90103 - STORIA E TECNICA DEL CINEMA

Learning outcomes

The course aims to provide a basic knowledge of the history of cinema, chiefly for a degree in cultural heritage. It includes a historical part concerning the most significant authors, the evolution of techniques, languages, and the dissemination of social imaginaries linked to the cinematographic industry. Another part of the course will be dedicated to the widespread social and cultural practices related to the cinematographic apparatus, such as the phenomena of home movies, or the documentation cinema. A final part will concern the issues related to the preservation and possible digitization of the cinematographic materials, as well as to the topics of cataloguing, managing and access to historical cinematographic heritage.

Course contents

The course aim to provide some critical analysis tools of the history of cinema in relation to cultural memory. The course will explore some tools to analyze and understand audiovisual language (framing, editing, photography, sound) with particular attention to documentary and amateur cinema, and its links with other visual languages, in particular with photography. For this reason, the course will focus on the analysis of objects of visual culture, considering cinema in the light of more general theoretical issues related to image theories.

The first part of the course will be dedicated to an introduction of the history of cinema and its languages: the main phases of its historical development will therefore be outlined with particular attention to the origins of the medium, to classic Hollywood cinema, to the avant-garde, to documentary and amateur cinema, to auteur cinema, to the digital turning point. In this phase, reference will also be made to the analysis of the film image also in relation to the wider visual culture.
After this historical and linguistic introduction, the second part of the course will address the relationship between cinema and cultural memory. Attention will therefore be paid to the practices that cinema allows to implement in particular with respect to the forms of memory. In this part of the course we will mainly analyze family and amateur cinema.
The last part will be dedicated to the theme of cinema as a cultural asset and will address issues related to the conservation of film archives and their enhancement, with particular reference to the theme of their cataloging and digitization.

Readings/Bibliography

All students are required to prepare the texts in points A), B), C):


A) It requires the preparation of a manual to choose from those indicated below:

-K. Thompson, D. Bordwell; Jeff Smith, Storia del cinema. Un'introduzione, Milano, Mc Graw Hill, 2022 (or previous editions);

-R. Caccia, Storia e cultura del cinema. Figure, forme, temi, Pearson Edizioni, Torino, 2021.

 

B) Works related to film practices and cultural memory:

Alice Cati, Gli strumenti del ricordo. I media e la memoria, Brescia, La Scuola, 2016

C) Works on the conservation and cataloging of photography and audiovisuals:

A. Giannarelli, O. Martini, E. Segna (a cura di), Il documento audiovisivo: tecniche e metodi per la catalogazione. Con le Regole Fiaf di catalogazione per gli archivi di film, Fondazione Archivio Audiovisivo del Movimento Operaio e Democratico – Assessorato alle politiche della cultura del turismo e dello spettacolo – Centro Audiovisivo Regione Lazio, Roma 1995


D) The preparation of the volume is required only for non-attending students:


W. J. T. Mitchell, Pictorial turn. Saggi di cultura visuale, a cura di Michele Cometa e Valeria Cammarata, Milano, Raffaello Cortina, 2017, cap. 1 (Mostrare il vedere. Una critica della cultura visuale), cap. 2 (I quattro concetti fondamentali della scienza dell'immagine), cap. 5 (I media visivi non esistono), cap. 8 (Realismo e immagine digitale)

Teaching methods

The course includes lectures and seminar lessons, as well as the viewing and analysis of audiovisual material that is an integral part of the program by the students.

Assessment methods

The preparation will be assessed on a final oral exam consisting of at least three questions on authors, periods and languages of cinema whose knowledge was acquired during the course based on the works at point A of the bibliography and a discussion on theoretical and methodological texts that highlights the essential issues addressed by Works at point B and C of the bibliography and only for non-attending studentsin at point D.

The candidate must be able to correctly frame the languages, protagonists and events of the development of cinema in their historical-cultural context in relation to the social imaginary and the practices of memory. For the part relating to the methodological and theoretical works, it is required to know how to highlight the essential problems addressed in the volumes and the main theoretical and methodological issues.

For all students, the final assessment will comply with the following indications in accordance with the University guidelines:

- insufficient grade: gaps in basic knowledge and inability to produce a correct interpretation of the texts and / or of the main theoretical and methodological issues.

- sufficient grade: possession of basic knowledge; mainly correct interpretation, but carried out with imprecision and little autonomy.

- good grade: possession of intermediate level knowledge; fully correct interpretation, but not always precise and autonomous.

- excellent grade: possession of high level knowledge; interpretation of problems not only correct but conducted with autonomy and precision. Excellent oral expression skills.

Teaching tools

Presentation of audio-visual material during classes, filmography.

Office hours

See the website of Raffaella Biscioni