Language of Film
The Graham School’s Certificate in the Language of Film is designed for anyone who has been looking for a serious yet enjoyable exploration of the art of the cinema. Film buffs and novices alike will find the five courses required for a certificate accessible, challenging, and rewarding.
Here is a link to the Certificate in the Language of Film page on the Graham School website.
Spring and Summer 2010 courses:
Point of View with Adam Kempenaar and Matty Robinson: Billy Wilder
Billy Wilder is among the most brilliant and talented filmmakers of Hollywood’s golden age. From Sunset Boulevard to Double Indemnity to Some Like it Hot, he set and broke conventions with equal ease. Despite the exuberant range of his movies, his directorial style was oddly restrained; the focus remained squarely on the screenplay and on the actors, from whom he coaxed extraordinary performances. His films are most pleasurable when experienced in a theater with an audience; in addition to enjoying his work, this course will analyze his skills as a writer and director, uncovering what made Wilder such a master.
Adam Kempenaar and Matty Robinson
Mr. Kempenaar serves as co-host for the weekly movie review podcast, Filmspotting, also broadcast weekly on Chicago Public Radio. He holds a masters degree in journalism and mass communication from the University of Iowa. Mr. Robinson is a professional actor and acting teacher who serves as co-host for the Filmspotting podcast. He holds a BA in creative writing and drama from Kenyon College and an MFA from Brown University.
Course Code FSPVFS
Section 10S1
Spring 2010
Gleacher Center
$400 Early registration ends March 15
$430 Regular registration
Wednesdays
March 24–May 26
6–9:30 pm
Teacher Recertification CPDUs: 35
Point of View with Michael Wilmington: The Coen Brothers
Masters of the modern film noir, Joel and Ethan Coen have written, produced, and directed movies together for more than 20 years. Gathering inspiration from the 1930s and 1940s, the Coen brothers’ work recalls both the crime fiction of Raymond Chandler and the screwball comedies of Howard Hawks and Billy Wilder. This course is an opportunity to enjoy the best of the Coen Brother’s darkly comic films in chronological order, from Blood Simple and Raising Arizona to O Brother, Where Art Thou? to No Country for Old Men.
Michael Wilmington
Mr. Wilmington has been movie critic for L.A. Weekly, the Los Angeles Times and the Chicago Tribune. He currently reviews for the websites Movie City News and Isthmus, and the Chicago Daily Herald and the Chicago Jewish Star.
Course Code FSPVMW
Section 10U1
Summer 2010
Gleacher Center
$400 Early registration ends June 1
$430 Regular registration
Wednesdays
June 9–August 11
6–9:30 pm
Teacher Recertification CPDUs: 35
The History of Film
This course will provide students with an introduction to the history of film from its beginnings to the present by covering its major national and international movements. It will explore the historical context and critical ideas accompanying the development of film as a medium and an industry.Through weekly in-class screenings and discussions, students will become knowledgeable about a wide range of film movements, styles, and practices (film noir, New Wave, neorealism, etc.), and will learn to trace the development of these trends over the course of film history.
Hiaw Khim Tan
Ms. Tan is a PhD student in the Committee on Cinema and Media Studies at the University of Chicago. Her work in film studies centers on classical Hollywood cinema, particularly around matters of film style and interpretation.
Course Code FSHIST
Section 10S1
Spring 2010
Gleacher Center
$360 Early registration ends March 15
$390 Regular registration
Mondays
March 22-May 17 (no meeting March 29)
6–9:30 pm
Teacher Recertification CPDUs: 28
Mise en scène
Mise-en-scène is one of the most important terms in film criticism, and it is also the term with the least consensus about its definition. It can refer to a film’s visual style, or its emotional tone, or the work of the camera. This course is an opportunity to sift through the meanings, analyzing the history of this crucial term and demonstrating its various aspects. Film screenings will include European art cinema of the 1960s (Antonioni) and Renoir, as well as Hollywood studio films.
Hiaw Khim Tan
See bio under The History of Film.
Course Code FSFAMS
Section 10U1
Summer 2010
Gleacher Center
$185 Early registration ends June 1
$215 Regular registration
Thursdays
June 10–July 1
6–9:30 pm
Teacher Recertification CPDUs: 20
Cinematic Representations of Gender, Identity, and Divinity
Filmmakers have discovered myriad ways of analyzing the human psyche. Emotional states from love, happiness and satisfaction to psychosis, delusion, and madness are by-products of each human’s attempt to secure his or her unique identity. The psyche’s relationship to gender has a tremendous impact on emotional health, as has the question of the presence or absence in the universe of a “superior being.” This summer we will study films which explore these themes, including Agnes of God, Boys Don’t Cry, Two or Three Things I Know About Her, God’s Silence, Runaway Train, and All About My Mother.
Elliott Krick
Mr. Krick holds an MA in English from the University of Chicago and has been teaching in the Basic Program since 1965, specializing in film courses.
Course Code BPUCRG
Summer 2010
Gleacher Center
$335 Early registration ends June 21
$365 Regular registration
Teacher Recertification CPDUs: 24
Section 10U1
Tuesdays
June 22–August 10
10 am–1:15 pm
Section 10U2
Wednesdays
June 23–August 11
10 am–1:15 pm
Winter 2010 offerings:
THE LANGUAGE OF FILM
Required course for the Language of Film Certificate.
