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FILMSTUD 110: Science Fiction Cinema (FILMSTUD 310)

Science fiction film's sense of wonder depends upon the development and revelation of new ways of seeing. The American science fiction film emphasizes the fundamental activity of human perception, its relation to bodily experience and the exploration of other worlds, new cities, and other modes of being, in such new technological spaces as the cyberspaces of the information age. It is perhaps the Hollywood genre most directly concerned with the essence of cinema itself.
Terms: Aut | Units: 4 | UG Reqs: GER:DB-Hum, WAY-A-II
Instructors: ; Bukatman, S. (PI)

FILMSTUD 110N: Darkness in Light: The Filmic Imagination of Horror

Preference to freshmen. From its beginnings, the cinema evinced an affinity with the phantom realm of specters, ghosts, and supernatural beings. Not only does horror have deep and diverse roots in the international history of film; it emerges as a trope of film itself, as a medium of shadows, dematerialized presence, life drained of substance. Overview of filmic imaginations of horror with a focus on the U.S., Europe, and Japan. Theories of horror, from the fantastic to the uncanny; unpacking these in light of key moments in the genre's development. The merits of vampires versus zombies. Ongoing debates through the lens of horror about cinematic representation, from Andre Bazin's idea of the mummy complex to Linda Williams' thesis of body genres to Jeffrey Sconce's notion of haunted media. Introduction to film analysis and interpretation; no prior experience in film studies required. Required weekly screening.
Terms: Spr | Units: 3 | UG Reqs: WAY-A-II
Instructors: ; Ma, J. (PI)
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