story: the Hero’s journey as a pattern for epic tales and fairy tales. The example of Pinocchio. The structure of a psychological story: setting, inciting event, unconscious choice, conscious choice, crisis, climax and resolution.
* Deadline for submitting your short story summary
Lesson 7 Exercise on character part 1. The example of “The wheelbarrow” by Pirandello. Structure.
Lesson 8 Narrator and point of view: who tells the story? Exercises on the different types of narration using Kitchen by Banana Yoshimoto and Invisibile Cities by Italo Calvino. How to begin and how to end a story: happy ending, tragic ending, open ending. Discussion on your story ideas.
* Deadline for short film outline (Sunday) * Watch Pinocchio before Monday 17 July (TBC)
Week 3
Lesson 9 The art of adaptation: literature & cinema. The case of “Pinocchio” by Benigni
Lesson 10
Feedback on outline. Scene analysis.
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Lesson 11 The art of descriptions: how do I introduce a character? How do I describe a place? The metaphorical meaning of visual elements in a story. Examples (James Joyce, The Dead; Italo Calvino, Invisible Cities) and exercises.
The art of dialogue: how do I write effective dialogue? Examples and exercises.
* Deadline for submitting the first draft of your short story
Lesson 12 Exercise on character part 2. Creating and shading style, mood and tone.
* Deadline for short film screenplay (first draft)
Week 4
Lesson 13 Feedback on your screenplays. Rewriting your script.
Lesson 14 More feedback on your screenplays.
Lesson 15 Adaptation from true life stories: the case of Andreotti. Discussion and analysis of “Il Divo” by Sorrentino as an example of adaptation.
Lesson 16 - FINAL EXAM
TBC (before midnight) DEADLINE FOR YOUR SHORT STORY AND YOUR SHORT FILM SCRIPT.
Module 2: Federico Fellini and Contemporary Italian Cinema (35 hours) The course will introduce students to the magic world of the “director superstar” Federico Fellini, who influenced the art of cinema all over the world. Here’s a quotation from American director David Lynch, to give an example of how influential Fellini was to international directors: “If I had to choose films that represent, for me, examples of perfect filmmaking, the first would be 8 ½, for the way Federico Fellini managed to accomplish with film what mostly abstract painters do – namely, to communicate an emotion without ever saying anything in a direct manner, without ever explaining anything, just by a sort of sheer magic”.
After “meeting” the Master, students will discover the main trends and filmmakers in contemporary Italian cinema. Since cinema is a mirror to our world, students will learn a lot about contemporary Italian society through the seventh art.
Australian Institute for Mobility Overseas www.aimoverseas.com.au Page 4 of 8 Method of Teaching Screenings of clips from films, film analysis, lectures, discussion of 7 mandatory films to be watched before class. Starting from the second mandatory film, a couple of students will lead the film discussion together with the Professor (students will rotate in this role).
Course Assessment
Attendance: 20% Class participation: 40% (Including film discussions, paper and film presentation) Final written exam: 40%
There will be 7 film screenings throughout the course at Università Cattolica. The films will then be discussed in class with the Professor. Students are required to watch the scheduled films before class for the preparation of film analysis and discussion.
Course readings and Materials
Required reading (excerpts): • Peter Bondanella, The cinema of Federico Fellini, Princeton University Press, New Jersey 1992. • William Hope, Italian Film Directors in the New Millennium, Cambridge Scholars Publishing, Newcastle upon Tyne, 2010.
Required films (with English subtitles): • Le notti di Cabiria (1956) by F. Fellini (screened in class) • La dolce vita (1959) by F. Fellini • Otto e mezzo 8 ½ (1962) by F. Fellini • La vita è bella (1998) by Roberto Benigni. • Io non ho paura (2003) by Gabriele Salvatores • Il racconto dei racconti (Tale of tales, 2015) by Matteo Garrone • Youth (2015) by Paolo Sorrentino.
Course Structure and Schedule TBC
In the first part of the course, after an introduction on cinema language and Italian cinema, we will focus on Federico Fellini’s career, from his debut as screenwriter during Neorealism to the masterpieces of the ‘50s and ‘60s. We will then explore the boundaries of contemporary Italian cinema with the most significant directors and their movies: Roberto Benigni, Gabriele Salvatores, Matteo Garrone and Paolo Sorrentino (who won for best film in a foreign language at the Academy Awards 2014).
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Lesson 1 Introduction to cinema language. Introduction to Italian cinema and Fellini. Guidelines to film analysis.
Lesson 2 Screening of Le notti di Cabiria (1956) by F. Fellini
Lesson 3 More on Fellini. Discussion and film analysis of (1): Le notti di Cabiria (1956) by F. Fellini
Lesson 4 Cultural activity.
• Film to be watched before 11 July: La dolce vita (1959) by F. Fellini
Week 2
Lesson 5 More on Fellini Discussion and film analysis (2): La dolce vita (1959) by F. Fellini
Lesson 6 More on Fellini. Opening of Otto e mezzo 8 ½ (1962) by F. Fellini.
Lesson 7 More on Fellini. Discussion and film analysis (3): Otto e mezzo 8 ½ (1962) by F. Fellini
Lesson 8 More on Fellini. • Film to be watched before 19 July: La vita è bella (1998) by Roberto Benigni.
