FILM ANALYSIS

The course is part of the related or additional programmes included in the curricula of “Art History” and “Performing Arts and Media Studies” for the Bachelor's Degree Programme in “Conservation of Cultural Heritage and Performing Arts Management”. Its aim is to provide students with a supplementary set of concepts related to the structure of the art system, as well as to the enhancement the cinematographic heritage and the most frequently encountered audio-visual materials. The objectives of the course are: to prepare students to develop a “privileged” and informed relation to audio-visual artworks (i.e. films and other formats), so as to be able to define their “agency” and “performativity”. Contemporarily students will acquire methodological tools enabling them to subdivide audio-visual artifacts into segments subsequently reconstructing their principles of meaning and narrative/discourse structure.

1. Knowledge and comprehension: Knowledge of the terminology of film language; Knowledge of the basics rules in order to distinguish cinema’s main techniques and narrative models; Ability to comprehend critical and theoretical texts dealing with cinema.
2. Ability to apply the acquired knowledge and comprehension: Ability to describe a sequence or a film placing it in its historical, production and genre-related context; Ability to apply methodological approaches analysing films and audio-visual artworks; Ability to apply a metalinguistic ability in order to distinguish between the specifically cinematic codes and codes belonging to other modes of expression.
3. Judgment skills: Ability to form personal interpretations based upon knowledge of the critical-theoretical literature; A critical approach to the aesthetic, cultural and historical judgment of audio-visual artworks;
4. Communication skills: Ability to participate in discussions around the subjects of the course; Ability to convey the specific character of the theoretical and historical debate using an appropriate vocabulary during the exam as well as during lectures; Ability to interact with fellow students and with the lecturer in a critical and collaborative way, both in the classroom and using virtual electronic platforms.
5. Learning skills: Ability to take notes and share them in a collaborative manner; Ability to consult the reference texts and the relative bibliography in a critical manner; Ability to deconstruct a film sequence or a short audio-visual work discerning the narrative or discourse strategies in action, distinguishing forms of representation of space/time/characters/settings, modes of focusing or point of view chosen.

No pre-requisites are required

Long take, close up, continuity editing, voice-over, depth of field, fade-out: these and other “basic units” of defining cinema still represent the main means of creating audio-visual works today. Consequently, students who intend to assume a critical and analytical approach to these products should first get acquainted with the technical language and learn to discern the different modes of expression and narration that form single film sequences or entire films. They should also learn to question their own analytical views reflecting upon which cultural categories are involved. For this purpose, our aim is to work in three different spheres, for this reason, the total amount of lecture hours are divided into three parts. One part will be devoted to the history of film analysis and the principal methods employed during the last fifty years. The second part will be devoted to acquiring the language of film analysis. The third presents a case study; this year we will focus on an analysis of "Blow Up" by Michelangelo Antonioni. Together the proposed learning paths intend to provide an empirical basis enabling students to undertake the analysis of audio-visual texts with a descriptive ability, a historiographical awareness and specific attention towards aspects such as the involvement of the spectator.

The examination programme includes the study of the following textbooks:
Gianni Rondolino e Dario Tomasi, “Manuale del film. Linguaggio, racconto, analisi” (terza edizione), UTET, Torino 2018.
Davide Persico, "Blow-up e le forme potenziali del mondo", Mimesis, Milano-Udine, 2020

Students not attending the lectures must choose one of the following volumes, in addition to the above-mentioned textbooks:
D. Bruni, “Roberto Rossellini. Roma città aperta”, Lindau, Torino 2013
A. Costa, “Federico Fellini. La dolce vita”, Lindau, Torino 2010
M. Dalla Gassa, “Kurosawa Akira, Rashomon”, Lindau, Torino 2012
M. Giori, "Rocco e i suoi fratelli. La vita amara di Luchino Visconti", UTET, Torino 2021
N. Lodato, F. Brignoli, “Orson Welles. Quarto potere”, Lindau, Torino 2015
S. Parigi, "Pier Paolo Pasolini. Accattone", Lindau, Torino 2008
M. Pellanda, “Andrej Tarkovskij. Andrej Rublëv”, Lindau, Torino 2015

Students are also required to watch six films listed in a filmography that can be found on the course homepage on Moodle when lectures start. Further informative material regarding the course and research material on the subjects treated (bibliographies, list of film sequences shown during lectures, research paths, etc.) will also be uploaded on the Moodle page.

The assessment method consists of a written test, divided into two parts. The first part consists of a multiple-choice questionnaire, which intends to assess the knowledge of the basic theoretical-cinematographic vocabulary. The second part consists of a number of open-ended questions and wants to assess the student’s ability to apply film analysis methods by viewing one or several film sequences. The first part corresponds to 70% of the overall course grade, and the second part to 30%. The professor will give more precise indications of the examination procedures and the assessment criteria during the first lecture, and this information will be uploaded on the course page on Moodle in a specific file.

Lectures comprehend both a historical-theoretical as well as an analytical-methodical point of view. The latter implies active participation of students in the classroom when analyzing and commenting on film sequences proposed by both the lecturer and the students themselves.

Italian

Class attendance is recommended to all students and is required to those who wish to apply for a thesis in History of Cinema.

Ca’ Foscari follows the Italian law (Law 17/1999; Law 170/2010) for the support and accommodation services available to students with disabilities or specific learning disabilities. If you have either a motor, visual, hearing or another disability (Law 17/1999), or a specific learning disorder (Law 170/2010) and you require support (classroom assistance, technological aids for carrying out exams or personalized exams, accessible format material, note retrieval, specialist tutoring as study support, interpreters or other), please contact the Disability and DSA office disabiita@unive.it.

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