Summer Abroad 2008
China - Shanghai and Hong Kong
Chinese Cinema, Culture, and Society
June 21 - July 19, 2008
Comparative Literature 180S and 198 (8 units)
We will spend to weeks each in Shanghai and Hong Kong, which have been China's great cultural and economic centers, and are among the most cosmopolitan cities of the world. While
Shanghai was the center of the Chinese film industry up to 1949, Hong Kong is the seat of one of the most influential cinemas in the world today. This course examines Chinese cinema,
culture, and society, focusing on films set in these two cities. We study the themes, styles, stars, and directors of Chinese cinema and at the same time understand Chinese culture
and society through the lens of cinema. All Chinese films are subtitled in English.
No prerequisites.
Instructor
Sheldon Lu (shlu@ucdavis.edu)
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Germany and Switzerland (Düsseldorf and Locarno)
Contemporary European Cinema
August 1 - August 31, 2008
Film Studies 142 & 198 or German 142 & 198 (8 units)
This program will examine the current state of European media culture in the age of globalization, especially through films and other visual media from the European Union (EU). The
highlight of the program will be a week-long trip to the Locarno Film Festival, one of Europe's most important festivals set in the lovely lake region of southern Switzerland/northern
Italy (near Lake Como). Since the 1989 fall of the Berlin Wall, European integration has accelerated, underscoring the emergence of a new political and economic superpower. This course
will consider whether a coherent media culture has emerged along with these political and economic realignments. We will examine production, distribution, and exhibition conditions
across the EU, and such filmmakers as Pedro Almodovar, Lars von Trier, Stephen Frears, Michael Haneke, Florian von Donnersmarck, Claire Denis, Fatih Akin, among others. The program
will be located at the center of the EU, in lovely and fashionable Düsseldorf on the Rhine River, close to both Brussels and Strasbourg (the capitals of the EU) as well as equidistant
from both Paris and Berlin.
No prerequisites.
Instructor
Jaimey Fisher (jrfisher@ucdavis.edu)
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Scotland - Edinburgh
Film as Narrative: Inventing Scotland
July 19 - August 16, 2008
English 160 or FMS 189 and ENL 198
What is Scotland? Who are the Scots? How has the medium of film contributed to these cultural constructs? To answer these questions, we will study popular film from the silent era
to the contemporary. Our explorations will unfold against a backdrop of Scottish history and selections from key literary figures such as Robert Burns, Sir Walter Scott, Muriel Spark,
and Irvine Welsh. We will be based in Edinburgh, one of Europe's most beautiful cities, during the Edinburgh Festival, the world's largest arts festival-and we'll take the
opportunity to attend several events. Field trips will visit film location sites in Edinburgh and throughout Scotland, including the spectacular Highlands. Dr. Johns will co-teach
the course with award-winning Scottish screenwriter Ninian Dunnett.
Prerequisite: English 3, University Writing Program 1 or consent of instructor.
Instructor
Donald Johns (dbjohns@ucdavis.edu)
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Trinidad & Tobago - St. Augustine
Documentary Filmmaking in the Caribbean
June 29 - July 29, 2008
African American and African Studies 168 & 198
This class focuses on the art of documentary production. Working in groups students will write and produce documentary films. Documentaries are often seen as objective, as reality.
Through an understanding of documentary history and theory the class will ask students to consider this notion by looking at both African American and mainstream documentaries. The
students will learn documentary theory and different modes, styles, and types of documentary filmmaking. Students will work in groups to produce films based on local social issues and
cultural events, such as the Tobago Heritage Festival.
Prerequisites: Humanities 10, African American and African Studies 170 and consent of instructor. African American and African Studies 50 recommended.
Instructor
Christine Acham (acham@ucdavis.edu)
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