Discuss movies beyond the level of plot summaries and become conversant in the basic vocabulary of film criticism and analysis in this introduction to the foundational language of film. Learn about mise-en-scène, cinematography, editing, sound, narrative, and how such devices can dramatically change the way audiences “read” a film. We will discuss these concepts using examples from different national cinemas, genres, and directorial styles. This course is recommended as an introduction to other film analysis courses to be offered in subsequent terms.
HIAW KHIM TAN
Ms. Tan is a PhD student in the Committee on Cinema and Media Studies at the University of Chicago. Her work in film studies centers on classical Hollywood cinema, particularly around matters of film style
and interpretation.
Course Code FSLANG
Section 10W1
Winter 2010
Gleacher Center
$360 Early registration ends January 4
$390 Regular registration
Tuesdays
January 12–March 2
6–9:30 pm
Teacher Recertification CPDUs: 28
CRITERION COLLECTION FILMS
Four-week course
Counts as a Film Analysis course for the Language of Film Certificate.
The Criterion Collection is the gold standard of DVDs. More than any other home video label, it has advanced film culture in the digital age, championing quality movies as it supplanted theatrical exhibition venues like revival and repertory houses, and offering more content than the (once) competitive VHS format. Through strategic business partnerships, Criterion has forged a brand identity based on its intricate network of auteur directors, film critics and historians, and a savvy calculation of what cinephiles want. This course will examine extraordinary films in the Criterion Collection. For a complete list of films and the reading assignment for the first class, please visit the Graham School website.
ANDREA GRONVALL
Ms. Gronvall contributes to the Chicago Reader and TimeOut Chicago, and the websites Movie City News and Stop Smiling. A multiple Emmy nominee for producing Siskel & Ebert, she holds a BS in film studies from Northwestern University.
Course Code FSFACC
Section 10W1
Winter 2010
Gleacher Center
$185 Early registration ends January 4
$215 Regular registration
Tuesdays
January 12–February 2
6–9:30 pm
Teacher Recertification CPDUs: 14
POINT OF VIEW WITH MICHAEL WILMINGTON: THE FILMS OF JEAN RENOIR
Counts as a Point of View course for the Language of Film Certificate.
This course will look at the career of the great French filmmaker, a master of his craft and also the son of the painter Pierre-Auguste Renoir. The highlights will include Renoir’s two universally acknowledged masterpieces, Grand Illusion and The Rules of the Game, plus documentaries with Renoir interviews, and a selection from the following Renoir-directed films: La Crime de M. Lange, A Day in the Country, The Lower Depths, La Bête Humaine, La Marsellaise, The Southerner, Diary of a Chambermaid, The River, The Golden Coach, and Picnic on the Grass.
MICHAEL WILMINGTON
Mr. Wilmington has been movie critic for L.A. Weekly, the Los Angeles Times, and the Chicago Tribune. He currently reviews for websites Movie City News and isthmus.com, the Chicago Daily Herald, the Chicago Jewish Star.
Course Code FSPVMW
Section 10W1
Winter 2010
Gleacher Center
$395 Early registration ends January 4
$425 Regular registration
Wednesdays
January 13–March 17
6–9:30 pm
Teacher Recertification CPDUs: 35
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Autumn 2009 course offerings:
GREAT MUSIC, GREAT FILMS, PARTS I AND II
Counts as a Point of View course for the Language of Film Certificate.
These two courses will explore an integral part of movies that is rarely analyzed or discussed: the
relationship between films and music. The first five-week course will focus on music, examining famous uses of music in films, including (among others) Bernard Herrmann’s collaborations with Orson Welles and Alfred
Hitchock, Nino Rota’s indelible Fellini scores, and the symphonic raptures of Eric Korngold.
The second five-week course will showcase films that use music in extraordinary ways, including full screenings of Spartacus and Vertigo. The courses may be taken separately. For a
complete list of films that will be screened, please visit the Graham School website.
MICHAEL PHILLIPS
Mr. Phillips is a film critic for the Chicago Tribune. He served as drama critic for the Tribune and the Los Angeles Times, and covered movies for the Twin Cities weekly City Pages and Minnesota Public Radio.
Course Code FSPVMP
Gleacher Center
$190 Early registration ends September 14
$220 Regular registration
Wednesdays
6–9:30 pm
Teacher Recertification CPDUs: 17
Section 09A1 (Part I)
September 16–October 14
Section 09A2 (Part II)
October 21–November 18
MAFIA MOVIES
Counts as a Film Genre course for the Language of Film certificate.
Mafia movies are the new Westerns—the genre that allows us to explore the confrontation between good and evil, between moderation and the corruption of power. What do mafia stories reveal about our current climate: the things we fear and the things we respect? Why have famous directors, including John Huston,
Francis Ford Coppola, and Martin Scorcese, been drawn to this genre? This four-week course will
explore these questions and analyze the power of mafia movies to lure us in. Think of it as an offer you can’t
refuse.
ANDREA GRONVALL
Ms. Gronvall contributes to the Chicago Reader and Time Out Chicago, and websites Movie City News and Stop Smiling. A multiple-Emmy nominee for producing Siskel & Ebert, she holds a BS in film studies from
Northwestern University.
Course Code FSFGMM-09A1
Gleacher Center
$185 Early registration ends September 14
$215 Regular registration
Mondays
October 26–November 16
6–9:30 pm
Teacher Recertification CPDUs: 14
