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Traditionally, the cinema of Eastern Europe has been associated with propaganda and art films. However, significant numbers of popular or genre films have been made in Czechoslovakia, many of which commercially successful, fondly regarded by Czechoslovak moviegoers at the time, and have since achieved cult status in Czechoslovak film culture. As such, this module offers students insight into post-war Czechoslovak popular and genre cinema. It encourages students to analyze Czechoslovak popular and genre films in relation to the industrial, social, political and cultural contexts in which they were produced and consumed. Employing a case study approach, which focuses on a range of different types of films from sci-fi films, to fairy-tales, comedies, and gangster films, the module invites students to reflect upon the ways in which these genres and others intersected with, and articulated, aspects of Czechoslovak history such as Cold War geopolitical tensions, internal social and economic concerns, and notions of national identity. In doing so, the course addresses key debates relating to concepts of the popular cinema, genre, national and art cinema, and also cinemas of Eastern Europe and anti-americanization.
All films have English sub-titles. Schedule (every two weeks, with one exception, see dates): Friday 9.10am–12.25 7.10. (Introductory class), 14.10. (week 1), 21.10., 4. 11. 18.11., 2.12., 16.12. Poslední úprava: Bláhová Jindřiška, Mgr., Ph.D. (22.09.2016)
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Course Goals and Student Learning Objectives Goals and objectives
1. To provide an overview of popular films and genre filmmaking in post-war Czechoslovak cinema 2. To introduce students to key debates concerning popular film, art film, the cinemas of Eastern Europe, national cinema, national identity and anti-Americanization 3. To provide an understanding of the aesthetic and industrial history of Czechoslovak cinema 4. To illuminate key representational strategies of Czechoslovak cinema 5. To provide an understanding of the position of Czechoslovak cinema within the broader context of Eastern European cinema (and beyond) 6. To shed light on the industrial, social and historical contexts in which the post-war Czechoslovak popular and genre cinema was made and viewed Poslední úprava: Bláhová Jindřiška, Mgr., Ph.D. (21.09.2016)
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Learning Outcomes On successful completion of this module students will,
Poslední úprava: Bláhová Jindřiška, Mgr., Ph.D. (22.09.2016)
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Classroom Procedures Sessions will usually comprise a lecture, a seminar, and a film screening. Students are expected to arrive on time. One or two short breaks will be given. Students are expected to read the assigned essays before each session and bring hardcopies of the readings with them to the session. All students will be expected to contribute to seminars. Discussion is highly encouraged. Cell phones and similar devices must be switched off.
Assignments and Grading Policy Grades based on letters A through F will be given. Mid-term Paper 20 % Participation 20 % Final Paper 60 %
Mid-Term Paper In week 3, each student will be required to produce an analysis of a small English-language dossier comprised of pieces of the popular critical reception of a Czechoslovak popular film – such as newspaper articles, trade-press reviews... Students will respond to set question relating to the film’s English-language critical reception.
Final Paper Students are expected to produce 2500 – 3000 words essay. Essay questions TBA and can be a subject to discussion between the instructor and the student. Final and Mid term Papers Policy: Completing the mid term and final papers is required. Failure to submit the final paper according to the deadline will result in a letter grade F for the entire course.
Regular and punctual class attendance is mandatory for all students. Absence of 1 session is allowed. Two or more absences lower the grade automatically (A to A-, A to B+ etc.)
Students are subject to the general standards and requirements of Charles University in regard to attendance, examinations, and conduct, as well as to the specific requirements of the program. The student is expected to assume the initiative in completing all requirements at the time specified. Poslední úprava: Bláhová Jindřiška, Mgr., Ph.D. (21.09.2016)
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Recommended Readings In preparation for the lecture, students will be required to study the readings assigned for each week. In addition to the required readings, students are encouraged to read widely around the subject. Some of the recommended readings are:
Blahova, Jindriska, “There’s No Place for Peace-Mongers. Charlie Chaplin, Monsieur Verdeux (1947) and Czechoslovak Communist Propaganda”. Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television, no. 3 (2009), pp. 271–292.
Bourdieu, Pierre, Distinction: A Social Critique of the Judgment of Taste (London: Routledge, 1984)
Hjort, Mette and MacKenzie, Scott (eds.), Cinema and nation (London: Routledge, 2000).
Škvorecký, Josef, All the Bright Young Men and Women: A Personal History of the Czech Cinema (Toronto: Peter Martin Associates, 1971).
Liehm, Antonín J., Closely Watched Films: The Czechoslovak Experience (New York: International Arts and Sciences Press, 1974).
Gemunden, Gerd, “Between Karl May and Karl Marx: The DEFA Indianerfilme (1965-1983)”, Film History, vol. 10, no. 3 (2008), pp. 399–407.
Taylor, Richard, “A 'Cinema for the Millions': Soviet Socialist Realism and the Problem of Film Comedy”, Journal of Contemporary Film and Video, vol. 18 (1983), pp. 439–461.
Čulík, Jan, “The Prague Spring as reflected in Czech post-communist Cinema”, Britské listy, 11. 4. 2008 [Available on-line at http://www.blisty.cz/art/40074.html]. Poslední úprava: Bláhová Jindřiška, Mgr., Ph.D. (21.09.2016)
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Weekly Schedule
Week 0
Introduction to module
Week 1
What is popular cinema?
An introduction to theories of popular cinema and art cinema.A basic distinction between European and Hollywood modes of filmmaking, style, and aesthetics.
Week 2
What (Where) is National Cinema?
What is national cinema? National cinema as an industrial context, distinctive content or discoursive category? Brief intro to the Czechoslovak post-WWII film industry. The Czechoslovak Film Monopoly as a model of film production and cinema and the building of a new socialist society.
Week 3
Film Genre (Czechoslovak “Western”)
Week 4
Eastern-West and East Bloc Co-productions
Film coproductions between East Bloc countries and between East and West. Regional and supranational cinema and Americanization.
Week 5
Cinema and the Cold War
The space-race and Cold war tensions in Czechoslovak sci-fi and fantasy film.
Week 6
Cinema of Late Socialism – 1980s Normalization
Czechoslovak cinema of the 1980s and “normalization”. Socially critical cinema or cinema of conformism?
Poslední úprava: Bláhová Jindřiška, Mgr., Ph.D. (04.10.2016)
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