English/Film Studies 383 – Cinema and Genre – History of Animation
Professor Jocelyn Szczepaniak-Gillece
Monday & Wednesday, 2:00 PM – 3:50 PM
Curtin 104
Email:
Course Description: What does it mean to animate? What are the elements of the drawn form, captured on film as though it were alive? What anxieties and dreams permeate the artificially moving body? This course surveys the general concepts and history of animated film from the silent era through the digital turn. Yet rather than being simply a history course, the class will continually approach animation from the perspective of what it means to breathe life into a drawing, and how animation has continually functioned as cinema’s uncanny shadow. During the first half of the course, we will trace the development of techniques and approaches through major American studios (Disney, Fleischer, Warner Bros), as well as chronologically complementary examples from solo, experimental, and international animators. The second half of the course will be a conceptual look at more contemporary forms including stop-motion, anime, and 3D animation. We will always attend to issues of class, gender, politics, and race as we ask what animation can tell us about film’s uncanny relationships to life and death. Films screened will include The Adventures of Prince Achmed, Fantastic Planet, Snow White, Ghost in the Shell, and others.
A note:There will be several films with some disturbing imagery. Please note this before signing up for the course.
Reading: All readings will be chapters or articles posted in PDF format to the D2L site. There are no books or course packets to purchase for the course. All readings are mandatory.
Requirements:Weekly reading and screening reports; midterm exam; final paper; participation and attendance.
For more information on theL&S Film Studies program, visit:
or contact Zach Finch, the advisor for theFilm Studies program at: