This course will look at the representation of the city in Asian cinema. It will explore links between urban and cinematic space across a range of thematic, historical, and cultural concerns. We will watch a wide range of films from China, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, India, Philippines, and Singapore--and learn to critically examine the ways in which cinema becomes an innovative and powerful archive of urban life as it engages with the events and experiences that shape the cultural, social, and political realities of the past, present, and future in Asia.
The course is open to all sophomores including non-film minors and non-film majors at Wesleyan. No previous experience in Film is required. Among other assignments like videographic criticism, students will also have an opportunity to make short city films using their phone-cameras and readily available editing software as an option for their final class projects. |