The Aesthetics of Filmmaking

Catalog description

Introduces general students (other than FTV majors or FMS minors) to a greater appreciation of film art and the various generic and artistic approaches adopted by noteworthy filmmakers through the course of film history. Through film viewing, class discussion, readings, essay writing and creative responses, students will learn how formal choices in cinematography, production and sound design, screenwriting, and acting shape cinematic themes and atmosphere, while forging viewer identification and eliciting emotional response. Among readings will be those on introductory film theory, key works of film criticism, interviews with filmmakers, and scholarship on the aesthetics and ideological underpinnings within various film genres and in the work of selected filmmakers.