Film & Media Studies

This course examines how the audiovisual ecosystem has changed over the last decade. It covers new trends and aesthetics, digital film & television, music, audio and online video, video games, fake news, and filter bubbles.

This course examines the nature and development of television fiction and its interaction with media culture. It analyzes the evolution of television fiction from an international perspective and the mutations that occur in the production of contemporary fiction. Case study of the course: "WandaVision" (Disney+: 2021).

European film industries have consistently produced popular films and yet the most common perception of European cinema is one of arthouse production. This course redresses this misperception. Putting the terms "popular" and "European" together illuminates them both. "Popular" means different things in different countries: it may refer to box office success, or local traditions, or particular class or niche tastes. Sometimes what is "popular" is said to express the character of a nation, while at other times it is seen as a corruption of such a national identity. This course address many facets of what we refer to today as "Popular European Cinema." The course's methodologies reflect the rubric's multifariousness. It may be taught through a comparative approach, looking at one genre, such as melodrama or comedy, across several countries, or considering the effect of different institutional and funding contexts. It may also take a trans-national approach, looking at co-productions or stars who worked and were popular in a number of European countries. 

This course examines the theory and design of mixed reality production for application in creative and industry contexts, including the creative arts, digital storytelling, documentaries and journalism.

The course analyzes films which center on Berlin or which are set in Berlin. Students consider the changes seen in cityscape and everyday life over the last 100 years, but also the city’s social and political transformation. The films are also analyzed for their portrayal of the most important stages of German history. The course begins with studying films from the Weimar Republic, through postwar films from East and West Germany, and to the present. Films discussed may include: “MENSCHEN AM SONNTAG” (1930), “BERLIN – ECKE SCHÖNHAUSER” (1959), “EINS, ZWEI DREI“ (1961), “REDUPERS” (1978), “LOLA RENNT” (1998), and “BERLIN CALLING” (2008).