| CODE | ITL3027 | ||||||||
| TITLE | Cinema italiano d'autore | ||||||||
| UM LEVEL | 03 - Years 2, 3, 4 in Modular Undergraduate Course | ||||||||
| MQF LEVEL | 6 | ||||||||
| ECTS CREDITS | 4 | ||||||||
| DEPARTMENT | Italian | ||||||||
| DESCRIPTION | Italy has produced a vibrant range of films whose formal, aesthetic and political significance has had a deep impact on a number of leading international filmmakers, both past and present. This unit will focus on some of Italy's most influential directors, most notably Luchino Visconti, Michelangelo Antonioni, Federico Fellini, Francesco Rosi, and Pier Paolo Pasolini, among others. "Cinema d'autore" will analyse via a series of theoretical perspectives the works of these directors within their national context and also in relationship with European film. At the same time, it will study the techniques deployed by each director. Such theories surrounding the concept of the "auteur," style, the film canon, realism, gender and sexuality, genres and adaptations will also be considered alongside the historical and cultural context within which the films of Italy's foremost directors were made. Throughout, some of the major concerns will include the following: What makes a film an "auteur" film? What gives it its distinctive style? How can one "read" the "visible signature" of an auteur's film? Who are Italy's most prominent "auteurs" who have left a decisive impact on filmic style in the new millennium? Study-unit Aims: - To provide a wide-ranging knowledge in filmic language via an in-depth analysis of some of the key films made by Italy's major directors; - To provide a deeper understanding of the aesthetic and philosophical underpinnings of the films which have shaped Italian Cinema; - To enable the student to understand the role of film in contemporary society via the analysis of the relationship between film and its historical, social and political context; - To acquaint the students with Italy's main "auteurs" who shaped filmic style in both Italy and on an international level. Learning Outcomes: 1. Knowledge & Understanding By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: - apply a diverse set of approaches to the "reading" of Italian Cinema; - become acquainted with the way in which the tools and techniques of film language create meaning; - understand the historical and theoretical considerations of national cinema by reading film as a discipline capable of raising some of the most pressing concerns related to contemporary culture such as the portrayal of political concerns and social anxieties; - read film as a discipline capable of raising some of the most pressing concerns related to contemporary culture such as the portrayal of political concerns and social anxieties; - study film alongside related disciplines within the Humanities with a particular focus on Literary Studies. 2. Skills By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: - acquire skills in visual analysis via an understanding of the key concepts and the terminology of film studies; - develop skills in understanding contemporary culture via visual analysis; - critically appraise a film through an understanding of the techniques deployed by Italy's major directors. Main Text/s and any supplementary readings: Main Texts - Federico Fellini, Fare un film (Einaudi, 1993) - Michelangelo Antonioni, Fare un film è per me vivere. Scritti sul cinema (Brossura, 2009) - Millicent Marcus, After Fellini. National Cinema in the Postmodern Age (Johns Hopkins UP, 2002) - A.M. Giacomelli, Crisi dell'uomo e della societa` nei film di Visconti e di Antonioni (Paoline, 1972) Coursepack comprising essays which treat theoretical considerations on filmic techniques. Close readings of some of the key films of Italy's major directors will also be included. Recommended Texts - Peter Brunette, The Films of Michelangelo Antonioni (Cambridge, 1998) - M. Antonioni, Sei film (Einaudi, 1964) - Fernaldo Di Giammatteo, Lo sguardo inquieto. Storia del cinema (1940 -1990), (La Nuova Italia, 1997) - Aldo Tassone (a cura di), Tecnicamente dolce / Michelangelo Antonioni (Einaudi, 1976) - Guido Aristarco, Su Antonioni: materiali per un'analisi critica (La Zattera di Babele, 1988) - Vincenzo Mollica (a cura di), Fellini sognatore: omaggio all'arte di Federico Fellini (Ed. del grifo, 1992) - Gianfranco Angelucci (a cura di), La dolce vita (Editalia, 1989) - Geoffrey Nowell-Smith, Luchino Visconti (BFI, 2003) |
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| ADDITIONAL NOTES | This study-unit is taught and assessed in Italian. | ||||||||
| STUDY-UNIT TYPE | Lecture | ||||||||
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The University makes every effort to ensure that the published Courses Plans, Programmes of Study and Study-Unit information are complete and up-to-date at the time of publication. The University reserves the right to make changes in case errors are detected after publication.
The availability of optional units may be subject to timetabling constraints. Units not attracting a sufficient number of registrations may be withdrawn without notice. It should be noted that all the information in the description above applies to study-units available during the academic year 2023/4. It may be subject to change in subsequent years. |
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