Film 2700: History of Motion Pictures (Spring 2011, CRN: 10569)

Class: TTh 4:00pm-5:15pm, GCB 300 Instructor: Email: Website: Mailbox: Drew Ayers dayers2@gsu.edu www.drewayers.com 6th Floor, One Park Place Office: 840E, One Park Place Office Hours: TTh 2:00pm-4:00pm and by appt. (ALWAYS email first)

N.B. 1) The course website and uLearn will reflect updates to the course, changes in the syllabus, assignments, etc. Be sure to check them regularly. The course syllabus provides a general plan for the course; deviations may be necessary. 2) Your constructive assessment of this course plays an indispensable role in shaping education at Georgia State University. Upon completing the course, please take the time to fill out the online course evaluation. Course Description This course examines the history of the cinema as institution, art form, industry, and sociocultural phenomenon. Much of the course content necessarily focuses upon American film history due to the dominance of Hollywood production here and abroad, but the textbook also provides substantial examples of the impressive vitality and innovation within the film industry outside of the U.S. borders. Scholars approach film history from varied vantage points, including a focus upon aesthetics, technical innovation, forms of narration, and sociocultural impact. Finally, we will explore why the cinema has been described as the eye of the century for being a primary technological and artistic form that has not only shown the 20th century what to see but also how to see. Course Objectives By the end of the course, students will be able to: Understand film as the product of various (and sometimes competing) historical forces Understand film from its history as an aesthetic, technological, industrial, narrative, and socio-cultural form Conduct close analysis of film clips Define terms/concepts fundamental to film studies Conduct research specific to film studies Required Texts 1) Thompson, Kristin and David Bordwell. Film History: An Introduction. 3rd edition. a. Note: This is a custom edition for Georgia State University (Available at the GSU bookstores) 2) Supplemental readings on uLearn 3) Netflix Account: Access to the Watch Instantly feature (see Screenings section below) 4) Clips on YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/user/drewayers)

2 Attendance and Participation This is a large lecture class, and as such, I will not be taking attendance daily. Nevertheless, I expect and encourage students to attend class on a regular basis. As exams will pull from both the textbook and lectures in class, students will struggle with the exam should they miss many class sessions. (Please be aware that PowerPoint slides and lecture notes will not be posted to uLearn or emailed if you miss class. It is your responsibility to obtain notes from a classmate.) Toward that end, I will quiz students on the reading material and the required screening each week of the semester, except for the first. For more about the quizzes, see the Quiz section below. If you have an ongoing situation that requires special consideration, please discuss this with me at the beginning of the semester. Finally, please be aware that disruptive behavior will not be tolerated. Disruptive behavior includes but is not limited to: use of cell phones, texting, use of laptops for activities other than notetaking, sleeping, having side conversations with other students in class, coming in late or leaving early, or speaking to other students or your instructor in an inappropriate way. You are expected to be on time, turn all cell phones off during class, and pay attention to class lecture and discussion. Though you might not always agree with the comments or ideas expressed in the class, you are expected to consider ideas thoughtfully and respond respectfully. Disruptive behavior may result in a student being asked to leave class. Dropping, Incompletes, Withdrawals It is your responsibility to drop the class if you deem necessary. Incompletes may be given to a student who for nonacademic reasons beyond his or her control is unable to complete the requirements of this course. An incomplete may be assigned for this course if a student has completed most of the major assignments of the course with a passing grade. Incompletes are rare. There is a new withdrawal policy for all undergraduates starting Fall 2006: All undergraduates are allowed to withdraw with a grade of W a maximum of six times in their entire careers at Georgia State. Students who exceed the limit will automatically receive a grade of WF which will count as an F for GPA calculations. Withdrawals taken before Fall 2006 will not count against the limit and neither will hardship withdrawals, withdrawals at other institutions or withdrawals after the midpoint. Withdrawals after the semester midpoint are automatically given a grade of WF. Additional Sources of Academic Support The University offers a range of support services for students. Among the resources available are: The Writing Studio (http://www.writingstudio.gsu.edu/) Provides advice and tutoring in composition Student Support Services (http://www.gsu.edu/oeo/sss.html) Offers a variety of services, including tutoring, career counseling, and support groups Special Accommodations Students who wish to request accommodation for a disability may do so by registering with the Office of Disability Services (http://www2.gsu.edu/~wwwods/). Students may only be

