| Unit name | Introduction to Film and Television Studies |
|---|---|
| Unit code | DRAM10024 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | C/4 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 1 (weeks 1 - 12) |
| Unit director | Dr. Pete Falconer |
| Open unit status | Open |
| Pre-requisites |
none |
| Co-requisites |
none |
| School/department | Department of Film and Television |
| Faculty | Faculty of Arts |
In this unit, students examine a range of film and television forms in order to develop skills in using key terms and analytical approaches in the study of film and television. This unit will develop the understanding and appreciation of how film and television use formal elements such as editing, mise-en-scene and cinematography to generate meanings and affects. Students will also explore how forms such as genre and narrative are constructed and used. Lectures will provide introductions to fundamental areas of analysis, such as particular aspects of film aesthetics, seminars will develop the understanding of these through discussion and application, and screenings will present films and television programmes as case studies.
On successful completion of this unit, students will be able to:
1. analyse how the aesthetic and formal qualities of film or television texts generate understandings, meanings and affects;
2. examine and respond to a range of works (in film and television) which generate different kinds of aesthetic pleasures;
3. engage critically with major thinkers, debates and intellectual paradigms within film and television studies and put them to productive use;
4. apply knowledge and understanding of how film genres and narratives function and can be analysed;
5. articulate and illustrate a cogent argument using evidence drawn from the close reading of filmic or televisual texts;
6. employ discipline-specific vocabularies and approaches in their analyses of film television texts.
1-hour weekly lecture, 1-hour weekly seminar, 3-hour weekly screening (with 15 minute introduction)
1000 word close analysis (25%) ILO 1-2, 5-6
1000 word close analysis (25%) ILO 1-2, 5-6
2000 word essay (50%) ILO 1, 3-6
Bordwell, D. and Thompson, K. (1976 and any subsequent editions), Film Art: an Introduction, New York and London: McGraw-Hill.
Braudy, L. and Cohen, M. (2004) Film Theory and Criticism: Introductory Readings, New York: Oxford University Press.
Cook, P. (1985 and 1999 editions), The Cinema Book, London, British Film Institute.
Corrigan, T. (2009) A Short Guide to Writing About Film, London: Longman.
Gibbs, J. (2001) Mise-en-Scène: Film Style and Interpretation, London: Wallflower.
Perkins, V. F. (1993) Film as Film, London: Da Capo Press.
