Introduction To Film And Media Studies (FMST 01) Syllabus

Introduction To Film And Media Studies course description: The invention of cinema at the end of the 19th century and the rapid developments of digital technologies most noticeable in our increased use of social networking tools on mini-screens mark a period in which communications technology shaped and shape our world and moving images evolved from the photographic to the digital. This course explores the specificity, history, and function of media forms, focusing on the language of cinema and the critical repertoire of film/media theories. As an art, a text, a technology, a commercial product, a psychological experience, and a social practice, cinema presents fascinating contradictions for study. This lecture/discussion course, intended as a general introduction and as the first credit towards a minor or a major in Film and Media Studies, has two basic goals. First, it will develop skills in film analysis. You will become fluent in the vocabulary of film form and learn to construct an argument about what a film\u27s sounds and images mean and how it structures and achieves its meanings. Second, it will provide an introduction to the theories, methods, and concerns of film and media studies as a discipline, preparing you for further work in the field. The course will emphasize specific aspects of film style and narrative form through analysis of scenes from the films screened each week and from a range of outside examples. Each week will introduce historical, cultural and theoretical topics relevant to the films shown while focusing on the films\u27 self-reflexivity of their medium, and considering the politics of image-making from the postwar period to today

GIF-Based Shot By Shot Analysis

In this assignment, students in Introduction to Film and Media Studies performed shot-by-shot analysis of a film scene using GIF (Graphics Interchange Format) images in place of traditional short-by- shot analysis formats. Why use GIFS? Because they not only force students to deconstruct a film scene into its segmented layers of time and place, into individual shots and even frames (using Photoshop software, in this case), but also make the semiotic codes (e.g. use of lighting, camera distance) apparent through the repetition of movement in the completed GIF. The complete GIF can be embedded in an essay on a course site, allowing the reader to compare interpretations and analysis with the moving image, not just the still of a screen capture. This assignment was supported by a workshop in which students learned the step by step process of creating GIFs before being asked to create their own

Rudolf Serkin: A Life

Pianist Rudolf Serkin, a virtuosic solo performer and chamber musician, captivated music lovers the world over for much of the twentieth century. Although he acquired a large and devoted public following, Serkin preferred to keep out of the spotlight, instead directing attention toward the music he loved. Dedicated to disseminating European classical music in America, Serkin became a committed teacher and director of major musical institutions. Rudolf Serkin: A Life, the first biography of this influential figure, offers an insightful analysis of Serkin\u27s role in shaping American musical values and provides a rare glimpse into the life story of this intense performer and elusive man