Willamette University's Cinema Studies Program offers the intimacy and rigor of a small private liberal arts college along with the chance to focus baccalaureate study on the history, aesthetics, and cultural significance of cinema. Although Willamette's program focuses on analysis rather than production, all Cinema Studies majors also explore some aspect of the making of cinema. Students have the option to take additional electives in this area, and those students may also complete a production-oriented creative senior project.
Requirements for the Cinema Studies Major (36 semester hours)
36 semester hours, at least twelve semester hours in addition to the senior project must be at the 300 level or above. No course may be counted twice.
Introduction to Cinema Studies (4 semester hours)
- CINE 110 Introduction to Cinema Study (4)
Area 1: Production (4 semester hours)
- ARTS 121 Introduction to Digital Media (4)
- ARTS 216 Video Art (4)
- ARTS 232 Black and White Photography (4)
- ARTS 242 Photography: Experimental Processes (4)
- ARTS 331 Installation Art (4)
- ARTS 355 Advanced Photography (4)
- ARTS 357 Photography Now (4)
- CINE 394 Major Internship (1-4)
- ENGL 339W Special Topics in Creative Writing (4) (when focused on screenwriter)
- MUSC 121 Creating Music with Technology (4)
- MUSC 425 Recording Studio Music Production (4)
Area 2: Theory (4 semester hours)
- ENGL 355 Feminist Film Criticism (4)
- RHET 235W Propaganda: WWII & Cold War (4)
- RHET 240W Propaganda: 21st Century (4)
- RHET 309W Filming Identity: Israeli & Palestinian Documentary (2)
- RHET 310W Conflict & Identity: Israeli & Palestinian Feature Film (2)
- RHET 362W Telling News: Framing Reality (4)
- RUSS 235 Russian and Soviet Cinema (4)
Area 3: Cinema and Society (4 semester hours)
- ANTH 335 Visual Anthropology (4)
- CCM 258 Gender and Mass Communication in Asia (4)
- CCM 301 Asian Visual and Creative Culture (4)
- HIST 270 Cinema in the Middle East (4)
- MUSC 214 Knowing the Score: A History of Music for Film (4)
- PHEAL 120 Global Health through Film (4)
- RHET 235W Propaganda: WWII & Cold War (4)
- RHET 240W Propaganda: 21st Century (4)
- RHET 271 Telling the Internment Story (4)
- RHET 309W Filming Identity: Israeli & Palestinian Documentary (2)
- RHET 310W Conflict & Identity: Israeli & Palestinian Feature Film (2)
- RHET 362W Telling News: Framing Reality (4)
Area 4: National and Transnational Cinema (4 semester hours)
- CCM 258 Gender and Mass Communication in Asia (4)
- CCM 288 Introducing Asia to the World (4)
- CCM 301 Asian Visual and Creative Culture (4)
- FREN 241 Topics in French History through Film (4)
- FREN 275 African Cinema (4)
- GERM 241 German Cinema and Visual Culture (4)
- HIST 270 Cinema in the Middle East (4)
- JAPN 340 The Japanese Cinema (4)
- RUSS 235 Russian and Soviet Cinema (4)
- SPAN 260 Hispanic Literature in Translation (4) (when focused on cinematic adaptation)
- SPAN 380 Latin American Cinema (4)
Twelve additional semester hours
At least two courses at the 300 level, and at least two courses from a single Area (1-4). No class may be counted twice. One course may be counted by petition when the focus is in a cinema studies area.
Senior Project (4 semester hours)
A senior project, approved by the Cinema Studies faculty, which might be a creative or critical project. Projects will only be approved for which students have completed appropriate previous course work. It might be satisfied by:
- CINE 499 Senior Project (4), or
- With the cooperation of faculty in another discipline and the approval of Cinema Studies faculty, through the successful completion of a project or seminar approved for the purpose and worth at least four credits in another department. A single paper will not normally be approved as satisfying two different senior requirements and a proposal for a senior project in connection with a course in another discipline will require notification to and approval by both faculties.
Requirements for the Cinema Studies Minor (20 semester hours)
- CINE 110 Introduction to Cinema Studies (4)
- 4 semester hours from each of the Areas 1-4 above. At least two of the classes must be at the 300 level or above.