3 accommodated upon issuance by the Office of Disability Services of a signed Accommodation Plan and are responsible for providing a copy of that plan to instructors of all classes in which accommodations are sought. Assignments 1) Screenings: Throughout the semester, you will be required to view the 11 films listed on the syllabus. Since we do not have a reserved screening time for the class, you will need to watch these films on your own. All of the films are available via streaming on Netflix or available through the library media center reserves (Library North 1). All students are asked to buy a subscription to Netflix (the lowest cost per month is $7.99), which will allow students to view films instantly from any computer with Internet access. The films are a fundamental part of the course and will comprise a large part of our discussions. Viewing these films is mandatory, and even if you have already seen the films, you should plan to view them again before the class in which we are discussing them. It is likely that we will view films that contain controversial social and political content, profanity, nudity, and/or issues that may be contrary to some personal beliefs. If you object to watching and/or discussing such material, you should consider withdrawing from the course. 2) Quizzes: Each week I will ask students to complete short quizzes that will cover the reading material, film clips viewed in class, and the films students are asked to view in their entirety. These quizzes will sometimes be multiple choice and at other times I will ask you to answer an essay question that connects the readings to the films you are required to see outside of class. These quizzes should not be difficult for any student who has completed the assignments. I will drop the three lowest quiz grades at the end of the semester. Any missed quiz grades above three will count as a zero. The quizzes are worth 10% of your final grade. If you are not present in class for a quiz, you have lost the opportunity to take that quiz. I do not offer make up quizzes. 3) Exams: Students will complete three exams over the course of the semester. Exams will be in a multiple-choice format and will examine material covered in class discussion, the textbook, the class screenings, and the film clips viewed in class. Students who miss an exam will receive a zero on that exam unless an approved written excuse is presented within one week of the absence and exam date. Exam #1 is on Tuesday, February 15, Exam #2 is on Tuesday, March 29, and Exam #3 is during our finals period (4:15-6:45) on Thursday, April 28. Each exam is worth 25% of your final grade. 4) Final Project: Each student will be asked to complete a historical research project, incorporating scholarly research. See pages 9 and 10 of this syllabus for more detailed information. The final project is due on the last day of class (Thursday, April 21) and is worth 15% of your final grade. Projects submitted after the due date will be deducted by one letter grade for each day they are late. Grading Quizzes: Exam #1: Exam #2: Exam #3: Final Project: 10% 25% 25% 25% 15%

Grading Breakdown A+ (100-97); A (96-94); A- (93-90); B+ (89-87); B (86-84); B- (83-80); C+ (79-77); C (76-74); C- (73-70); D+ (69-67); D (66-64); D- (63-60); F (59-0)

Regarding Scholastic Dishonesty: I take this matter very seriously and will report any suspected cases of academic dishonesty to the Office of Judicial Affairs. For details on the Universitys policy on Academic Honesty, please consult the Offices website at http://www2.gsu.edu/~wwwdos/judicial.html or the Policy on Academic Honesty in the Faculty Handbook (section 409) at http://www2.gsu.edu/~wwwfhb/fhb.html. The policy prohibits plagiarism, cheating on examinations, unauthorized collaboration, falsification, and multiple submissions. The process by which the university handles academic misconduct cases is also very specifically spelled out in the policy. Violation of the policy may result in failing the class as well as disciplinary sanctions. The internet makes it easy to plagiarize, but also easy to track down plagiarism If you can google it, I can google it. Bottom line: Dont plagiarize its not worth it. Cite all your sources, put all direct quotations in quotation marks, and clearly note when you are paraphrasing other authors work.

