98808 - Cultures of Entertainment (LM)

Course contents

The course focuses on media franchise cultures. The phenomenon is examined in its complexity through four main perspectives:

• Industries: organizational structures, policies, and cross-sector strategies of media conglomerates; the economic principles of media franchises; intellectual property management; the development and management of commercial storyworlds.
• Narratives: paradigms of serial storytelling; narrative construction and world-building; forms of revival and reboot.
• (Trans)media: the specific characteristics, languages, and functions of the different media that make up a franchise; transmedia storytelling and cross-media synergies.
• Consumption: the interaction between corporate strategies and participatory cultures; grassroots fan practices and their influence on the evolution of media franchises.

By adopting a historical perspective that extends to contemporary developments, the course highlights the relationships among these four dimensions and provides students with theoretical and methodological tools for the critical analysis of media franchises and the strategies of the media conglomerates that produce them.

Readings/Bibliography

Attending students

• Paola Brembilla, Franchise mediali. Industrie, narrazioni e pubblici, Pàtron, Bologna, 2023.
• Paolo Bertetti, Che cos'è la transmedialità, Carocci, Rome, 2020 (selected chapters, as specified during the course).
• Additional materials provided by the instructor and made available on the Virtuale platform, together with lecture slides and class notes.

Non-attending students

• Paola Brembilla, Franchise mediali. Industrie, narrazioni e pubblici, Pàtron, Bologna, 2023.
• Paolo Bertetti, Che cos'è la transmedialità, Carocci, Rome, 2020.
• Marco Cucco, Il film blockbuster. Storia e caratteristiche delle grandi produzioni hollywoodiane, Carocci, Rome, 2010.

Students with specific learning disorders (SLD) or temporary or permanent disabilities: students are encouraged to contact the relevant University support office and the professor as early as possible, in order to identify the most appropriate strategies for attending classes and/or preparing for and taking the examination.

 

Teaching methods

Lectures with slides, audio-visual materials, web resources, shared materials with students. 

During the lectures, interactive exercises (surveys, quizzes, small exercises) will be offered to assess the level of learning and the effectiveness of teaching methods.

 

Assessment methods

Attending Students

Written examination based on the required readings and the topics discussed during class.

The examination lasts 90 minutes and consists of three open-ended questions (10 points each, with the possibility of cum laude in cases of outstanding performance).

The examination will be administered through the EOL platform in a computer room during three examination sessions reserved for attending students, scheduled in June, July, and September. The examination dates will be announced during the first class.

Students are considered attending if they participate in at least 70% of the scheduled classes (at least 7 out of 10 class meetings, corresponding to 21 out of 30 teaching hours). Attendance is recorded through short quizzes administered during each class, which are designed both to monitor students' ongoing acquisition of the theoretical concepts and to record attendance.

Non-attending Students

Written examination based on the required readings. The examination consists of five open-ended questions (maximum 6 points each, with the possibility of cum laude in cases of outstanding performance).

The examination will be administered through the EOL platform in a computer laboratory and lasts 90 minutes.

 

Assessment Criteria. Assessment will reward not only formal accuracy but also the ability to discuss course topics critically and with intellectual awareness. A predominantly descriptive or factual approach will normally result in a satisfactory grade. Partial or incomplete knowledge, expressed through imprecise or inappropriate disciplinary language, will not normally receive more than a passing grade. Significant theoretical, critical, or bibliographical shortcomings will result in a failing grade. 

Use of Generative AI in Final Assessment. Generative AI may be used as a support tool for individual study, for example for background research, summarisation (only after students have actually read the original sources), and self-assessment activities. During the examination, however, the use of generative AI is strictly prohibited. Any use of AI tools during the examination constitutes a violation of academic integrity. 

 

Students with Specific Learning Disorders (SLD) or Temporary or Permanent Disabilities: students are encouraged to contact the relevant University support office and the instructor as early as possible in order to identify the most appropriate arrangements for preparing for and completing the examination.

 

Teaching tools

For those attending, the study material related to each lesson will be uploaded on the platform of support to teaching (Virtuale).

Class discussions will be stimulated and encouraged and will also be extended through digital tools as Wooclap.

During the first class, all the teaching methods and tools used will be introduced.

Office hours

See the website of Paola Brembilla