Christian Farrell: Cinema of Place

Course unit code:

311MPLA

Course unit title:

Mode of delivery:

zápočet

Range:

3/D

Type of course unit:

Study plan Fotografie EN - bakalář – optional subject
Study plan Fotografie EN - magistr – optional subject
Study plan Cinema and Digital Media - Cinematography – optional subject
Study plan Cinema and Digital Media - Screenwriting – optional subject
Study plan Cinema and Digital Media - Directing – optional subject
Study plan Fotografie EN - magistr: restaurování – optional subject

Level of course unit:

Year of study

předmět nemá určen ročník studia

Semester when the course unit is delivered

letní

Number of ECTS credits allocated:

Garant předmětu:

Jitka HEJTMANOVÁ

Name of lecturer(s):

Jitka HEJTMANOVÁ

Study Objectives:

Mode of delivery:

Prerequisites and co-requisites:

Recommended optional programme components

Course contents:

Course Description

„The precise amalgam of elements that structures each region exists nowhere else. Each place, that is to say, is a unique state of mind, and the many powers that constitute and dwell within that locale - the spiders and tree frogs no less than the humans - all participate in, and partake of, the particular mind of the place“

- David Abram

In this module we will view and discuss a range of place-centered films (city portraits, travel essays, landscape films), while making our own investigations into the place in which we find ourselves: the ancient city of Prague. Central to the course will be the notion of genus loci (spirit of place), the particular strands of human and nonhuman elements ( myths and legends, topography, weather patterns, architecture, plant and animal species, human and natural histories) which interweave in a location to create a distinct pattern, character, or entity. Through screenings and discussions of documentaries, feature films, and short experimental works (by such filmmakers as Robert Gardner, George Kuchar, Pedro Gonzalez-Rubio, Thomas Riedelsheimer, Andrei Tarkovsky, Joris Ivens, Emily Richardson, semiconductor, Jan Svankmajer, Chris Welsby, James Benning, Jiří Barta, Jem Cohen, Rose Lowder, Tomonari Nishikawa...) in which place is the central character, we will explore different strategies for engaging and revealing the genus loci of a place. On excursions through the City by the Vltava, we will study the illuminated manuscript of Prague's image-incrusted facades, encounter its oldest living inhabitant growing in a quiet convent garden, walk the timeless streets of its hidden neighborhoods, and learn something of the unique composite of myth and history dreaming in the stones of this city.

March 22 - 24

Thursday: 6 pm - 7:30 pm in Classroom 1, 7:30 pm - 9 pm in Projection room

Friday, Saturday: 9 am - 1 pm, 2 pm - 5 pm in Classroom 1

Study materials:

Planned learning activities and teaching methods

This course will involve screenings, discussions, excursions, and in-class, direct cinema experiments.

Assessment methods and criteria

Language of instruction:

English

Work placement(s):

Pracovní stáž není u tohoto předmětu zavedena.

Course web page:

Note:

Born in San Francisco, California, Christian Farrell has been living in his wife's hometown of Cesky Krumlov in South Bohemia, Czech Republic off and on since 1998. As a member of the cinema collaborative silt, Christian's films, installations, and performances have been shown throughout the U.S., Europe, and Asia at venues including the Whitney Biennial, Sundance Film Festival, New York MOMA, San Francisco International Film Festival, and the Rotterdam Film Festival. He holds degrees in both Film and Philosophy/Religion and has been teaching courses which chart the territory of his overlapping fields of interest since 2001.

Further information:

This course is an elective for all students of this school

Schedule for winter semester 2011/2012:

The schedule has not yet been prepared

Schedule for summer semester 2011/2012:

Datum	Čas	Tutor	Místo	Notes	Č. paralelky
22.03.2012	19:00–22:00	HEJTMANOVÁ J.	Učebna 1 Lažanský palác	Instructor Christian Farrel	paralelka 1
23.03.2012	09:00–17:00	HEJTMANOVÁ J.	Učebna 1 Lažanský palác	1pm - 2 pm break, open to CDM, Academy Program students	paralelka 1
24.03.2012	09:00–17:00	HEJTMANOVÁ J.	Učebna 1 Lažanský palác	1pm - 2pm break	paralelka 1

The subject is a part of the following study plans:

Fotografie EN - bakalář (optional subject)
Fotografie EN - magistr (optional subject)
Cinema and Digital Media - Cinematography (optional subject)
Cinema and Digital Media - Screenwriting (optional subject)
Cinema and Digital Media - Directing (optional subject)
Fotografie EN - magistr: restaurování (optional subject)