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Southern Utah University
Southern Utah University
Fall Semester 2025

Film Theory (Face-to-Face)

ENGL 3023-01

Course: ENGL 3023-01
Credits: 3
Term: Fall Semester 2025
Department: ENGL
CRN: 32265

Course Description

A survey of the major theoretical lenses and methodological approaches used in the academic criticism and scholarship of film, television, and other streaming media. Prerequisite(s): ENGL 2023 and THEA 1023.

Required Texts

Readings will be distributed to you directly, either in class or through Canvas. You're responsible to screen the film on your own. Some are available on Kanopy, some are in the library. All are available on one streaming platform or another.

Films

  • The Andalusian Dog (French 1929) YouTube, widely available
  • The Man with The Movie Camera (1929) Kanopy
  • Pather Panchali (1955) SUU Library, Kanopy, elsewhere
  • The Matrix (1999) SUU Library, Apple, Prime, elsewhere
  • Alien (1979) SUU, library, Apple, Prime, elsewhere

Readings 

  • Vsevolod Pudovkin "On Editing"
  • Sergei Eisenstein "Beyond the Shot"
  • Andre Bazin "Evolution of the Language of Cinema"
  • William Rothman "Against the System of the Suture"
  • Maya Deren "Cinematography: The Creative Use of Reality"
  • Mary Ann Doane "The Voice in the Cinema: The Articulation of Body and Space"
  • Plato "Allegory of the Cave"
  • Jean-Louis Baudry "Ideological Effects of the Basic Cinematographic Apparatus"
  • Jean-Louis Baudry "The Apparatus: Metapsychological Approaches to the Impression of Reality in the Cinema"
  • Kristen Thompson "The Concept of Cinematic Excess"
  • Carol J. Clover from Men, Women, and Chainsaws

Learning Outcomes

  • LO 1 - Students will demonstrate a knowledge of cinema's artistic and technological evolution.
  • LO 2 - Students will demonstrate an understanding of basic aesthetic terminology and critical theory concepts.
  • LO 3 - Students will perceptively analyze films from both Western and non-Western cultures with a focus on time as an expressive design element.
  • LO 4 - Students will critically evaluate cinematic and critical works from both Western and non-Western cultures.

Course Requirements

Major Assignment Overview

You can find detailed information on each assignment—including the due date, format, and rubric—by clicking Assignments in the left column.
  • Reading Cards (LOs 2 & 4) - For each assigned reading, you'll submit up to three cards that have a quotation from the reading on one side, and a question or insight on the other.
  • Film Quizzes (LO 3) - At the start of each unit, you'll have an online quiz for each film, this is to make sure everyone has seen the film before we launch into class discussion.
  • Unit Exams (LOs 1, 2, 3 & 4) - An in-class essay exam in which you're expected to analyze the unit film in the context of the assigned reading and classroom discussion. These will be done in blue books, and you're allowed handwritten notes. There will be four of these exams, one for each unit.
  • Final Reflection (LOs 2 & 4) - On the last day of class, there will be a guided reflection, which you'll use as the basis for a final reflective essay, due during the final. You'll submit a PDF with the original handwritten document first, followed by the revision, typed, at the end.

Course Outline

Course Schedule Overview

This brief schedule of discussions and activities is broken down by week, and is subject to change. More information on this will be given in class. As I mentioned in the course overview above, the content in this class isn't predetermined except in a general way. Instead it will come in response to your individual projects, looking for patterns of need, then I'll gather the content from there. Assignment due dates are attached to the assignments, but you can see them in the course summary below.