Indicators of Achievement
Student Learning Outcomes for the Cinema Studies Major
- Students should develop a broadly interdisciplinary approach to an understanding of film and its role in society
- Students should be conversant with the history of international cinema and be able to use that history to provide context for other works they encounter
- Students should be competent in employing theoretical and disciplinary tools in the analysis and assessment of film and filmic images
- Students should have basic competence in some format associated with visual media—digital video, digital music, screenwriting, photography, or animation
- Students should be competent in developing critical responses to cinematic work based upon aesthetic or cultural values other than the entertainment model that dominates the mainstream Hollywood distribution system
Faculty
- Jeanne Clark, Professor of Cinema Studies and Rhetoric
- Sarah Clovis Bishop, Associate Professor of Russian
- Joy Davenport, Teppola Presidential Distinguished Visiting Professor
- Ricardo De Mambro Santos , Professor, Department of Art History, Department Chair
- Leslie Dunlap, Continuing Professor of History
- Amadou Fofana, Professor of French and Francophone Studies; French Department Chair,
- Alexandra Opie, Department Co-chair, Professor of Art (Sabbatical for 2022-2023)
- Huike Wen, Professor
- Peter Wogan, Professor of Anthropology and Global Cultural Studies
- Aili Zheng, Professor of German
Course Listings
CINE 110 Introduction to Cinema Studies (4)
An introduction to the critical study of film and moving images, covering basic elements of cinema—construction of the image in the frame (including lighting, the use of black and white and color), editing, elements of sound, and narrative strategies. The course will consider the effects of technological changes on cinematic practice, on the nature of the film industry and on audiences. Emphasis on constructing readings of films as well as on basic theoretical strategies that question and critique the role of cinema in culture and society.
- General Education Requirement Fulfillment: Arts & Humanities, Social Sciences
- Offering: Annually
- Instructor: Bishop, Fofana, Michel
CINE 199 Topics in Cinema Studies (1-4)
A semester-long study of topics in Cinema Studies. Topics and emphases will vary according to the instructor. This course may be repeated for credit with different topics. See the New and Topics Courses page on the Registrar’s webpage for descriptions and applicability to majors/minors in other departments.
- General Education Requirement Fulfillment: Topic dependent
- Prerequisite: Topic dependent
- Offering: Occasionally
- Professor: Staff
CINE 240 Propaganda (4)
Propaganda is a word that people often mistakenly associate with what "the other" does rather than what "we" do. This course will introduce theories relevant to the study of propaganda and examine strategies that propagandists employ in their efforts to direct the beliefs and attitudes of their audience. The course will focus on film and cartoon propaganda of WWII, the Cold War, and the 21st century but will not be limited to those media. Students will be asked to consider the ethical implications of propaganda use. The course is discussion centered and project based. A screening time will be required every other week to accommodate longer films.
- General Education Requirement Fulfillment: TArts & Humanities
- Prerequisite: None
- Offering: Alternate years
- Professor: Clark
CINE 299 Topics in Cinema Studies (1-4)
A semester-long study of topics in Cinema Studies. Topics and emphases will vary according to the instructor. This course may be repeated for credit with different topics. See the New and Topics Courses page on the Registrar’s webpage for descriptions and applicability to majors/minors in other departments.
- General Education Requirement Fulfillment: Topic dependent
- Prerequisite: Topic dependent
- Offering: Occasionally
- Professor: Staff
CINE 394 Major Internship (1-4)
This course is offered to sophomores, juniors, and seniors majoring in Cinema Studies. The instructor will work with students to help acquire internships in the Salem/Portland area and oversee the internship as it progresses throughout the semester. A variety of internship placements will be pursued including those in pre-production, production, distribution, and exhibition. Interns are placed only in positions which provide academic learning opportunities and the availability of such positions may be limited. Credit will vary depending on number of hours and extent of final paper; all interns will maintain a journal of internship experiences and meet regularly with the instructor. Interested students should contact Cinema Studies faculty the semester prior to their internship in order to secure a worthwhile position. May be repeated for credit.
- Prerequisite: CINE 110 and Permission of Instructor
- Offering: Every Semester
- Instructor: Staff
CINE 399 Topics in Cinema Studies (1-4)
A semester-long study of topics in Cinema Studies. Topics and emphases will vary according to the instructor. This course may be repeated for credit with different topics. See the New and Topics Courses page on the Registrar’s webpage for descriptions and applicability to majors/minors in other departments.
- General Education Requirement Fulfillment: Topic dependent
- Prerequisite: Topic dependent
- Offering: Occasionally
- Professor: Staff
CINE 429 Topics in Cinema Studies (1-4)
A semester-long study of topics in Cinema Studies. Topics and emphases will vary according to the instructor. This course may be repeated for credit with different topics. See the New and Topics Courses page on the Registrar’s webpage for descriptions and applicability to majors/minors in other departments.
- General Education Requirement Fulfillment: Topic dependent
- Prerequisite: Topic dependent
- Offering: Occasionally
- Professor: Staff
CINE 499 Senior Project (4)
Development of a senior thesis or project approved by Cinema Studies faculty and developed in a group seminar as well as advanced independent work.
- Prerequisite: Cinema Studies major and senior standing.
- Offering: Annually
- Instructor: Staff