CS4265 GLOBAL FILM CULTURES: HOLLYWOOD & THE WEST

In the years following its emergence in the 1890s, motion picture quickly became an enormously popular art form, as well as a large and lucrative industry. Focusing on the American and European context, Global Film Cultures: Hollywood and the West will examine the relationship between the artistic and industrial sides of the film, as well its cultural impact and the implications of its status as a 'mass' art. By focusing substantially on the history, movements, and new forms and aesthetics of both Hollywood and European cinema, this module examines on moments in cinema's development that are particularly relevant from a historical perspective, be it aesthetic, social, technological and economic. Throughout the semester you will learn the origins of the Hollywood studio system, its development of key genres, its ideological functions, and what it can tell us about the role of popular culture more broadly in the United States and Europe during the twentieth century by screenings, readings, and discussions of such vital moments in film history; classical Hollywood cinema, German Expressionism, French avant-garde, Italian neo-realism, and New American Cinema in the 1970s. It is not necessary for you to have prior knowledge of cinema studies, and all are welcome.