Film Studies (co-major)

Film Studies is an interdisciplinary co-major that explores the interaction between film, culture and society. As the medium and art form that has had the most profound and pervasive influence on modern culture, understanding film is fundamental to understanding our world, our societies and ourselves. At its core, film is a language; Film Studies students become fluent in this language and are thus able to critically engage its larger components as they pervade our culture and our daily lives: elements such as image, editing, sequencing, and narrative and temporal relations surround us continually. With this basis, Film Studies students engage in the rigorous analysis of films from a variety of genres, time periods and countries. Film Studies students interested in production also have the opportunity to direct, shoot and edit their own short films.

Film Studies at Miami

F.A.Q.

What are the requirements of the Film Studies co-major?

Film Studies is a co-major, and thus must be paired with another major outside of the Department of Media, Journalism & Film. The core requirements of the FST major are:

MJF 143 Introduction to Media
MJF 146 Media Aesthetics
FST 201 Film History and Analysis
FST 301 Film Theory
FST 401 Advanced Research Seminar in Film Study

19-23 additional hours are required, and can include courses in national cinemas, genres, auteurs, film production, and other topics.

What are the extra-curricular activities related to of the Film Studies co-major?

The student-run Miami Film Society hosts regular screenings on campus, as well as field-trips to off campus screenings and events. See their Facebook page for more information.

Film Studies majors also present their original research in a yearly Film Studies Research Seminar, which is open to the public.

Select students (based on GPA and professor recommendation) may be eligible to attend Miami’s program at the Telluride Film Festival in Telluride, Colorado in September.

What can I do with this co-major?

Film Studies’ emphasis on interdisciplinary connections and cinema as a global medium means that our students are exposed to diverse ideas and peoples, and consequently, as graduates they are able to establish unique paths for themselves wherever they go.

Students who co-major in Film Studies gain critical thinking, reading, writing and viewing skills. In addition, they develop important skills valuable to most businesses, such as creative research and problem-solving, good communication skills and the ability to work in and make important contributions to a team. Our co-major also allows students to study film production, thus many of our students gain the valuable experience of directing, shooting and editing their own movies. As a result, Film Studies students find employment in a wide range of film and media related fields- as directors, producers, writers, editors, curators, festival programmers, marketers, designers, events managers, teachers, or even professors.

What are the special admission requirements, if any?

Because this degree is a co-major, FST requires students to have a primary major. That major can be any major in the University (except another co-major).

Are internships available?

Yes, internships are periodically available for students who meet the application requirements (GPA and recommendation by professor). FST students have done internships at places such as the Cincinnati Film Commission, and opportunities with other organizations should be available in the future.

Who can I contact for more information?

Dr. Kerry Hegarty, Associate Professor, Area Coordinator
148 Williams Hall
513-529-4507
hegartkt@miamioh.edu

Popular Film Studies co-major pairings

Anna Jankovsky, Class of 2019

Literature and Film Studies Co-Major

I came into Miami as a Literature major because of a deep-rooted love for stories, and over my first year studying in the English department, my love for and dedication to the field grew dramatically. Sure, I took classes that taught me how to look critically at a text, but more than that, I took classes that taught me to explore new perspectives and embrace new passions. I had always loved going to the movies and as a child I dreamed about someday living in Hollywood, but it wasn’t until the end of my first year at Miami that I found out film could be much more than an impractical dream. I took one of the many classes cross-listed between the Literature and Film Departments, “Shakespeare in Film,” by chance. I just wanted to take a class about Shakespeare, but interlaced through the traditional literature curriculum was a perfect crash course in critical film study. This is how I first discovered the Film department at Miami. I fell in love during that first semester because I realized that studying film can be seen as, for the most part, just an extension of studying a book—but the instead of words, there are images and instead of chapters there are scenes. The two mediums complement each other well, and even add to each other. I felt, after my first film class, that my study of literature would be incomplete without the diversified way of analysis that film could teach me. With my co-major, I feel that I not only am becoming proficient in the argumentation method and writing skills that Literature focuses in, but also the visual rhetoric that Film Studies teaches me to recognize. Visual arguments are made in every aspect of daily life in modern society, and studying the way that it affects the masses is not only interesting for someone like me, who is already fascinated by written rhetoric, but is also very relevant and marketable in the evolving social climate. My Miami experience would not be complete with only one medium of study anymore. Now that I’ve discovered the breadth that my study can cover with the interplay of the two fields of Literature and Film, I don’t feel that I could go back to a single disciplinarily informed method of analysis. My co-major perfectly supports the love for stories that I want to spend my life exploring.

Connor Oriot, Class of 2017

Social Psychology and Film Studies Co-Major

Film studies as a major, and film as a medium, is a multi-faceted discipline that undoubtedly benefits from being combined with another academic study. For somebody that intends to pursue a career in cinema, there are many different combinations of majors that provide unique value and a new perspective on cinema, and the ideal combination might depend on what somebody wants to do in the film industry (direct, produce, write, act, set design, etc.). And for somebody that does not intend to pursue a career in cinema, I would still highly recommend adopting a film studies co-major because it enhances one’s appreciation for the meticulous construction and incalculable effort that goes into producing a film, but more importantly it offers a broader perspective on life and other people’s subjectivity. Personally, my ultimate intention is to be a screenwriter, and to create stories that are transformed into films that teach people about humanity and about themselves, and that cause them to reflect on their relationships to other people- close friends and strangers. While my film studies major familiarizes me with theories of film, human philosophy, and the dense layering of filmic elements that may go overlooked by the average spectator (but often add a great deal of meaning), my major in social psychology gives insight as to how people operate, and why they act as they do. The intimate understanding of human nature that I can glean from psychology and film studies together is far greater than what I can learn from either one individually. Given that my intention is to create a fiction that tells a truth, it seems supremely important that I strive for an understanding of human psychology and social interaction that accurately represents the reality of all populations, so that everyone can relate to, and hopefully enjoy my films. Film is a very powerful medium that can be used or abused, so in trying to use it rather than abuse it, I want to encourage audiences to take another’s perspective and consider their subjectivity instead of seeing characters simply as objects that we encounter. And by extension, I would hope that audiences will apply what they learn from the films into reality so that cinema can be used to inspire compassion and unity in humanity instead of judgement and division. I’m a bit of an idealist, and I think film studies and psychology are incredibly well-suited to my personal endeavors, but more importantly, I think everyone individually, and humanity as a whole, could benefit from critically reflecting on film and what it can do. Film inclines the viewer to take another’s perspective, and in de-centering ourselves and stepping into someone else’s metaphorical shoes, we can resolve petty conflicts, prevent their escalation, and ideally effect positive change in the world. I cannot recommend film studies enough as co-major, and to me, for anyone in pursuit of a career in cinema, psychology and film studies majors together truly provide the most rich and profound combination of majors.

Curriculum

Co-major in Film Studies (34-38 Credits)

A co-major is a degree that gets attached to a primary major. In other words, as an FST co-major, you must complete an additional major (which will serve as your primary major). That major can be located in any division of the university (i.e. College of Arts and Science; School of Creative Arts; Farmer School of Business; School of Education, Health, and Society; School of Engineering and Applied Sciences). As an FST co-major, you only complete the requirements of the division where your primary major is located. For example, if you are an IMS major and an FST co-major, you complete the divisional requirements of the College of Creative Arts; if you are a Marketing major and an FST co-major, you complete the divisional requirements of the Farmer School of Business, etc.

Core Courses (15 credits) take all five

MJF 143 Introduction to Media (3)
MJF 146 Media Aesthetics (3)
FST 201 Film History and Analysis (3)
FST 301 Film Theory (3)
FST 401 Seminar in Film Studies (3)

Electives (19-23 hours)

Critical/Analytic - General (at least two electives from here)

FST 135 Film as Ethnography (1)
FST 206 Diversity & Culture in American Film (3)
FST 220 Literature and Film (3)
FST 221 Shakespeare and Film (3)
FST 225 Linking Film and New Media (3)
FST 235 Classical Hollywood Cinema (3)
FST 236 Experimental Film (3)
FST 252 Representation of History in Film & Video (3)
FST 282 Sexualities & Film (3)
FST 330 Film Auteurs (3)
FST 350 Topics in Film (3)
FST 356 Women and Gender in Film (3)
FST 360 Film Genres (3)

National Cinemas (at least two electives from here)

FST 249 Asian and Asian American Cinema (3)
FST 261 German Film in Global Context (3)
FST 262 Italian Cinema (3)
FST 263 Soviet & Post-Soviet Russian Cinema (3)
FST 264 Chinese Cinema & Culture (3)
FST 265 European Jewish Cinema (3)
FST 266 Survey of Japanese Cinema (3)
FST 350 Mafia and Cinema (3)
FST 366 French Cinema (3)
FST 381 Afro-Brazil: Film and Arts (3)
FST 460 Topics in French Cinema Study (3)

Production (these courses may be taken as electives)

MAC 211 Intermediate Video Production (4)
MAC 213 Writing for Film and TV (3)
MAC 311 Digital Film Production (3)
FST 340 Internship (3)
MAC 414 Capstone Productions: Project in Digital Narrative Filmmaking (4)
MAC 422 Advanced Creative Writing: Screenwriting Workshop (3)
THE 253 Costume Fundamentals (3)
THE 255 Fundamentals of Scenery Construction (3)
THE 439A Acting for the Camera (3)

Minor in Film Studies (18 Credits)

Core Courses (6 credits) take both

FST 201 Film History and Analysis (3)
FST 401 Seminar in Film Studies (3)

Electives

(12 hours from any of the following courses. Can be combination of courses from any of the three categories)

Critical/Analytic - General

FST 135 Film as Ethnography (1)
MJF 146 Media Aesthetics (3)
FST 206 Diversity & Culture in American Film (3)
FST 220 Literature and Film (3)
FST 221 Shakespeare and Film (3)
FST 225 Linking Film and New Media (3)
FST 235 Classic Hollywood Cinema (3)
FST 236 Experimental Film (3)
FST 252 Representation of History in Film & Video (3)
FST 282 Sexualities & Film (3)
FST 301 Film Theory (3)
FST 330 Film Auteurs (3)
FST 350 Topics in Film (3)
FST 356 Women and Gender in Film (3)
FST 360 Film Genres (3)
FST 450 Advanced Topics in Film Study (3)

National Cinemas

FST 249 Asian and Asian American Cinema (3)
FST 261 German Film in Global Context (3)
FST 262 Italian Cinema (3)
FST 263 Soviet & Post-Soviet Russian Cinema (3)
FST 264 Chinese Cinema & Culture (3)
FST 265 European Jewish Cinema (3)
FST 266 Survey of Japanese Cinema (3)
FST 366 French Cinema (3)
FST 381 Afro-Brazil: Film and Arts (3)
FST 460 Topics in French Cinema Study (3)

Production

MAC 211 Introduction to Video Production (3)
MAC 213 Scriptwriting for Media (3)
MAC 311 Digital Film Production (3)
FST 340 Internship (3)
MAC 414 Capstone Productions (4)
MAC 422 Creative Writing: Screenwriting (3)
THE 253 Costume Fundamentals (3)
THE 255 Fundamentals of Scenery Construction (3)
THE 439A Acting for the Camera (3)

Course Descriptions

FST 135: Film as Ethnography (1 credit hour). Explores anthropological approaches to the study of human diversity and variation through the lens of ethnographic and documentary films. Exposes students to basic concepts in anthropology including cultural and linguistic relativity, globalization and representational practices. Cross-listed with ATH.

FST 201: Film History and Analysis (3 credit hours). Comprehensive overview of the historical development of Western cinema from the silent era to the present, focusing specifically on the most significant national film movements and key creative figures whose work has been indicative of the dominant trends. The complex relationship between technology, industry, culture, and aesthetics is explored through a close formal analysis of the films, with emphasis on their aesthetic, social, historical and political contexts. Weekly screenings required.

FST 206: Diversity and Culture in American Film (3 credit hours). Analysis of the representation of diversity and culture as portrayed in American motion pictures. Cross-listed with MAC and IDS.

FST 220: Literature and Film (3 credit hours). Study of the relationship between film and genres of literature, focusing on a comparison of techniques of rhetoric, fiction, and drama, and those of film. Primary consideration given to film adaptations of works of fiction and drama. Weekly screenings required. Cross-listed with ENG.

FST 221: Shakespeare and Film (3 credit hours). Study of selected plays of Shakespeare that have been filmed. Students read plays and view one or more versions of each play. Cross-listed with ENG.

FST 225: Linking Film and New Media (3 credit hours). This course considers the challenge new media presents to cinema's primacy, but also the ways in which cinema survives and thrives in a digital age. While acknowledging what is unique to different new media forms, we will also identify the aspects of new media that are not fully "new" by examining their dependence on styles, structures, narratives, and even actual footage from cinema and other "old" media. Conversely, we will uncover how new media have reshaped cinema through influences such as CGI, video games, and digital editing. Prerequisite: CMS 201 or FST 201. Cross-listed with CMS.

FST 235: Classical Hollywood Cinema (3 credit hours). This course examines the production of the so-called classical period of Hollywood cinema, beginning in the 1930s with the emergence of early sound and ending in the 1960s with the demise of the studio system. We will utilize an industry-studies approach, but will also explore the principal narrative and stylistic trends associated with the classical era, as well as its key creative figures- directors, producers, cinematographers, actors, etc. Weekly screenings required. Cross-listed with ENG.

