| Description |
Like many non-American film cultures in the Anglophone world, Australian cinema exists on the margins of a Hollywood-dominated industry. Yet, since the 1970s, when the government started a massive campaign to stimulate domestic film production, Australian film has carved out a niche for itself with a unique yet diverse approach to the medium. In this seminar we will watch and discuss a variety of films from directors like Peter Weir, Gillian Armstrong, Fred Schepisi, Bruce Beresford, George Miller, Phillip Noyce, John Hillcoat, and Baz Luhrmann. We will explore the industrial and socio-political context of Australian film, its aesthetic strategies with its peculiar combination of artfulness and commercial appeal, its efforts to provide, affirm, but also critically interrogate a national cultural identity, its reflection of the country’s troubled colonial history, its appreciation of cultural diversity, particularly after the groundbreaking Mabo-decision in 1992, and its positioning towards American cinema, particularly in its treatment of genre.
This course has two parts:
- Seminar: Wed, 2-4 p.m.
- Optional film screening: Tue, 6-9 p.m.
Recommended introductory reading:
- Moran, Albert and Errol Vieth. Film in Australia: An Introduction. CUP, 2006.
- O’Regan, Tom. Australian National Cinema. London, New York: Routledge, 1996.
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