BA Film Studies and Russian / Course details

This course unit introduces students to a thematically led selection of films from Spain and Latin America from the 1960s to 2010. Exploring the reasons why in some cases we think about Hispanic Cinemas as being aesthetically and thematically linked, it offers a contextualisation and textual analysis of films in relation to a specific set of themes (e.g. history, memory, national identity, transnational filmmaking) and to the social contexts in which they were made. It pays attention to the specificities involved in studying screen cultures, approaches and productions from both Spain and Latin America .

• Engage with core cultural, social and political issues in relation to moving images.
• Develop knowledge of films from Spain and Latin America and their importance as cultural artefacts from the countries studied.
• Develop an awareness of the intercultural issues and their representation in cultural production, in this case cinema.

• Understand key themes approached by contemporary films from Spain and Latin America with a particular emphasis on national identities and their filmic representation.
• Gain knowledge of the historical and cultural context of production. 
• Comment on the social and political context of the films’ production.

• Carry out formal analysis of film and understand technical terms involved in this analysis and the theoretical debates that relate to this analysis.
• Relate the social context of films to their content and comment on key theoretical arguments involved in this analysis.
• Synthesise diverse arguments and interpretations of the films studied.

• Read, understand and discuss complex materials.
• Develop an awareness of cultural difference and creative responses to this.
• Work in groups.
• Present ideas effectively in written and oral forms.

• To use teamwork skills.
• To participate in groups discussions.
• To demonstrate independent thinking and research.

1. Triana-Toribio, Nuria. 2003. Spanish National Cinema. Edited by Susan Hayward, National Cinemas. London: Routledge.
2. Stone, Rob. 2002. Spanish Cinema, Inside Film. Harlow: Pearson Education.
3. Dennison, Stephanie. 2013. Contemporary Hispanic Cinema: Interrogating the Transnational in Spanish and Latin American film.  London. Tamesis.
4. Elena, Alberto and Marina Díaz López. 2003. The Cinema of Latin America. London: Wallflower.er.