Week 1
Lesson 1
Introductions and New Genres after World War II
After introductions and classroom expectations are discussed, students will dive into how World War II impacted the film market, shaking up existing traditions in Germany and the United States. Further, students will discuss how tensions and rebuilding after the War led to avant-garde genres like French New Wave and Italian Neorealism.
 Week 2
Lesson 2
The Hollywood Golden Age
This week, students explore the expansion of American film after the War, the rise of celebrity culture, and how politics began interfering with film production. Students will learn about the expansion of film noir and westerns after the War, alongside discussions of the Hays Code, the first code of conduct for film, and how McCarthyism and the Red Scare impacted those behind the scenes.
 Week 3
Lesson 3
 Television and Its Impact
Students will learn about the rise of television in the post-War period and how it impacted theater-going, from the demolition of cartoon shorts in theaters to the reduction of theater audiences to the return to cinema classic genres, like Slapstick, on the small screen. Students will be introduced to their first writing assignment, a short analysis of an early television episode discussing how it relates to film traditions. Students will have two weeks to complete this assignment.
 Week 4
Lesson 4
 International Film Exploration--Bollywood and Japanese Film after the War
We take an international look at film traditions that become heavily popular after the War. First, all eyes are on India and a discussion of Bollywood traditions, including the origins of this theatrical, musical tradition and how it was used to draw attention to cultural pressures and issues in colonized India. Further, students will explore film traditions in Japan after the war, including the rise of animation traditions, martial arts films in the international market and, of course, Godzilla
 Week 5
Lesson 5
Hollywood New Wave
In Week five, students will take a look at a shift away from the Hollywood studio system from the 1960s beyond, and evaluate how this led to a change in subject matter, focusing on grittier, more realistic films, leaving behind romanticized storylines of the past. Further, students will discuss how this led to a change in actor's contracts, the production of the MPAA rating system, and an engagement with the counter culture of the 1960s.
 Week 6
Lesson 6
 Director as Auteur
Students will explore major films of the late 1960s, 70s, and 80s through a discussion of the rise of the director-as-genius concept after the collapse of the studio system. Students will look at the development of several film genres, including horror, sci-fi, and drama, through a discussion of filmmakers like Alfred Hitchcock, Stanley Kubrick, Francis Ford Coppola, and more. Students will be introduced to their film review project today
 Week 7
Lesson 7
A Crisis in Animation
Students will discuss how television impacted the animation market, as well as new challenges from international markets, like Japanese animation. In this class, students will evaluate how animation began losing its realism in the period between the 70s and 80s as film artists began leaving for television programming, followed by the animation Renaissance of the 1990s. Our class ends discussing the rise of computer technologies and the development of Toy Story.
 Week 8
Lesson 8
Digital Technologies
Based on our conversation from the previous week, students will expand their knowledge of the use of digital technologies in film through the 70s, 80s, and 90s, specifically. Students will discuss early attitudes towards computers, including pushback against Tron, as well as directors that were revolutionizing practical effects at the time, such as George Lucas and Star Wars. Students will trace the chronology of significant advancements in digital technologies that led to important films.
 Week 9
Lesson 9
 CGI and the Franchise Crisis
Students will discuss the basics of how CGI works and how it differs from earlier technologies. In this discussion, students will make comparisons to animation and discuss the boundary between live action and animated films today. Further, students will discuss how CGI led to a franchise bubble, born in the 2000s, and discuss the triumphs of CGI in these films, like in Avatar and Marvel franchises, but also highlight how this has led to a potential crisis of future cinema.
 Week 10
Lesson 10
Final Discussion of Projects and the Death of Cinema???
In our final week of class, students will spend the first half of the class discussing how YouTube, streaming, and the pandemic have led to a controversial discussion of the "Death of Cinema". We will discuss how these at-home technologies impact theater-going and how directors and actors are using new technology and nostalgia to bring audiences back, like with Top Gun: Maverick. The bulk of class is dedicated to students sharing their film reviews with their peers and a discussion of the films.