Pentium - History of Audiovision: Middle East and North African Cinematography 1

Display Schedule

Subject guarantor:

Viera LANGEROVÁ

Name of lecturer(s):

Viera LANGEROVÁ

Learning outcomes of the course unit:

The course provides students the basic assemblages of individual cultures and optics which allow for film to be understood as reflections, symptoms of internal life of far-away societies.

Mode of study:

Lecture (45 min.) + screening.

Prerequisites and co-requisites:

No further requirements.

Course contents:

The territory of the Middle East has attracted the attention of the world with its dramatic social-political events and of course everything related to Islam, in particular its continually more intensive radicalization and expansionism. Films from these countries are a live reflection of the issues that this part of the world faces told in its stories, current and timeless, bearing signs of rich cultural traditions. These films come to us only sporadically without context and deep reflection.

In this course there is an attempt to outline the wider cultural background from which this cinematography comes and to approach its variety. Islam dominates here, generating art in wide range, from geometric abstraction to levels of ecstatic spirituality, all circumscribed by a turbulent history. Further surroundings are created by Judaism and its cultural and artistic implications, influenced by the established state of Israel.

The fundamental triad of advanced film culture is made up of Turkey, Iran and Israel. We know this only from modest festival opportunities where they make up only largely marginal examples and if their creations represent those of world-known artists. We do not really know other countries - Lebanon, Palestine, Iraq with Kurdish areas. Interesting movements in film show up also in the United Arab Emirates and activities which develop at the Film Institute in Doha, Qatar are worth attention. The first films are being shot in Saudia Arabia. The Middle East also culturally includes Northern Africa with Egypt dominating the mutual film culture with associated countries - Algiers, Tunis and Marocco, which sporadically offer interesting samples of their film production.

The tendency for the growth of mutual contact was demonstrated by the recent industry forum for producers organized at the Festival of Iranian Film. A bearing in Middle East film may be important for future artists.

Part of the mapping of this area will be a topical excursion into the issues with the Muslim minorities in Europe. Today there is a wide sample of films which cover their presences in various environments and have currently significant dimensions. Traditional institutions of their customs - blood feuds, problems in familial rights, or the particulars of life in the community, coming up against incompatibilities with the Western style of life - these are all parts of the film narrative about which it will be interesting and useful to discuss in academics as well.

The course design covers the historical-cultural, as well as, characteristics of film narratives, individual differences and particulars. The lecture sequence will go from a general introduction to selected topics which are present in individual national cinematography as focus points to a European view of the life of Islamic minorities.

The lecture program is scheduled over two semesters.

Recommended or required reading:

Reza Sadr: Iranian Cinema: A Political History. Tauris,London, 2006

Talatof Kamran Seyed-Gohrab: Conflict and Development in Iranian Film. Leiden University Press. 2012

Khatereh Sheibani:Poetics of Iranian Cinema. Tauris,London 2011

Asuman Suner: New Turkish Cinema.I.B.Taurus, London, 2010

Rekin Teksoy: Turkish Cinema.Oglak,Istanbul 2008

Ela Shohat: Israeli Cinema. East/West and Politics of Reprezentation. Tauris,London 2010

Supplementary readings:

Eduard Gombár: Dramatický půlměsíc.Karolinum 2001

Břetislav Tureček: Nesvatá válka o svatou zemi.Knižný klub 2011

Bernadr Lewis: Kde se stala chyba? Volvox Globator 2003

Jean-Pierre Filiu: Apokalypsa v islámu. Volvox Globator, 2011

Stephen Kinzer: Crescent and Star. Turkey Between Two Worlds. Straus and Giroux, NY, 2008

Assessment methods and criteria:

Grading is based on attendance and results of the written final test.

To sit the test it is necessary to submit a paper based on the required film viewings. The minimum is 6000 characters without spaces.

Course web page:

Note:

Lecturer: Viera Langerova, PhD.

Film journalist and publicist, graduate in film and theatre research at the Bratislava Fine Arts Academy. Post-graduate study in Cultural Studies at Charles University in Prague and Inter-cultural Communications at Tallinn Business School (Estonia)

She has worked as a magazine editor at „Film and Theatre“, „Dialog“, „Slovenske pohl'ady“, as Chief Editor at the Slovak-Czech monthly „Listy“ and as a colleague at Associated Press in Slovakia. After a 4 year stay in Kazahstan, Kygyzstan and 5 years in Pakistan she has devoted herself to Asian cinema and the Post-communist Europe cinema as well. She is the author of the book „Film Geography: Continental China, Hong Kong, Taiwan“ (2010) and a „Travelogue of Urdu, Parda, Burka“, „Five Years in Pakistan“ (2011), a number of studies and professional articles.

She has lectured film courses at the Tallinn University and at the Baltic Film and Media School in Estonia. She is also a consultant for Karlovy Vary, The International Film Festival of Muslim Film in Kazan (Russian Federation), International Film Festival Duhok in Iran and it is a program consultant for the Festival of Iranian Film in Prague. She is devoted to curator activities, and took part in preparations for a retrospective of Kazah film at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival (1999), and the Focus to Kurdish Film at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival (2013).

In 2014 she completed a tourguide course for the Jewish Quarter organized by the Jewish Museum in Prague.

Further information:

This course is an elective for all AMU students

Schedule for winter semester 2016/2017:

	06:00–08:0008:00–10:0010:00–12:0012:00–14:0014:00–16:0016:00–18:0018:00–20:0020:00–22:0022:00–24:00
Mon
Tue
Wed	místnost 207 Učebna 2 (Lažanský palác) LANGEROVÁ V. 14:50–18:05 (přednášková par. 1)
Thu
Fri

Date	Day	Time	Tutor	Location	Notes	No. of paralel
	Wed	14:50–18:05	Viera LANGEROVÁ	Učebna 2 Lažanský palác		přednášková par. 1

Schedule for summer semester 2016/2017:

The schedule has not yet been prepared

The subject is a part of the following study plans: