French
320 Studies in French Cinema
Survey of French Cinema
Fall 2008, M 4-6:45pm, 209 Swan Hall, Kingston
Taught in English* - Dr. Alain-Philippe Durand
FRN 320 Fall 2006
Films are in
French with English subtitles. All readings,
assignments, and class discussions are conducted in English. This
course counts toward the Film Media major & minor, the French
major/minor, the Fine Arts/Literature gen.
ed. requirement, and counts as a diversity [D] course. French 320
may be repeated
with different topics. Students who
wish to count this course toward a French major or
minor will write exams and term paper in French; other students will
work
in English. NO KNOWLEDGE OF FRENCH IS
NEEDED IN THIS COURSE.
What
Past
Participants Think:
"Before
I took French 320, my knowledge of French cinema was almost
exclusively connected to Gerard Depardieu and
heavy black eyeliner. After taking the
course, however, I have a working knowledge of the most important
trends, directors, actors, and ideas behind French cinema of
the 20th century. The films and readings covered in this
course have become a point of reference for me in dealing
with both film and popular culture.
Now that I live in Paris, it has
become transparent that we did indeed cover seminal works in
French 320. I took the class for credit in
the French department, which meant I performed all written
work in French, and this provided an invaluable opportunity
to develop my writing skills under the guidance of an
attentive professor. I highly
recommend the course." Sarah Feeley (BFA Theatre, BA French)
"Throughout
my French studies, the Cinema course
was definitely one of my favorites. The
overall atmosphere of the class was very laid-back and relaxed.
In addition to
learning about French culture and films, I also learned how to really
watch a
movie and understand the meaning or purpose of the film instead of just
sitting
there simply being entertained." Melissa Klipple (BA in Math and French).
"I enrolled in French
320 in the fall of 2000, while I was working toward a degree in
secondary
French education. Since I wanted to
teach high school, I knew I had to be knowledgeable about many areas of
francophone language, life, and culture.
Taking this course was a good idea to help reach this goal. In French 320, I
learned about the history of French cinema and a great deal about
cinematography itself. What helped me the most, however, was engaging
in
debates based on the films. This became routine in our class.
Since I am a hands- on
learner, I enjoyed being part of the “Ciné-Club”. I
remember how hard our group worked,
anticipating the public showing of our film! This project was very
effective in reinforcing the class goals. In fact,
one day I would like to create a similar project for my own high-
school
students. In short, it is best
to say that I bring the experience of this class with me into my own
classroom." Kristy Thistle (French and Education)
"FRN 320 was one of
my most memorable and enjoyable classes at URI. Here's a rundown
of
things I liked: an upper level French class taught in English!; the
class covered very diverse films spanning several decades so there was
generally something to interest everyone; I enjoyed having to prepare
the small group project. Presenting the
film, fielding questions, essentially turning the table and making the
students
be the teachers. I remember the room was packed with people, some
from
the community even and we had some great discussions. Great
experience." Lauren Cabral (French and
Communications).
"I thoroughly enjoyed FRN 320. It was a way to really explore the culture and see some of the differences between French cinema and Hollywood as we know it. It was fascinating to see how many different interpretations of one film could be made." Kelli Tautic (formerly Burrier) (French and Education)
"I thought French 320 was a great class in that it opened my eyes to French cinema. I learned to look for a deeper meaning in the scenes and how
to analyze them. I really enjoyed learning about the directors, the cinematography, and of course seeing France through a camera lens." Erika
Hansson (French and English)
"French 320 was one of the most
interesting classes I took at URI. It got me more interested in film
and more critical of where movies are going today." Matt Kane (French
and Computer Engineering)
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