ARTH 2590 History of Film

Provides an overview of the history of film from its 19th century beginnings to the present day. The primary goal of this course is to give students a fundamental understanding of film history by covering various technical innovations, aesthetic developments, genre conventions, and filmmakers that have paved the way toward shaping the medium as it exists today. The course prepares students to comprehend, conceive, write about and discuss the cinema they experience from an historical perspective and prepares them to understand the broad sweep of the medium. In addition, the course: a. Examines how the Hollywood studio system formed and operated as an organized, sustainable industry b. Explores major international film movements such as German expressionism, Soviet montage, Italian neorealism and the French New Wave c. Exposes the student to methods of cinematic research d. Prepares the student for further advanced film studies
Credits: 3.0