FLM 172 — Auteur Cinema: Six Directors and Their Signature Styles
Quarter: Fall
Instructor(s): Mick LaSalle
Date(s): Oct 8—Dec 3
Class Recording Available: No
Class Meeting Day: Thursdays
Grade Restriction: No letter grade
Class Meeting Time: 6:30—9:00 pm (PT)
Please Note: No class on November 26
Tuition: $495
Refund Deadline: Oct 10
Unit(s): 1
Status: Registration opens Aug 17 8:30 am (PT)
Quarter: Fall
Day: Thursdays
Duration: 8 weeks
Time: 6:30—9:00 pm (PT)
Date(s): Oct 8—Dec 3
Unit(s): 1
Tuition: $495
Refund Deadline: Oct 10
Instructor(s): Mick LaSalle
Grade Restriction: No letter grade
Recording Available: No
Status: Registration opens Aug 17 8:30 am (PT)
Please Note: No class on November 26
What does a director actually do? Why can two filmmakers start with the same script and end up with completely different movies? This course looks at the art of film direction through the work of distinctive directors, classic and contemporary alike, including Ernst Lubitsch (Design for Living), Richard Linklater (Blue Moon), Mervyn LeRoy (Three on a Match), George Cukor (Dinner at Eight), Pedro Almodóvar (Julieta), and Maggie Betts (Novitiate).
Using clips and scene analysis, we’ll also compare different adaptations of the same material—among them, Much Ado About Nothing, A Star Is Born, Philip Barry's Holiday, Scarface, and the 1934 and 2006 films of The Painted Veil. Along the way, students will see how directors shape a movie through thousands of decisions involving rhythm, tone, performance, visual style, and emphasis. The result is a clearer understanding of what separates routine direction from inspired filmmaking.
Using clips and scene analysis, we’ll also compare different adaptations of the same material—among them, Much Ado About Nothing, A Star Is Born, Philip Barry's Holiday, Scarface, and the 1934 and 2006 films of The Painted Veil. Along the way, students will see how directors shape a movie through thousands of decisions involving rhythm, tone, performance, visual style, and emphasis. The result is a clearer understanding of what separates routine direction from inspired filmmaking.
MICK LASALLE
Film Critic Emeritus, San Francisco Chronicle
Mick LaSalle is a thought leader on pre-Code era films and the author of two books on the subject, one of which served as the basis for the Turner Classic Movies documentary Complicated Women, narrated by Jane Fonda. He is the author of two other books on cinema, The Beauty of the Real and Dream State, and is the film critic emeritus for the San Francisco Chronicle.Textbooks for this course:
There are no required textbooks; however, some fee-based online readings may be assigned.