Unit name | Francophone Women Directors: Documentary Filmmaking |
---|---|
Unit code | FREN30111 |
Credit points | 20 |
Level of study | H/6 |
Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24) |
Unit director | Dr. Albertine Fox |
Open unit status | Not open |
Pre-requisites |
None |
Co-requisites |
None |
School/department | Department of French |
Faculty | Faculty of Arts |
This unit will allow students to study documentaries by Francophone women directors from the late 1970s to the present. It will introduce students to histories and theories of documentary filmmaking, providing an introduction to feminist documentary filmmaking in French and Anglophone contexts, while also recognising the blanks and erasures in those histories. With a focus on feminist experimental filmmaking practices and covering secondary literature on (neo)colonial and postcolonial thought, geo-politics, and sexual politics, students will investigate how the directors and their films engage both formally, thematically, and in terms of narrative structure, with contemporary political and social issues connected to the representation of women’s experiences. They will also examine each film’s interrogation of key themes (encompassing race, sexuality, class, religion, and age). Questions of truth, authenticity, and performance will be considered alongside reference to voice, storytelling, and representational choices that both challenge and exploit techniques deployed in mainstream narrative cinema. Students will develop an advanced understanding of the basic tenets of documentary film theory from a gendered perspective, while furthering their skills in critical thinking, oral presentation, and close analysis. A varied range of critical perspectives will be discussed through the study of set films and theoretical texts, and secondary readings will be in English and French.
Aims:
On successful completion of this unit, students will be able to:
Teaching will be delivered through a combination of synchronous sessions and asynchronous activities, including seminars, lectures, and collaborative as well as self-directed learning opportunities supported by tutor consultation.
1 group oral presentation in pairs (15 mins) (25%), group mark, testing ILOs 2-5
1 extended essay, 4000 words (75%), testing ILOs 1-4
If this unit has a Resource List, you will normally find a link to it in the Blackboard area for the unit. Sometimes there will be a separate link for each weekly topic.
If you are unable to access a list through Blackboard, you can also find it via the Resource Lists homepage. Search for the list by the unit name or code (e.g. FREN30111).
How much time the unit requires
Each credit equates to 10 hours of total student input. For example a 20 credit unit will take you 200 hours
of study to complete. Your total learning time is made up of contact time, directed learning tasks,
independent learning and assessment activity.
See the Faculty workload statement relating to this unit for more information.
Assessment
The Board of Examiners will consider all cases where students have failed or not completed the assessments required for credit.
The Board considers each student's outcomes across all the units which contribute to each year's programme of study. If you have self-certificated your absence from an
assessment, you will normally be required to complete it the next time it runs (this is usually in the next assessment period).
The Board of Examiners will take into account any extenuating circumstances and operates
within the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes.