A beginners' guide to cinema: how to read a film

By the end of the course you should be able to:Identify and name the formal elements at work a film shot and/or sequenceUnderstand how these elements work as part of the shot or sequence as a whole.Understand some of the elements of style in films of different periods and national cinemasCommunicate your own responses to shots and sequences in films…and hopefully enhance your enjoyment of film viewing through this increased depth of understanding of how cinema works as a visual medium.

You may find it helpful to have access, ahead of the class, to ‘The Cinema Book’ edited by Pam Cook published by the British Film Institute (BFI) 3rd edition.

Viewing and discussion of extracts• Tutor explanation• Some close film analysis• Group discussionTutor explanation of key issues in film criticism and theory, with particular relevance to ‘reading’ and analysing elements of the film image and including…• Explanation, with examples, of key terms.• Techniques of film analysis will be explained and demonstrated, and students will work individually and/or in small groups, with selected short passages from a range of films.• Students will report on and demonstrate their findings in class discussion.Students may wish to view the films, or some of them, before the class; but this is by no means a requirement. Some suggestions for further reading and viewing will be distributed at the end of the class.