MODULE SPECIFICATION
Code: UACAHD-30-3 Title: Cinema, Race and Ethnicity Version: 1
Level: 3 UWE credit rating: 30 ECTS credit rating: 15
Module type: Standard
Owning Faculty: Creative Arts Field: Film Studies
Faculty Committee approval: Quality and Standards Date: 24 June 2010
Approved for delivery by: n/a |
Valid from: Sept 2010 Discontinued from:
Contributes towards: BA (Hons) Film Studies (single and half awards)
Pre-requisites: UACPAH-30-2 Currents in Film Theory or UACPAL-30-2 Hollywood or UACPRL-30-2 World Cinema
Co-requisites: None
Excluded combinations: None
Learning outcomes:
At the end of the module, students should be able to demonstrate:
• A critical understanding of the ways in which the politics of representation operate within film and cinema, with specific reference to issues of race, ethnicity, colonial and post-colonial discourses (assessed through Component A and Component B, Element 1).
• The ability to produce analyses of films which evidence an awareness and understanding of theoretical debates in the field (assessed through Component B, Element 2).
• An understanding of the interrelationship between films and the historical and cultural contexts in which they are produced and consumed (assessed through Components A and B)
Syllabus outline:
The module explores theories of cinematic representation and spectatorship in relation to race and ethnicity, paying particular attention to the connection between filmic representation and ideologies of difference and Otherness. It explores the power of cinema, as a meaning-making practice, to simultaneously articulate and construct identities based on affiliations of race, ethnicity, regionality and nationality. The module applies theories of racial representation and spectatorship and focuses on areas such as (but not limited to): national and regional cinemas and ethnic identity; colonialist and post-colonial discourse; movements of indigenous media and negotiations of power; racial stereotyping; and culturally specific modes of spectatorship (e.g., segregated theatres).
Teaching and learning methods:
A variety of learning strategies are encouraged by this module. It will be taught through a combination of:
• Lectures. Introducing key ideas, either explaining significant cultural and historical shifts in the production/consumption of films, or introducing central critical debates.
• Screenings. Generally chosen to complement the relevant week’s lecture material.
• Seminars. Devoted to investigation of critical reading and practice in textual analysis. Seminars will also open up wider issues for discussion, according to students’ own interests.
• Regular Readings, which are designed to underpin and help develop critical and analytical skills.
• Independent Learning. Students will be expected to conduct individual research.
Reading Strategy
The module handbook will make clear which readings are essential each week. A module reader containing all essential readings will be made available to each student. Some further readings will also be referred to in lectures and listed on Blackboard, but students will also be expected to find their own further reading. Advice on finding sources will be provided on Blackboard and in seminars and tutorials. Blackboard will also provide links to digital readings and e-resources. All recommended readings will be available via the library, and held on appropriate loan periods. Where necessary, photocopies of a range of relevant readings will be held in the library’s Short Loan collection.
Assessment
Please state which element of assessment should be recorded as the final assessment for the purposes of submitting data on non-submissions to HEFCE. (For further information please contact Academic Registry.)
Weighting between components A and B (standard modules only) A: 25% B: 75%
ATTEMPT 1
First Assessment Opportunity (Sit)
Component A
Description of each element Element weighting
1. Presentation 25%
Component B
Description of each element
1. Short Essay (2000 words) 30%
2. Long Essay (3500 words) Final Element of Assessment 45%
Second Assessment Opportunity (Resit) (further attendance at taught classes is not required)
Component A
Description of each element Element weighting
1. Exam 25%
Component B
1. Short Essay (2000 words) 30%
2. Long Essay (3500 words) Final Element of Assessment 45%
EXCEPTIONAL SECOND ATTEMPT (Retake): Attendance at taught classes is required.
Specification confirmed by …………………………………………………Date ……………………………
(Associate Dean/Programme Director)