Film & Media Studies

This course examines a selection of twentieth-century Spanish films, using cinema as a lens to explore the complex and ever-evolving concept of Spanish national identity. From the veiled satire in the early years of Franco's dictatorship to the vibrant self-expression of the post-Franco era, we will explore how filmmakers have grappled with themes of identity, tradition, regionality, gender, and social change.

This course provides an overview of the major branches of mass media in the dominant European markets, with a focus on the transition from traditional mass media to digital media. After an introduction to media history, theories, and current research, the course examines specific industries such as television, radio, music, film, and print. Theories and models of mass communication are introduced and analyzed against their practical application in the markets studied in the course. Students compare how political and regulatory influences impact different sectors of the media in several European countries. The course is taught using a mix of lectures, case study discussions, student presentations, and site visits.

While Japan used to dominate the Asian gaming landscape, its East Asian and Southeast Asian neighbors have since developed into major gaming hubs with distinctive characteristics. This course examines the formative influence of Japanese games throughout East and Southeast Asia, studies the rise of South Korea and China as centers for online gaming and esports, and surveys the emergence of robust national videogame industries in numerous Southeast Asian nations.

This course covers principles of composition and specific techniques for developing language in design. Students learn representation techniques including representation in 2D, 3D, space and time. Practices include analog and digital images, photographic images, principles of audiovisual language, image creation and processing, introduction to digital sound and audio, laboratory theory and practice, and experimental processes. Students also work on their development of ethical and socio-environmental responsibility.

This course adopts a teaching model that combines "theory and practice" as well as "technology and art", covering core contents such as the full process technology of audio-visual content production and camera skills. Through three forms of theoretical instruction, practical exercises and expert lectures, it systematically explains the technical principles and applications of audio-visual technology, 4K/HDR production, live streaming, studio production, etc., and strengthens practical abilities such as shooting, lighting and editing. Through diversified teaching forms, it systematically cultivates students' comprehensive abilities in the field of audio-visual technology.

The contemporary era is marked both by a proliferation of screens through which we access ‘content’, as well as fundamental and ongoing shifts in the media industries, largely driven by digital innovation. Given this context, this course provides students with a scholarly understanding of a range of screen media, past and present, in order to better comprehend continuities and disruptions. Students examine how formal elements combine to create meaning in screen texts and they are introduced to a wide array of critical terms through which they will develop their own analyses. Through a number of detailed case studies encompassing film, television as well as emergent “new media” forms, the course provides a foundation of methods and skills for researching and studying screen media in varied forms and contexts.

This course is part of the Laurea Magistrale degree program and is intended for advanced level students. Enrollment is by permission of the instructor. The student is expected to understand the functions and processes of transformations within the media industries and the innovations connected to new digital technologies applied to creative industries.

The digital revolution has fundamentally reshaped our world, transforming how we create, distribute, and consume everything from news and entertainment to social connections. This course is an in-depth exploration of the economic principles and models that govern this new landscape. The course is focused on two of the most important media industries, music and video. Each of them is introduced and analyzed in the value chain, all the relevant typologies of players, and how the technological evolution and the changes in consumer habits are influencing the markets’ dynamics and their structure.

This course explores various facets of modern Japanese society and culture, including family, education, gender, work, and life cycle through readings and (feature) films. The course considers the relationship between cinema and society, critically analyzing a body of film texts from the contexts of their production and reception, and considers what one can -- and how one can -- learn about any society through its feature films. Each semester focuses on different themes. 

Media management is a basic course in the School of Journalism. Through the study and discussion of this course, students will understand that media not only concerns content production, but also is an important commercial organization that needs to continuously generate profits to maintain the large-scale operation of the media. Media organizations are complex systems that require effective internal and external management as well as the establishment of a sound profit model. In today's Internet era, media organizations are undergoing a huge transformation, and the course needs to keep pace with the times and adapt to the changes of the era.

This course presents a history of music in film by examining the development of key trends and significant composers from the "silent" era to the present day. It considers the place of music, and the soundtrack more generally, in the film production process and in terms of the relationship between composer and director. A focus on Hollywood, with its proclivity for bespoke orchestral scores, are supplemented by investigating a range of other styles (e.g. pop, jazz, electronica) and international (primarily European) examples. It provides an overview of the field while alighting upon case studies, for which fundamental theoretical concepts are introduced. Major mainstream film composers are featured alongside more experimental recent practitioners and composers better known for their work in the concert hall.