module specification

This module introduces students to the history of film and television from 1895 to the present.

It explores key developments, movements and trends in countries such as Britain, France, Russia, Italy, Japan, Sweden, Japan and America, including the ‘cinema of attractions’; the emergence of narrative cinema; stardom; the development of sound; film as propaganda; the Hollywood studio system; animation and European art cinema. Specific case-study and examples will be used to examine the history of film and television within broader cultural, industrial, political and social contexts. Attention is primarily given to feature films, but documentary and experimental films in both feature and short-length will also be screened and considered.

N/A

 The module provides an overview of some key developments in film and television history which will be examined in their broader cultural, industrial, political and social contexts. LO1-2

The module also examines where relevant aesthetic and formal features including editing, mise en scene, sound, narrative, non-narrative and generic characteristics.  LO1-4

The first part of the module introduces students to the history of film and television from 1895 to the present. It explores key developments, movements and trends in countries such as Britain, Italy, France, Japan, Germany, Sweden and America, including the ‘cinema of attractions’; the emergence of narrative cinema; stardom; the development of the sound film; film as propaganda; the Hollywood studio system; animation and European art cinema. LO1-4

The second part of the module focuses on the history of film and television from the mid-twentieth century to the present. It explores key developments, movements and trends in countries such as Britain, Italy, France, Japan, Germany, Sweden and America. LO1-4

Learning and teaching strategy for this module include lectures, seminars and screenings as well as blended online learning. This module introduces key academic skills, such as biographical, historical research and group work. These skills are embedded at each stage of the module, firstly in the development of a group presentation, secondly in the compiling of a bibliography and finally in the writing of an essay. Formative and summative feedback is provided after each coursework, in written form on WebLearn, by email or in person after an individual appointment.

On successful completion of this module the student will be able to:

LO1: Understand and analyse film texts within their context of production.

LO2: Deploy accurately established models of analysis in the field of film history.

LO3: Manage their own learning and make use of scholarly reviews and primary sources appropriate to the subject.

LO4: Exhibit skills of oral presentation, group work and reflexivity through the seminar process and course work.

 On this module, all assessments have a formative element:

The learning reflection is a formative assignment provides an opportunity for personal development as students are able to reflect on and develop their learning in conjunction with tutor feedback.

The second assessment encourages study and research skills which they need to carry out throughout the course and in their final assignment.

 Identify core and additional reading

Liaise with Library Services to confirm availability of on-line licenses in academic year

Where possible, the most current version of reading materials is used during the delivery of this module.  Comprehensive reading lists are provided to students in their handbooks.  Reading Lists will be updated annually.

Core Text:

Robert C. Allen, Film History: Theory and Practice (New York and London: McGraw Hill-Hill, 1985)
David Bordwell and Kristin Thompson, Film History: an Introduction (Boston: McGraw Hill, 2010).
David Bordwell, On the History of Film Style (Cam. Mass. and London: Cambridge University Press Paul, 2007).
Pam Cook (ed.), The Cinema Book, Third Edition (London: BFI, 2007).
Geoffrey Nowell-Smith (ed.), The Oxford Guide to World Cinema (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1996).

Other Texts:

David A. Cook, A History of Narrative Film (New York and London: Norton, 1990).
Elizabeth Ezra (ed.), European Cinema (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004).
Peter Kramer and Lee Grieveson (eds.), The Silent Cinema Reader (London and New York: Routledge, 2004).

John Sedwick and Michael Pokorny, An Economic History of Film (London and New York: Routledge, 2005).