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GSU Policy on Academic Honesty REPRINTED FROM THE FACULTY HANDBOOK | July 2010 Introduction As members of the academic community, students are expected to recognize and uphold standards of intellectual and academic integrity. The university assumes as a basic and minimum standard of conduct in academic matters that students be honest and that they submit for credit only the products of their own efforts. Both the ideals of scholarship and the need for fairness require that all dishonest work be rejected as a basis for academic credit. They also require that students refrain from any and all forms of dishonorable or unethical conduct related to their academic work. The university's policy on academic honesty is published in the Faculty Affairs Handbook and the On Campus: The Undergraduate CoCurricular Affairs Handbook and is available to all members of the university community. The policy represents a core value of the university and all members of the university community are responsible for abiding by its tenets. Lack of knowledge of this policy is not an acceptable defense to any charge of academic dishonesty. All members of the academic community -- students, faculty, and staff -- are expected to report violations of these standards of academic conduct to the appropriate authorities. The procedures for such reporting are on file in the offices of the deans of each college, the office of the dean of students, and the office of the provost. In an effort to foster an environment of academic integrity and to prevent academic dishonesty, students are expected to discuss with faculty the expectations regarding course assignments and standards of conduct. Students are encouraged to discuss freely with faculty, academic advisors, and other members of the university community any questions pertaining to the provisions of this policy. In addition, students are encouraged to avail themselves of programs in establishing personal standards and ethics offered through the university's Counseling Center. Definitions and Examples The examples and definitions given below are intended to clarify the standards by which academic honesty and academically honorable conduct are to be judged. The list is merely illustrative of the kinds of infractions that may occur, and it is not intended to be exhaustive. Moreover, the definitions and examples suggest conditions under which unacceptable behavior of the indicated types normally occurs; however, there may be unusual cases that fall outside these conditions which also will be judged unacceptable by the academic community. A. Plagiarism: Plagiarism is presenting another person's work as one's own. Plagiarism includes any paraphrasing or summarizing of the works of another person without acknowledgment, including the submitting of another student's work as one's own. Plagiarism frequently involves a failure to acknowledge in the text, notes, or footnotes the quotation of the paragraphs, sentences, or even a few phrases written or spoken by someone else. The submission of research or completed papers or projects by someone else is plagiarism, as is the unacknowledged use of research sources gathered by someone else when that use is specifically forbidden by the faculty member. Failure to indicate the extent and nature of one's reliance on other sources is also a form of plagiarism. Any work, in whole or in part, taken from the Internet or other computer-based resource without properly referencing the source (for example, the URL) is considered plagiarism. A complete reference is required in order that all parties may locate and view the original source. Finally, there may be forms of plagiarism that are unique to an individual discipline or course, examples of which should be provided in advance by the faculty member. The student is responsible for understanding the legitimate use of sources, the appropriate ways of acknowledging academic, scholarly or creative indebtedness, and the consequences of violating this responsibility. B. Cheating on Examinations: Cheating on examinations involves giving or receiving unauthorized help before, during, or after an examination. Examples of unauthorized help include the use of notes, computer based resources, texts, or "crib sheets" during an examination (unless specifically approved by the faculty member), or sharing information with another student during an examination (unless specifically approved by the faculty member). Other examples include intentionally allowing another student to view one's own examination and collaboration before or after an examination if such collaboration is specifically forbidden by the faculty member. C. Unauthorized Collaboration: Submission for academic credit of a work product, or a part thereof, represented as its being one's own effort, which has been developed in substantial collaboration with another person or source, or computer-based resource, is a violation of academic honesty. It is also a violation of academic honesty knowingly to provide such assistance. Collaborative work specifically authorized by a faculty member is allowed. D. Falsification: It is a violation of academic honesty to misrepresent material or fabricate information in an academic exercise, assignment or proceeding (e.g., false or misleading citation of sources, the falsification of the results of experiments or of computer data, false or misleading information in an academic context in order to gain an unfair advantage). E. Multiple Submissions: It is a violation of academic honesty to submit substantial portions of the same work for credit more than once without the explicit consent of the faculty member(s) to whom the material is submitted for additional credit. In cases in which there is a natural development of research or knowledge in a sequence of courses, use of prior work may be desirable, even required; however the student is responsible for indicating in writing, as a part of such use, that the current work submitted for credit is cumulative in nature.