Week 3
Lesson 9 Contemporary Italian cinema. Benigni
Lesson 10 Discussion and film analysis (4): La vita è bella (1998) by Roberto Benigni.
• Film to be watched before 21 July: Io non ho paura (2003) by Gabriele Salvatores.
Lesson 11 Salvatores.
Australian Institute for Mobility Overseas www.aimoverseas.com.au Page 6 of 8 Lesson 12 Discussion and film analysis (5): Io non ho paura (2003) by Gabriele Salvatores
• Film to be watched before 25 July: Il racconto dei racconti (2015) by Matteo Garrone
Week 4 Lesson 13 Garrone. Discussion and film analysis (6): ): Il racconto dei racconti (2008) by Matteo Garrone • Film to be watched before 27 July: Youth (2015) by Paolo Sorrentino.
Lesson 14 More on Garrone. Sorrentino
Lesson 15 Discussion and film analysis (7): Youth (2013) by Paolo Sorrentino.
Lesson 16 Written in class FINAL EXAM.
It will be a written exam with 2 film analysis on 2 of the 7 mandatory films (as explained in class) and 2 essay questions on the issues discussed in class: all the slides from blackboard; the selected chapters from your textbooks (on your course-pack); 7 mandatory films analysed together in class.
Learning Outcomes
Students will learn narrative techniques and how Literature, Theatre and Biography can be manipulated to create an original piece of art: the screenplay. Students will also discover great examples of Italian novels, plays and films and, through them and will acquire a deeper knowledge of the Italian Culture.
Instructor Information
Mara Perbellini is the main lecturer of the course. She is a scriptwriter and story analyst for major film and TV production companies. After obtaining her BA degree in Italian literature and Master’s Degree in screenwriting at the Università Cattolica of Milan, she began to write screenplays and work as a story analyst for Rai Fiction and Eagle Pictures. She also worked as assistant director on the TV-movie “Una famiglia per caso” for RAI 1. She has had over twelve feature film stories and screenplays purchased or optioned, including the treatment of "Bugie e miracoli" for Academy Award Winner Producer Marina Cicogna. In addition to her screenplays, Mara has had a number of scripts produced for animated series, such as “The Lord of Shadows” and “Uffa che Pazienza!” (Rai 2, season 1 and 2, which earned the Pulcinella Award at Cartoons on the Bay 2008 as best TV series for children). She also attended the Film School at the New York Film Academy, both in NYC and in L.A. (at Universal Studios) and the London Academy of Radio, Film & TV: while there, she directed, wrote and edited 4 short films. In 2006 Mara joined the Faculty o f IES Abroad Milan, where she teaches History of Italian Cinema and filmmaking. In 2012 she joined the Faculty of Università Cattolica Australian Institute for Mobility Overseas www.aimoverseas.com.au Page 7 of 8 where she teaches creative storytelling with Prof. Provenzi. She’s also tutoring Italian film students at Università Cattolica, both for the Screenwriting Master Program and the film-making summer course at the School of Visual Arts in NYC. In 2009 she got an Award for best screenplay at the Fiuggi International Family Film Festival with the film “Il sirenetto”. After that she wrote several prime-time mini-series and series, such as “Distretto di polizia 8” (Canale 5), "Ci vediamo a Portofino" (Rai 1), “La vita che corre” (Rai 1), “Eleonora Duse” (Publispei) and “Ombre sulla neve” (Casanova Multimedia). In 2012 she wrote 5 plays for “Decalogo parte prima” that premiered at the Spoleto “Festival dei due mondi”. She’s currently writing other 5 plays for “Decalogo parte seconda” as well as some cinematic projects.
Materials All the readings will be available in a course pack and the lecturer’s slides will be available on Blackboard (http://blackboard.unicatt.it/).
Cultural Activities The course includes a number of cultural activities in order to give participants an appreciation of Italian culture and attitudes. These cultural visits do not count towards the class contact hours of the course but do provide important cultural context for students.
Attendance and class participation Students are expected to attend all classes, presentations, site visits and cultural activities. They are expected to actively take part in class discussions. Every student must attend a minimum of 90% of the total of scheduled class hours and field trips in order to be permitted to attend the final exam.
Attendance will be registered by the tutor at the beginning of each class/visit. The daily registration of attendance is the responsibility of the student, any missing signature in the register will be considered as an absence. Punctuality is essential. In order not to cause interruptions and disturbance students arriving late, that is over 10 minutes late, will be admitted into class only after the first break. Late arrivals will be counted has half day absences. Students, that for serious and motivated reasons (such as illness) cannot attend lectures, must inform the tutor in advance. The Master’s Office will have to approve of multiple day absences.
Academic honesty Students will be required to comply with UCSC’s policies regarding plagiarism and academic integrity. Students are also expected to maintain a high standard behaviour at off-site activities and throughout the program in general.
Grading The course will be assessed as above. Grades will be allocated according to the standard ECTS scale.
Contact Information For further information regarding this document, please contact the Australian Institute for Mobility Overseas: [email protected] Phone: (02) 9975 7792 Web: www.aimoverseas.com.au Australian Institute for Mobility Overseas www.aimoverseas.com.au Page 8 of 8