  • Week One - Introductions | What is the critical mode and analysis? | Why does our program accreditation require these learning outcomes?
  • Week Two (Labor Day) - Introduce the reading cards, and the synthesis exams? | What should you be doing when you keep notes? | How does a seminar work? | What can you expect from the film quizzes? | Overview of the big questions: What is cinema? How does cinema create and use the concept of realism? What is the apparatus and how does it affect creative choices and critical responses? What is interpretation and is meaning to be found in the work?
  • Week Three - Unit #1 Shot vs Cut | The concept of "the suture" | Our film is The Man with the Movie Camera by Dziga Vertov | Our reading for discussion is Eisenstein "Beyond the Shot".
  • Week Four - Unit #1 (con't) Our reading for this week is Bazin "Evolution of the Language of Cinema".
  • Week Five - Unit #1 (con't) Our reading for this week is Rothman "Against the System of the Suture" | Unit #1 In-Class Exam.
  • Week Six - Unit #2 Cinematic Reality and Embodiment | Our film is Pather Panchali by Satyajit Ray | Our reading is Maya Deren's "Cinematography: The Creative Use of Reality".
  • Week Seven - Unit #2 (con't) This week's reading is Mary Ann Doane's "The Voice in the Cinema: The Articulation of Body and Space".
  • Week Eight (Fall Break) - Unit #2 (con't) Because of the short week, there's no additional reading. Study for the Unit #2 In-Class Exam.
  • Week Nine - Unit #3 The Apparatus Our film for this unit is The Matrix by the Wachowskis. Our reading is Plato's Allegory of the Cave.
  • Week Ten - Unit #3 (con't) This week our reading is from the first half of Louis Baudry's "TK".
  • Week Eleven - Unit #3 (con't) Because this is a long, complex essay, we're doing it over two weeks. | Unit #3 In-Class Exam.
  • Week Twelve - Unit #4 Meaning & Interpretation Our film is Alien by Ridley Scott and our first reading is Kristen Thompson's "The Concept of Cinematic Excess".
  • Week Thirteen - Unit #4 (con't) Our reading for this week is Carol Clover's seminal development of the concept of the "Final Girl".
  • Week Fourteen (Thanksgiving) - Take a breath. We'll wrap up Unit #4 and the whole class next week.
  • Week Fifteen - Unit #4 (con't) Wrap up. Unit #4 In-Class Essay and guided reflection activity on the last day.

Instructor's policies on late assignments and/or makeup work

Late Work: Late work is allowed, but with the following provisions. Submit the work on time and you will get rubric scoring, plus feedback. Submit the work late and there will be a 1% penalty per day, but you will only receive rubric scoring with no feedback. If you haven't turned in an assignment for two weeks, it will close and you will receive a zero on it. Because most assignments can be submitted digitally, being absent does not excuse late work.
Make-Up Work: Make-up work is allowed only with an approved university excuse. Official university excuses are outlined here.

Attendance Policy

Face-to-Face Model: This course is only taught face-to-face. You are expected to be on campus and attend in person. There is no distance or remote option.

Attendance: I expect you to attend class. You have some discretionary absences or "free passes." You can be absent up to 3 times in a MWF class, and twice in a TR class without penalty. You may use these passes for shooting projects if necessary. After that, each missed day will result in a 5% reduction of your final grade. After 9 missed MWF days or 6 TR days, you will receive a failing grade for the course, which will override any grade earned through course work. Approved university absences do not factor into the attendance policy. Shooting, production duties, or conferences with other professors generally do not count as university excused absences unless approved by the FAD Department Chair AND CPVA Dean. Any exceptions to this attendance policy will be taken up on a case-by-case basis, and will be finalized in writing.

Responsibility for Missed Classes: If you miss a class, even if we have worked out an agreement, it is your responsibility to reach out and connect with another student to get notes and other instructions so you can return to class prepared.

Course Fees

Course Fee: $12.00

ADA Statement

Students with medical, psychological, learning, or other disabilities desiring academic adjustments, accommodations, or auxiliary aids will need to contact the Disability Resource Center, located in Room 206F of the Sharwan Smith Center or by phone at (435) 865-8042. The Disability Resource Center determines eligibility for and authorizes the provision of services.

If your instructor requires attendance, you may need to seek an ADA accommodation to request an exception to this attendance policy. Please contact the Disability Resource Center to determine what, if any, ADA accommodations are reasonable and appropriate.

Academic Credit

According to the federal definition of a Carnegie credit hour: A credit hour of work is the equivalent of approximately 60 minutes of class time or independent study work. A minimum of 45 hours of work by each student is required for each unit of credit. Credit is earned only when course requirements are met. One (1) credit hour is equivalent to 15 contact hours of lecture, discussion, testing, evaluation, or seminar, as well as 30 hours of student homework. An equivalent amount of work is expected for laboratory work, internships, practica, studio, and other academic work leading to the awarding of credit hours. Credit granted for individual courses, labs, or studio classes ranges from 0.5 to 15 credit hours per semester.