Daily Schedule
The Invention and Early Years of the Cinema, 1880s-1904 1/18 Topic: Course Introduction; Inventors and Tinkerers Reading: Course Syllabus (on uLearn) 1/20 Topic: Reading: Early Exhibition and the Beginnings of Narrative Chapter 1

The International Expansion of the Cinema, 1905-1912 1/25 Topic: Film Production in America and Abroad Reading: Chapter 2 1/27 Topic: Reading: Screening: Film Style and Early Comedy Maland, A Star is Born (uLearn) Slapstick Masters: Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton, Monty Banks, Laurel & Hardy (Compilation, 1917)

National Cinemas, Hollywood Classicism, and World War I, 1913-1919 2/1 Topic: The Rise of National Cinemas Reading: Chapter 3 2/3 Topic: Reading: Screening: The Classical Hollywood Cinema Marchetti, The Rape Fantasy (uLearn) Broken Blossoms (Griffith, 1918) German Expressionism Chapter 4 Historical and Industrial Contexts Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror (Murnau, 1922)

Germany in the 1920s 2/8 Topic: Reading: 2/10 2/15 Topic: Screening: EXAM #1

Soviet Cinema in the 1920s 2/17 Topic: Soviet Montage Cinema Reading: Chapter 5 2/22 Topic: Reading: Screening: Historical and Industrial Contexts Eisenstein, Collision of Ideas (uLearn) Kuleshov, The Origins of Montage (uLearn) Man With the Movie Camera (Vertov, 1929)

7 France: Poetic Realism, The Popular Front, and The Occupation, 1930-1945 2/24 Topic: Historical and Industrial Context and Style Reading: Chapter 8 3/1 3/3 NO CLASS SPRING BREAK NO CLASS SPRING BREAK

The Introduction of Sound and The Hollywood Studio System, 1930-1945 3/8 Topic: Sound and The New Structure of the Film Industry Reading: Chapter 6 and 7 3/10 Topic: Researching Film Nedda Ahmed will conduct a presentation on GSU Library resources A Fordist Mode of Production: Exhibition, Style, and Genre The Production Code of 1930 (uLearn) Maltby, Casablanca and the PCA (uLearn) His Girl Friday (Hawks, 1940)

3/15

Topic: Reading: Screening:

American Cinema in the Postwar Era, 1945-1960 3/17 Topic: The Decline of the Hollywood Studio System Reading: Chapter 9 3/22 Topic: Reading: Screening: The Rise of the Independents: Style and Exhibition Schrader, Notes on Film Noir (uLearn) The Killing (Kubrick, 1956)

Postwar European Cinema: Neorealism and its Context, 1945-1959 3/24 Topic: Postwar Film Industry and Culture; Italian Neorealism Reading: Chapter 10 Zavattini, Some Ideas On The Cinema (uLearn) Screening: Umberto D. (De Sica, 1952) 3/29 EXAM #2

New Waves and Young Cinemas, 1958-1967 3/31 Topic: New Waves and Young Cinemas, 1958-1967 Reading: Chapter 12 Screening: Breathless (Godard, 1960) Postwar Developing World Cinemas 4/5 Topic: Postwar Cinema Beyond the West, 1945-1959 Reading: Chapter 11 and 15

8 4/7 Topic: Reading: Screening: A Developing World: Cinemas Since 1970 Solanas and Gettino, Towards a Third Cinema (uLearn) Black Girl (Sembne, 1966)

Hollywoods Fall and Rise: 1960-1980 4/12 Topic: Crisis in the Hollywood Film Industry Reading: Chapter 14 4/14 Topic: Screening: The New Hollywood Cinema, Part I Bonnie and Clyde (Penn, 1967)

