FMS100INTRODUCTIONTOFILM.docVIP

FMS 100: INTRODUCTION TO FILM (Spring 2012) Professor: Michelle J. Martinez Email: michelle.j.martinez@ Office Hours: by appointment Online Office Hours: T/TH 11-1 Office Location: LL 648B Time/Location: Online Course Website: /courses/fms100mg/ COURSE OUTLINE Using a range of films from various national cinemas, this course will introduce students to formal and cultural issues important to understanding movies. We will work with the assumption that these issues are best explored through textual analysis of individual films. This analysis will demonstrate that attention to form -- how filmmakers communicate through formal systems such as narrative, editing, mise-en-scene and cinematography -- is inseparable from thematic content, or what films are about. For example, the representation of Japanese culture in Rashomon cannot be separated from that film’s use of storytelling, editing and cinematography. Although this course is web delivered, it is neither automated nor self-paced. You are expected to engage in all “Learning Tasks.” To access the class web site, you can use your personal computer, one in the library, and/or the computer labs at ASU. Check the “Resources” section of the class web site for a list of these labs and their hours of operation. Readings: There is one required book for the class, the Pearson FMS 100 Introduction to Film Reader by Aaron Baker, which can be purchased at the ASU Bookstore or directly from Pearson. All the required readings for this course can be found in this Pearson reader. Read the articles carefully and on time -- by class time for each lesson -- as they form the basis of the online eBoard discussions, critical essays, and the final exam. You will not be able to pass the final exam if you do not stay up on the readings for the class. Screenings: You are responsible for screening one film per lesson. The specific titles are listed in the Learning Tasks, under each lesson. You can purchase the t