Students can choose from six mini courses starting after spring break. All are one credit and students attend films and events sponsored by the Finger Lakes Environmental Film Festival. All of the courses have engaging topics connected to FLEFF. Students can register on HOMER using the CRN's below.
FLEFF MINI COURSES Block II SPRING 2016
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Narrative Landscapes and Rhetorical Landmines 44190 - GCOM 11500 - 01
Why do audiences make some films popular and not others? What does that tell us about the kinds of narratives that resonate with mass audiences? How do some films convey messages that function as cultural landmines and others have underlying messages that shift digital, cultural, economic, ideological, social, environmental, and political landscapes? In this class we discuss how filmmakers function as dominant storytellers through their uses of narratives, words, images and sounds to rhetorically engage current debates and issues. As such, we consider the methods of rhetorical criticism to help uncover their arguments and implications. In this course students will write reflections on required readings and films and attend FLEFF screenings. 1 credit S/D/F Block II- Wednesdays 4:00pm-6:30pm. Chris House
Don't Tread on Me! Landscapes as Agents 44191 - GCOM 11600 - 01
We tend to think of landscapes as backdrops--passive stages on which the real story is enacted by screenwriters, directors, and actors. What if the scene itself was a prime mover in the story? What if landscapes themselves were agents that interact with other subjects in meaningful ways to make the story happen? In this course we will use environmental film to explore the strangely appealing and thought-provoking notion of non-human agency. We will come to realize that landscapes are far from passive scenes. In fact, landscapes are key agents in human stories of life on Earth. Students will attend FLEEF screenings, watch other environmental films, read assigned texts, and participate in classroom discussions. Grading is based on participation. In this course students will write reflections on required readings and films and attend FLEFF screenings. 1 credit S/D/F Block II 2:35-3:50pm TR. Jake Brenner
Political Landscapes: Environmental and Regional Identities 44193 - GCOM 11700 - 01
This course examines the role landscapes play in relation to political identities, using a theory of cinematic bioregionalism. Bioregionalism is a practice of environmental activism and thought that emphasizes the inextricable links between human culture and the natural environment in which it is embedded. This reframing is in part a cultural practice, the fostering of a “bioregional imagination” that promotes the “reinhabitation” of the landscape, a renewed connection between community and place. Students will write reflections on required readings and films and attend FLEFF screenings. 1 credit S/D/F Block II Wednesday, 3/16, 3-6pm, Wednesday, 3/23, 3-6pm, Festival week 3/28-4/3 (hours TBD), Wednesday, 4/6, 3-6pm Matt Holtmeier
Political Landscapes: 2016 Campaign Platforms 44192 - GCOM 11800 - 01
In this seminar students will explore the economic and environmental platforms of the candidates who are competing in the democratic and republican primaries for president. Students will also attend FLEFF films to analyze and compare themes explored in these films with positions taken by the candidates. In this course students will write reflections on required readings and films and attend FLEFF screenings. 1 credit S/D/F Block II Tuesdays 4 - 5:30 pm. Don Beachler
Keep On Moving: Road Films Across The American Landscape 44194 - GCOM 11900 - 01
Take a cinematic tour of the U.S. Ride along as we explore specific parts of the country within different decades through the lenses of varied filmmakers. Starting as far back as the 1930’s and ending up in this century we will try to uncover what qualities define a road film, what themes are consistently touched on, and what makes each film unique. From lovers on the run from the law, to counter-culture icons on motorcycles, to a dysfunctional family trip, roads films often define the places and times they were made in. Hop on board for this journey through a celluloid landscape. Students will also be required to attend two FLEFF films dowtown during the Festival. Block II Wednesdays 6:30-8:30 pm Andy Watts
FLEFF: Health Landscapes - 42615 - HLTH 39902 – 01 “Landscape” was first used in reference to 17th century Dutch painting, then migrated to lived observations and experiences. Landscapes shape culture, character, community and health. Health landscapes: hospitals, waste treatment plants, waiting rooms, climate chaos, arteries and veins, neighborhoods, poverty, bodies. We will pursue films, readings, and discussions about health landscapes in this course. Block II MW 4:00 pm - 5:15 pm Stewart Auyash
https://www.ithaca.edu/intercom/article.php/20160224092553663