Science fiction cinema: outer space as inner space
Course
In London
Description
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Type
Course
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Location
London
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Start date
Different dates available
Science fiction cinema portrays endless possibilities in the vastness of the cosmos (e.g., Interstellar, Contact and Kubrick’s Space Odyssey). Here we’ll reflect on the genre as revealing insights about our collective unconscious and inner worlds.BIOGRAHICAL DETAILS:Mary Wild is a film lecturer with an academic background in psychoanalytic theory. Her research interests include cinematic representation of identity, the unconscious, mental illness and auteur studies (e.g., David Lynch, Lars von Trier, and Stanley Kubrick). In addition to teaching at City Lit, Mary is a regular speaker at the Freud Museum and Shoreditch House.
Facilities
Location
Start date
Start date
About this course
-Understand how the psychoanalytic approach informs the study of popular image-construction and mythmaking-Learn film interpretation techniques to approach music video and cinema in a deep and investigative way-Gain a different perspective that will lead to a more enriched experience of spectatorship.
There are no additional costs beyond the enrolment fee. Material for taking notes will suffice for sessions.
Psychoanalytic terms will be taught in an inclusive, accessible and engaging way with the help of slide presentations and video montages. Group discussion will be encouraged, and there will be no assignments outside of class.
Reviews
Subjects
- Cinema
Course programme
Looking to outer space as a grand metaphor for the human psyche, we will study iconic examples from the science fiction film genre to uncover embedded hopes and fears transmitted in narrative and symbolic form. The fascination with extra-terrestrial beings, alien technology, strange worlds, extreme distance and longing for contact will be shown to play out in the sci-fi category, in an attempt to cast light in the darkness of inner life. Freudian and Jungian ideas will establish the framework for this unique and thought-provoking exploration.
Additional information
For all film studies courses, please pick up a copy of our prospectus or visit and browse under History, Culture and Writing.
General information and advice on courses at City Lit is available from the Student Centre and Library on Monday to Friday from 12:00 – 19:00.
See the course guide for term dates and further details
Science fiction cinema: outer space as inner space