PELLISSIPPI STATE TECHNICAL COMMUNITY COLLEGE  MASTER SYLLABUS
INTRODUCTION TO FILM STUDIES HUM 2810
Class Hours: 3.0							Credit Hours: 3.0
Lab Hours: 0.0							Revised: Spring 05
Catalog Course Description:
		An overview of film history using selected world cinema feature films. Basic elements of film expression for understanding and analyzing narrative cinema. Some research is required.
Entry Level Standards:
		Students must be able to read and write at the college level.
Prerequisites:
		None
Textbook(s) and Other Reference Materials Basic to the Course:
		Text: Understanding Movies Films: in Media Center
I. Week/Unit/Topic Basis:
		Week				Topic
		1				Note: Different film genres may be studied each semester. The following schedule outlines the classic mystery film genre.  Introduction to course and syllabus - Best 100 films- approaches to film study  Detective/mystery/crime genre in films; Lumiere, Melies, Edison films; Homework: Read Understanding Movies, pages xi-17   Discuss Film Classification and Shots; Discuss factors in "Formalist Analysis of Classic Film Style "(handout); Screening:   Musketeers of Pig Alley  (1912, D.W. Griffith) 18 min.; Homework: Read Ch. 4 "Editing"
		2				Discuss Continuity and Cutting; "Hollywood Behind the Badge" (police, crime, mystery genre films); Schedule a  research paper; Homework: Read Ch. 3, "The Moving Camera"; Discuss 7 Moving Camera Shots, etc.; Screening: Sherlock Jr. (Buster Keaton, 1924) 48 min.; Homework: Read Ch. 1 "Light and Dark"
		3				Discuss value of light and sound in film;  Conventions of Classical Hollywood cinema; American film movements; "Visions of Light: The Art of Cinematography"; Homework: Read Ch. 5, "Sound"   Introduction to German Expressionist film, M   (Fritz Lang, 1931); Homework: Read Ch. 8, "Story"
		4				Discuss Narratology,  The Classical Paradigm; Discuss "Fifteen elements of Mise-en-Scene Analysis"; Review for Test 1   TEST ONE; Handout: Traits of Mystery Genre Films in The 39 Steps; Homework: Read all textbook references to Hitchcock.
		5				Oral research report on Alfred Hitchcock; The 39 Steps (Hitchcock, 1935); Homework: Read Ch. 2, "Mise-en-scene" and Ch. 12, "Citizen Kane"   Discuss reading; "Introduction to Citizen Kane" (30 min.); Oral research report (Orson Welles); Begin Citizen Kane (Orson Welles, 1941)
		6				Citizen Kane
		7				RKO 281, 1999 movie about Citizen Kane Discuss Citizen Kane and Classic Hollywood Style; Sight and Sound's List of 10 Greatest Films; Review for Test 2
		8				TEST TWO  Discuss Test 2 and Ch. 9; Intro to North by Northwest (Hitchcock, 1959)
		9				Finish and discuss North by Northwest; Homework: Read Ch. 6 "Acting"   Discuss Hollywood in Transition (WW II - early 60's); Technological changes in the 1950's; Reel Radicals
		10				Introduction to In the Heat of the Night (1967)   Discussion of In the Heat of the Night (1967); Homework: Read "Literary Adaptations"
		11				American Film Renaissance (early 1960's-1975); 3 types of literary adaptations; studio logos; Agatha Christie and characters in Murder on the Orient Express (1974) (viewed out of class) Review for TEST 3
		12				TEST 3 Who Framed Roger Rabbit? (1988) and American film after 1975; Homework: Read Ch. 3 "Mechanical Distortions of Movement"    Discuss animation in film and  Who Framed Roger Rabbit?
		13				Introduction to Silence of the Lambs (1991); Homework: Read Ch. 2, "Territorial Space and Proximic Patterns"   Discussion and handout on Silence of the Lambs; Homework: Read chapter 10, "Ideology."
		14				View and Discuss He Loves Me, He Loves Me Not (2003); review for final exam
		15				FINAL EXAM
II. Course Objectives*:
		A.			Develop an understanding and appreciation of human culture through directed study of selected films and through discussion. II.1, II.2, II.3
		B.			Encourage critical participation with specific aspects of film. II.1, II.2, II.3
		C.			Develop an understanding of the interrelationship between technological advances and the culture they enhance.  II.1, II.2, II.3
*Roman numerals after course objectives reference general education goals.
III. Instructional Processes*:
Students will:
		1.			Work in teams to discuss and analyze themes in films.  Communication Outcome, Humanities Outcome, History Outcome, Active Learning Strategy
		2.			Read assigned works and participate in class discussion. Communication Outcome  Active Learning Strategy
		3.			Develop research skills using and evaluating library and internet sources. Communication Outcome, Technological Literacy Outcome
		4.			Attend various cultural, historical, or educational opportunities on or off campus. Humanities Outcome, History Outcome, Social and Behavioral Sciences Outcome, Transitional Strategy
		5.			Internalize the work ethic by regularly attending class, being punctual, being dependable, cooperating with the teacher and other classmates, contributing to class discussion and projects, and acting in a professional manner while in class. Communication Outcome, Transitional Strategy
*Strategies and outcomes listed after instructional processes reference TBR’s goals for strengthening general education knowledge and skills, connecting coursework to experiences beyond the classroom, and encouraging students to take active and responsible roles in the educational process.
IV. Expectations for Student Performance*:
Upon successful completion of this course, the student should be able to:
		1.			Demonstrate an awareness of the contribution of film to the development of civilization.  A
		2.			Articulate and support personal opinion with specific reference to the primary works. B
		3.			Demonstrate knowledge of the basic values which support the tradition of the culture(s) presented. A
		4.			Analyze the effects of the historical context on specific aspects of human culture.  A, C
		5.			Study in depth one aspect of a film and write an analytical paper.  A,B
		6.			Write insightful, appropriately developed answers to essay test questions concerning the films studied.  B, C
*Letters after performance expectations reference the course objectives listed above.
V. Evaluation:
		A. Testing Procedures: 80% of grade
				Test 1  (20)    Test 2  (20)    Test 3  (20)    Test 4/FINAL  (20)   [Note: Tests will cover lectures, reading assignments, oral reports, handouts, and films}
		B. Laboratory Expectations:
			N/A
		C. Field Work: 10% of grade
			Research Paper/Oral Presentation (10) Analysis paper (10)
		D. Other Evaluation Methods:
			N/A
		E. Grading Scale:
			90-100 = A    86-89   = B+    80-85   = B    76-79   = C+    70-75   = C    60-69   = D
VI. Policies:
		A. Attendance Policy:
			Pellissippi State Technical Community College expects students to attend all scheduled instructional activities.  As a minimum, students in all courses must be present for at least 75 percent of their scheduled class and laboratory meetings in order to receive credit for the course (Pellissippi State Catalog).  Individual departments/programs/disciplines, with the approval of the vice president of Academic and Student Affairs, may have requirements that are more stringent.
		B. Academic Dishonesty:
			The instructor has the primary responsibility for control over classroom behavior and maintenance of academic integrity and can order the temporary removal or exclusion from the classroom of any student engaged in disruptive conduct or conduct in violation of the general rules and regulations of Pellissippi State.
	C. Accommodations for disabilities:
			If you need accommodation because of a disability, if you have emergency medical information to share, or if you need special arrangements in case the building must be evacuated, please inform the instructor immediately.  Privately after class or in the instructor's office. To request accommodations students must register with Services for Students with Disabilities: Goins 127 or 131, Phone: (865) 539-7153 or (865) 694-6751 Voice/TDD.