FST 236: Experimental Film (3 credit hours). Study of major films and cinematic trends in world cinema. Emphasis on film in which the classical conventions of narrative are questioned or disrupted. Study motives and methods of filmmakers whose concern is not primarily the telling of a story or for whom the conventional entertainment narrative is an object of radical investigation. Cross-listed with ENG.

FST 249: Asian and Asian-American Cinema (3 credit hours). Exploration of films within the context of Western colonial influences and legacies in Asia and Asian America. Focus on the role cinema plays in creating and perpetuating Asian cultures for global and local audiences. Cross-listed with AAA.

FST 252: Representation of History in Film and Video (3 credit hours). Attempts to familiarize students with ways that history is represented in film and video (as opposed to print). By comparing film to texts, analyzing narrative structure, and studying the techniques of film and video making, students learn how history is depicted in this medium. Introduces history of film by viewing and discussing works of several early directors who represented history. Films and directors selected for inclusion will vary from year to year. Prerequisite: FST 201 recommended (not required). Cross-listed with HST.

FST 261: German Film in Global Context (3 credit hours). Survey of the German cinema from its golden age in the 1920s to the present day. Representative films studied both as aesthetic works and as historical texts. Films screened in German with English subtitles. Readings, lectures, and discussions in English. Cross-listed with GER.

FST 262: Italian Cinema (3 credit hours). Discussion and analysis of major films and trends in Italian cinema. Topics may vary but attention is given to social and ideological implications of Italian cinema and the way movies produce a critique of cultural mores. Taught in English. Cross-listed with ITL.

FST 263: Soviet and Post-Soviet Russian Cinema (3 credit hours). Critical survey of directors, genres, and movements in Soviet cinema. Screening of films from Eisenstein to current directors. Lectures, discussion, and readings in English. Cross-listed with RUS.

FST 264: Chinese Cinema and Culture (3 credit hours). Study of Chinese cinema and of Chinese culture through film. Screening of films from mainland China, Taiwan, and Hong Kong, with subject matter that is both historical and modern. Films screened with English subtitles; knowledge of Chinese is not required. Cross-listed with CHI.

FST 266: Survey of Japanese Cinema (3 credit hours). This course examines representative Japanese films from the immediate post-war era to the new wave of Japanese anime (animated film). Offered in English. Cross-listed with JPN.

FST 268: Bollywood and Indian Culture (3 credit hours). An introduction to major Indian historical, social, and cultural issues through representative Bollywood films. Lectures, discussion, and readings in English. Cross-listed with HIN.

FST 282: Sexualities and Film (3 credit hours). An exploration of film representations of diverse sexualities (e.g., gay, lesbian, bisexual, and trans*) from the silent era to the present. Cross-listed with MAC.

FST 301: Film Theory (3 credit hours). In-depth study of the key concepts of classical and contemporary film theory (realism, formalism, structuralism, semiotics, psychoanalysis, cognitive theories, and others). Weekly screenings required. Prerequisite: FST 201.

FST 330: Film Auteurs (3 credit hours). In-depth study of the films of a particular director or pair of directors within the framework of auteurism. Weekly screenings required. May be taken up to three (3) times if topic changes. Pre-requisite: FST 201.

FST 340: Internship (1-3 credit hours). Via permission and recommendation of instructor.

FST 345: Global Media, Ethnography and Film (3 credit hours). Explores anthropological and ethnographic frameworks to the study of global media flows across boundaries, borders, and time. Examines the ways in which mediated performances, texts, and images are instrumental in building and negotiating communities, cultures and identities. Cross-listed with ATH.

FST 350: Topics in Film (3 credit hours). In-depth study of a specific topic or theme in film. May be repeated once when topic changes. Cross-listed with ENG.

FST 356: Women and Gender in Film (3 credit hours). Study of the portrayal and the role of women in film production from the lens of feminist film theory. Cross-listed with ENG.

FST 360: Film Genres (3 credit hours). In-depth study of the principal narrative, aesthetic and industrial trends associated with a specific film genre, as well as a contextualization of the historical circumstances in which the genre appeared. Possible topics include the Western, film noir, the musical, horror, etc. Pre-requisite: FST 201.

FST 366: French Cinema (3 credit hours). Critical survey of major directors, genres, and movements in French cinema. Particular attention devoted to development of film theory and criticism in France and their relation to film production. Screening of films by Renoir, Bresson, Bunuel, Godard, Truffaut, Varda, Resnais, Tavernier, and others. Taught in English; reading in English translation. Cross-listed with FRE.