Academic Freedom

SUU is operated for the common good of the greater community it serves. The common good depends upon the free search for truth and its free exposition. Academic Freedom is the right of faculty to study, discuss, investigate, teach, and publish. Academic Freedom is essential to these purposes and applies to both teaching and research.

Academic Freedom in the realm of teaching is fundamental for the protection of the rights of the faculty member and of you, the student, with respect to the free pursuit of learning and discovery. Faculty members possess the right to full freedom in the classroom in discussing their subjects. They may present any controversial material relevant to their courses and their intended learning outcomes, but they shall take care not to introduce into their teaching controversial materials which have no relation to the subject being taught or the intended learning outcomes for the course.

As such, students enrolled in any course at SUU may encounter topics, perspectives, and ideas that are unfamiliar or controversial, with the educational intent of providing a meaningful learning environment that fosters your growth and development. These parameters related to Academic Freedom are included in SUU Policy 6.6.

Academic Misconduct

Scholastic honesty is expected of all students. Dishonesty will not be tolerated and will be prosecuted to the fullest extent (see SUU Policy 6.33). You are expected to have read and understood the current SUU student conduct code (SUU Policy 11.2) regarding student responsibilities and rights, the intellectual property policy (SUU Policy 5.52), information about procedures, and what constitutes acceptable behavior.

Please Note: The use of websites or services that sell essays is a violation of these policies; likewise, the use of websites or services that provide answers to assignments, quizzes, or tests is also a violation of these policies. Regarding the use of Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI), you should check with your individual course instructor.

Emergency Management Statement

In case of an emergency, the University's Emergency Notification System (ENS) will be activated. Students are encouraged to maintain updated contact information using the link on the homepage of the mySUU portal. In addition, students are encouraged to familiarize themselves with the Emergency Response Protocols posted in each classroom. Detailed information about the University's emergency management plan can be found at https://www.suu.edu/emergency.

HEOA Compliance Statement

For a full set of Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA) compliance statements, please visit https://www.suu.edu/heoa. The sharing of copyrighted material through peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing, except as provided under U.S. copyright law, is prohibited by law; additional information can be found at https://my.suu.edu/help/article/1096/heoa-compliance-plan.

You are also expected to comply with policies regarding intellectual property (SUU Policy 5.52) and copyright (SUU Policy 5.54).

Mandatory Reporting

University policy (SUU Policy 5.60) requires instructors to report disclosures received from students that indicate they have been subjected to sexual misconduct/harassment. The University defines sexual harassment consistent with Federal Regulations (34 C.F.R. Part 106, Subpart D) to include quid pro quo, hostile environment harassment, sexual assault, dating violence, domestic violence, and stalking. When students communicate this information to an instructor in-person, by email, or within writing assignments, the instructor will report that to the Title IX Coordinator to ensure students receive support from the Title IX Office. A reporting form is available at https://cm.maxient.com/reportingform.php?SouthernUtahUniv

Non-Discrimination Statement

SUU is committed to fostering an inclusive community of lifelong learners and believes our university's encompassing of different views, beliefs, and identities makes us stronger, more innovative, and better prepared for the global society.

SUU does not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, citizenship, sex (including sex discrimination and sexual harassment), sexual orientation, gender identity, age, ancestry, disability status, pregnancy, pregnancy-related conditions, genetic information, military status, veteran status, or other bases protected by applicable law in employment, treatment, admission, access to educational programs and activities, or other University benefits or services.

SUU strives to cultivate a campus environment that encourages freedom of expression from diverse viewpoints. We encourage all to dialogue within a spirit of respect, civility, and decency.

For additional information on non-discrimination, please see SUU Policy 5.27 and/or visit https://www.suu.edu/nondiscrimination.

Pregnancy

Students who are or become pregnant during this course may receive reasonable modifications to facilitate continued access and participation in the course. Pregnancy and related conditions are broadly defined to include pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, lactation, related medical conditions, and recovery. To obtain reasonable modifications, please make a request to title9@suu.edu. To learn more visit: https://www.suu.edu/titleix/pregnancy.html.

Disclaimer Statement

Information contained in this syllabus, other than the grading, late assignments, makeup work, and attendance policies, may be subject to change with advance notice, as deemed appropriate by the instructor.