American Film History: Origins to 1960

Catalog description

Examines major technological and aesthetic developments in American cinema as it grew from the days of one-reel silent shorts exhibited in storefront theaters through the days of studio productions exhibited in lavish picture palaces and featuring iconic stars the system manufactured and promoted. From the inception of sound and color, to the later development of lightweight equipment that freed filmmakers from the confines of the studio, from the “golden age” to the gradual decline of the Hollywood studio system in the 1950s, we will study the lasting genres that grew out of the system, the filmmakers who flourished and those who rebelled against the system, and the ground-breaking films that established the American film industry as a dominant force within the world. ENG 285 is crosslisted with FMS 252 .