FST 401: Seminar in Film Study (3 credit hours). This course exposes students to a wide variety of current film studies research methods and topics through close readings of current film scholarship. During the second half of the semester, students work in close collaboration with the instructor, the film librarian, and each other to develop their own original research projects. Weekly screenings required. Prerequisite: FST 201.

FST 422: Advanced Creative Writing: Screenwriting Workshop (3 credit hours). Advanced workshop in feature film screenwriting. Analysis of examples of contemporary screenplays with emphasis on the craft of writing. Discussion and workshopping of student writing. Cross-listed with ENG.

FST 460: Topics in French Cinema (3 credit hours). In-depth and concentrated study of French cinema. Focus on specific topics such as film's relation to society, its relation to the other arts and artistic movements, and its productive role as an object of philosophical thought. Topics may also include the work of particular directors, historical periods, and comparative social and aesthetic studies. Taught in English. Cross-listed with FRE.

MJF 143: Introduction to Media (3 credit hours). Introduction to most important mass communication theories as a context for examining main issues surrounding mass media in American society.

MJF 146: Media Aesthetics (3 credit hours). Introduction to design elements and techniques necessary for effective media production. Students discuss and participate in creative visual thinking. Prerequisite: major status or permission of instructor.

MAC 211: Introduction to Video Production (4 credit hours). Introduction to electronic media production. Students become acquainted with fundamentals and techniques of sound production and elements involved in the design and production of video messages. Pre-requisite: MAC 146, major status or permission of instructor.

MAC 213: Writing for Media (3 credit hours). Focus on the basics of writing for television, radio and new media, with emphasis on scriptwriting for feature film and narrative for television. Treatment of documentary material and introduction to narrative forms in new media. MAC 146 or permission of instructor. Cross-listed with ENG.

MAC 311: Digital Film Production (3 credit hours). Experience in production and direction of television formats with emphasis on applied media aesthetics. Field production theories and exercises. Pre-requisite: MAC 211, major status or permission of instructor.

MAC 414: Capstone Productions: Project in Digital Narrative Film Production (4 credit hours). In-depth production of a digital narrative film. Students meet regularly in groups to discuss progress and implement ideas. Final film is screened publicly for the Miami community. Pre-requisite: Appropriate coursework and permission of instructor.

PHL 241: Aesthetics (3 credit hours). Introduction to basic notions of aesthetics, such as the definition of art, truth in the arts, characterization of aesthetic experience, etc. through examination of specific philosophies and problem areas. Readings may range from classical to contemporary thinkers. Offered infrequently.

THE 253: Costume Fundamentals (3 credit hours credit hours). Practical exploration of the techniques used to realize costume design, such as dyeing, pattern drafting, texture and fashion history.

THE 255: Fundamentals of Scenery Construction and Props (3 credit hours credit hours). Intended for beginners, this course provides students with a basic knowledge of the techniques, tools and materials of scenery and prop fabrication and introduces the artistic and practical considerations that underlie them.

THE 439A: Acting for the Camera (3 credit hours credit hours). Practical application and exercises in advanced skill areas applicable to film and television acting.

Faculty

Core Faculty

Kerry Hegarty | Associate Professor, Area Coordinator | hegartkt@miamioh.edu
Bruce Drushel | Professor, Chair of MJF | drushebe@miamioh.edu
Kathleen German | Professor | germankm@miamioh.edu
Andy Rice | Assistant Professor | riceda@miamioh.edu
Hugo Rios | Visiting Assistant Professor | riosh@miamioh.edu
David Sholle | Associate Professor | sholled@miamioh.edu

Affiliated Faculty

Annie Dell'Ariaa | Assistant Professor, Art History
Mila Ganeva | Professor, German
Elisabeth Hodges | Associate Professor, French
Mariana Ivanova | Assistant Professor, German
Katie Johnson | Professor, English
Andrea Righi | Assistant Professor, Italian

Collaborating Faculty

cris cheek | Associate Professor, Creative Writing
Jose Dominguez Burdalo | Associate Professor, Spanish
Erin Edwards | Associate Professor, English
Daniele Fioretti | Lecturer, Italian
Paula Gandara | Professor, Portuguese
Nalin Jayasena | Associate Professor, English
Paul B. Larson | Professor, Mathematics
Elaine Miller | Professor, Philosophy
Steve Norris | Professor, History
Noriko Reider | Professor, Japanese
Liang Shi | Professor, Chinese
Haosheng Yang | Associate Professor, Chinese

Emeritus Faculty

John Heyda | Associate Professor, English
Pete Martin | Emeritus Senior Instructor, Department of English
Sante Matteo | Professor, Italian
Peter Rose | Professor, Classics
David Schloss | Professor, English