CA 352

Assignments

Cinemateque Screening Requirement

CA 352 students will be required to attend one Cinematheque screening during the course of the semester. Cinematheque screenings are Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. in 4070 Vilas Hall. The Cinematheque schedule is here. (site is down right now, not sure why)
To fulfill this requirement, fill out response card at the end of the Cinematheque screening with your name and section number (cards available near the exit at the end of the screening). Please include a short written response to the film. Response highlights will be sent out anonymously to the classlist.
Cards must be turned in at the screenings. They will not be accepted in sections or in lecture. Index cards and a black box labeled "CA 352 Attendance" will be near the exit after the screening ends.
Useful series for CA 352 include Heroic Grace: The Martial Arts Film, Directed by Dorothy Arzner, and Happy Birthday, Cinemascope.
If you cannot make Friday or Saturday evening films, you have these options:
- Sunrise on Thursday at 3:30pm, 9 Oct
- West Side Story on Sunday at 1:00pm, 12 Oct
- CineFest Neustra America festival, 22 Oct--25 Oct (schedule is not up yet but some screenings will probably not be on Fri/Sat night)
- Polish Film Festival, 5 Dec--7 Dec (schedule is not up yet but some screenings will probably not be on Fri/Sat night)
Some students work Fridays and Saturdays. We will work out alternative campus screenings with these individuals. If you cannot definitely make one of the listed Cinemateque times, you must work out an alternative with us by 17 Sept.

Paper Assignment

Films from Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Iran had a considerable impact on the film festival circuit in the 1990s. The Cinematheque Ontario and the Village Voice both conducted "Best of The Nineties" film critic polls, and filmmakers Hou Hsiao-hsien (Taiwan), Wong Kar-wai (Hong Kong), and Abbas Kiarostami (Iran) were prominently featured on both lists. Because these filmmakers have significantly influenced current world cinema, this assignment will ask you to research their careers and analyze one of their films.

In the first stage of this assignment, you will write a short biographical sketch and filmography for one of these filmmakers, highlighting his career in relation to his national film industry. Does the filmmaker exemplify trends in his national cinema? Your answer to this question will be your thesis, and you should focus on biographical, economic, or social issues.

Biographical: Hou Hsiao-hsien’s career path, from his film training to his participation in the film festival circuit, is typical of the "New Taiwanese Cinema."
Economic: Wong Kar-wai has depended on production financing strategies much different than most other Hong Kong filmmakers.
Social: Abbas Kiarostami’s career is best understood in relation to political changes in post-revolutionary Iran.

This stage will involve popular press, trade press and film journal research. Your sources should be clearly cited in footnotes/endnotes and you should include a bibliography of all of the sources you have consulted. A good starting point: Film Literature Index, Memorial Library Reference Wall Cases, Room 262 (Call Number: Z5784 M9 F45).

The biographical sketch should be three to four pages long (plus the filmography and bibliography), and it will be due in discussion section on November 5.

* * *

In the second stage of this assignment, you will write a sustained stylistic and thematic analysis of one of their films. You will watch two additional films which should be referenced in the paper, but your thesis should address the film we have assigned to you. This analysis will not involve library research; your thesis will answer an aesthetic question and should be based upon your work with the film itself.

Filmmaker	Hou Hsiao-hsien	Wong Kar-wai	Abbas Kiarostami
Paper Topic	Flowers of Shanghai	In the Mood for Love	The Wind Will Carry Us
Background (watch two)	Good Men, Good Women Goodbye South, Goodbye The Puppetmaster	Chungking Express Happy Together Days of Being Wild	Close Up Taste of Cherry Where is the Friend?s Home?

You will type out a segmentation of the paper topic film, which we will collect with your essay. DVD scene chapters should not be used for your segmentation. Using the segmentation as a guide, you will develop a systematic analysis that accounts for both the film's stylistic traits and the thematic functions of those traits. We will not answer questions about the films until we see a draft of your segmentation. After finishing the segmentation, you might ask yourself these questions to help you formulate a thesis:

What are the unique stylistic characteristics of the film, and how are they used systematically to convey narrative information?
After viewing the background films, can you argue that the film exemplifies a distinct authorial signature?
How is the film similar or dissimilar from European art cinema (ambiguity, departure from the norms of classical Hollywood style, etc.)?

Consult "An Analytical Essay" from The McGraw-Hill Film Viewers Guide (included with Film Art in CA 350, also reproduced in your CA 352 Course Reader) for tips on segmenting your film and formulating a clear thesis. The analytical essay should be 8 to 9 pages (plus the segmentation), and it will be due in discussion on December 3, along with a revision of your biographical sketch.

The biographical sketch and the analytical essay will be graded holistically at the end of the semester. You will not receive a separate letter grade for your biographical sketch, but you will receive brief comments and revision suggestions.

Each component of this assignment must be typed, double-spaced with one-inch margins and Times New Roman 12 point font. Please consult the Dean of Students’ Academic Misconduct Guide for Students (http://www.wisc.edu/students/amsum.htm) for questions regarding plagiarism, and read the Writing Center’s Information on Quoting, Paraphrasing, and Acknowledging Sources (link available on same page).

The Writing Center (6171 H.C. White Hall) will offer a two hour workshop entitled "An Introduction to Writing about Film," designed specifically for CA 350 and CA 352 students. The workshop will be offered twice this semester: Monday, October 27, 3:30-5:30 p.m., Friday, November 7, 1:00-3:00 p.m.

To preregister for this class, go to http://www.wisc.edu/writing/Classes/WAboutFilm.html or call the Writing Center at 263_1992.

Assignment Timeline:

ASAP	Select and research filmmaker, begin watching films.
November 5	Biographical Sketch (3 to 4 pages) and Filmography due. Begin segmentation if you haven’t already.
November 12	Biographical Sketch returned with comments for revision.
December 3	Analytical Essay (8 to 9 pages) and Sketch revision due.
December 18	Essay and Sketch graded and returned at Final Exam.

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