American Cinema and the Entertainment Economy: The 1980s and After 4/19 Topic: Blockbusters, Conglomeration, and Consolidation Reading: Chapter 16 4/21 Topic: The New Hollywood Cinema, Part II Screening: Top Gun (Scott, 1986) Assignment: Final Project Due Exam #3 from 4:15pm-6:45pm

4/28

9 Final Project Description This project asks students to complete a historical research project. Though I am not asking you to write a paper, you will complete research as you would for a written essay. I have broken down the tasks that will fulfill the expectations for this assignment below in some detail. 1) You should select two films as the focus for your project. One film must have been released pre-1950. The second film must have been released post-1950. On page 10, you will find a list of films from which you should choose. 2) Before you watch each film, type a short paragraph that explains what your expectations are for that film. For example, it may be useful to explain why you picked this film. What have you heard about it before viewing? Do you expect it to be exciting? Boring? Profound? For this section, you need write only 3-5 sentences. 3) After you watch each film, type up your evaluation of the film. Did the film fail to meet your expectations? Did it exceed your expectations? Whatever your answer, try to explain what about the film met or did not meet your expectations. Again, for this section, you need to write only 3-5 sentences. 4) For each film, identify and transcribe the following information (imdb.com is a great resource): a. Release date b. Director c. Genre (possible options include drama, comedy, romance, melodrama, gangster film, film noir, war film, western). Sometimes genres overlap you can enter more than one answer here. d. Awards won, if any 5) For the post-1950 film only, identify and transcribe the following information: a. Box office total (either U.S. or global total). (boxofficemojo.com is my recommended resource) 6) For each film, please find and print two film reviews. These reviews must be contemporary with the films original release. For example, if you select The General, you will need to find a film review written in the late 1920s. A film review of The General written by Roger Ebert in the 1990s will not count for credit. We will review research methods for finding historical film reviews. Also include a bibliographic citation for the film reviews in the following format: a. Author last name, author first name. Name of film. Newspaper/Magazine Title. Date (Day Month Year). Page number. 7) For each film, find and print the first four pages of a scholarly essay from an academic journal. Also include a bibliographic citation for this essay in the following format: a. Author last name, author first name. Article title. Journal title. Journal Volume Number (Year of publication): page numbers. Compile all the above information in one packet (you can simply staple or paperclip all the pages no folder or report cover necessary) to turn in on the final day of class, Thursday, April 21.

10 Final Project Film List Please choose one film from each of the following sections: Section 1: Films pre-1950 Cecil B. DeMille D.W. Griffith Lois Weber Buster Keaton F.W. Murnau Fritz Lang Charlie Chaplin Lloyd Bacon Frank Capra Leni Riefenstahl King Vidor Victor Fleming Walt Disney Orson Welles John Huston Michael Curtiz Carol Reed Section 2: Films post-1950 Akira Kurosawa Elia Kazan John Ford Alfred Hitchcock Orson Welles Billy Wilder Douglas Sirk Francois Truffaut Federico Fellini Richard Lester Robert Wise Sergio Leone Mike Nichols Stuart Rosenberg Sam Peckinpah Dennis Hopper Francis Ford Coppola George Lucas Steven Spielberg Woody Allen The Cheat (1915) Cleopatra (1934) The Birth of a Nation (1915) The Blot (1921) The General (1927) Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans (1927) M (1931) City Lights (1931) Footlight Parade (1933) It Happened One Night (1934) Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939) Triumph of the Will (1935) Stella Dallas (1937) Gone with the Wind (1939) Fantasia (1940) Citizen Kane (1941) The Maltese Falcon (1941) Casablanca (1942) Mildred Pierce (1945) The Third Man (1949) Rashomon (1950) On the Waterfront (1954) The Searchers (1956) Vertigo (1958) Touch of Evil (1958) Some Like It Hot (1959) Imitation of Life (1959) The 400 Blows (1959) La dolce vita (1960) A Hard Days Night (1964) The Sound of Music (1965) The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966) The Graduate (1967) Cool Hand Luke (1967) The Wild Bunch (1969) Easy Rider (1969) The Godfather (1972) American Graffiti (1973) Jaws (1975) Annie Hall (1977)