Critical Studies

cinema.usc.edu/criticalstudies
loverholt@cinema.usc.edu
213.740.7515
George Lucas Instructional Building (LUC) 405

Introduction to Cinema
(CTAN, CTHP, CNTV)*
Rated one of the top six “USC classes you cannot afford
to miss” (Saturday Night Magazine, 2004), this course
explores the formal properties of cinema, such as literary
design, performance and visual design. Films include:
Atonement, Imitation of Life, Singin’ In The Rain,
The Boston Strangler and Fargo.
CTCS 190 / 4 units / Drew Casper / 18000R / 2-5:50 pm / T
CTCS 190 / 4 units / Drew Casper / 18005R / 2-5:50 pm / W
Note: Students must also register for a discussion section.

Introduction to Television and Video
(CNTV)*
Are we doomed to a future of wall-to-wall reality
television? Will YouTube replace network TV? This course
introduces students to the study of television as a unique
dramatic form in order to answer questions such as
these. Screenings and readings will focus on topics such
as Adult Swim, Battlestar Galactica, MTV, Hannah
Montana, I Love Lucy and The Colbert Report.
CTCS 191 / 4 units / Ellen Seiter / 18155R / 9am-12:50 pm / W

History of the International Cinema I
This course will explore the technological, economic and
social determinants of the cinema from its beginnings in
1890-1940. We will analyze the international circulation
of films against the global dominance of Hollywood.
Films include: Metropolis, Sunrise, Flesh and the Devil,
Steamboat Bill Jr., Vampyr and many more.
CTCS 200 / 4 units /Rene Bruckner / 18160R / 2-5:50 pm / M

History of the American Film, 1946-1975
(CNTV)*
An analysis of films from Hollywood’s postclassical and
modernist periods to identify their significant elements
as an index of American history and culture. Doris Day
and Rock Hudson in Pillow Talk, Warren Beatty
and Faye Dunaway in Bonnie and Clyde and Henry Fonda
in Twelve Angry Men will amaze you.
CTCS 393 / 4 units / Drew Casper / 18165R / 6-10:00 pm / T

Practicum in Film/Television Criticism
This course is a hands-on practicum designed to sharpen
the critical skills of students and apply those skills to the
analysis of television as it relates to popular culture. Thus
the ability to write clearly is essential, as is the ability to
set aside ego for the greater purpose of communication.
CTCS 402 / 4 units / Howard Rosenberg / 18175R / 2-5:50 pm / M

Studies in National and Regional Media
The course will discuss cinematic, televisual and electronic
media trends in Europe and its peripheries and examine
how the European Union is developing a transnational
audiovisual sphere. Cinematic highlights will include Lars
Van Trier’s Zentropa, Kusturica’s Underground
and Gianni Amelio’s America.
CTCS 403 / 4 units / Aniko Imre / 18177R / 9am-12:50 pm / W

Censorship in Cinema
A historical survey of film censorship with an emphasis
on selected topics such as pornography, violence and the
culture wars. A Q&A with Playboy founder Hugh Hefner
is one of the perks. Be shocked at Double Indemnity,
Kama Sutra, Deep Throat, Rachel, Rachel
and Trouble in Paradise.
CTCS 409 / 4 units / Drew Casper and Rick Jewell / 18185R / 9am-12:50 pm / T

Film, Television and Cultural Studies:
“Visual Culture”
This course explores the nature of visual culture with a
detailed examination of film, media and television from
the perspectives and insights of various theoretical
frameworks, focusing on the production and reception
of cultural texts, practices and communities. Screenings
may include: The Invisible Man, Rear Window,
Incident at Loch Ness and Pulse.
CTCS 411 / 4 units / Rene Bruckner / 18190R / 9am-12:50 pm / W

Gender, Sexuality and Media:
Contemporary Gay and Lesbian Film and
Television
This undergraduate seminar is a critical overview of the
history, theory, aesthetics and production/distribution
considerations associated with contemporary gay and
lesbian film and television. Screenings may include:
The Celluloid Closet, The L Word, Shortbus,
Another Gay Movie and Camp Out, among many others.
CTCS 412 / 4 units / William Whittington / 18195R / 9am-1:20 pm / Th

Film and/or Television Genres:
Hip Hop Culture
(CNTV)*
This course addresses the phenomenal rise of hip hop
culture and its influence on society from the 1970s to
the present. The Source magazine describes the class as
the most “in-demand hip hop course in the country.”
Screenings will include: Scarface, Boyz n the Hood,
American Gangster, Fade to Black and Dave Chappelle’s
Block Party.
CTCS 464 / 4 units / Todd Boyd / 18205R / 2-5:50 pm / Th

Film and/or Television Genres: The Western
John Ford, Howard Hawks, John Wayne, Sam Peckinpah,
Sergio Leone, Clint Eastwood and more. A thorough
investigation of the most American of film genres, from
The Great Train Robbery to Deadwood. Screenings will
include Shane, The Searchers and The Wild Bunch,
among others.
CTCS 464 / 4 units / Rick Jewell / 18200R / 2-5:50 pm / T

Theatrical Film Symposium
(CNTV)*
View Hollywood films before their theatrical release and
meet with the films’ creators for one-of-a-kind Q&A
sessions led by film critic and historian Leonard Maltin.
Past semesters featured Lord of the Rings: The Return
of the King, Crash, Pan’s Labyrinth, 300 and Casino Royale,
with such guests as Alexander Payne, Billy Bob Thornton,
Guillermo del Toro, Kevin Costner and Forest Whitaker.
CTCS 466 / 4 units / Leonard Maltin / 18215R / 7-11:00 pm / Th

Television Symposium
(CNTV)*
An exciting counterpart to Theatrical Film Symposium
and led by Pulitzer Prize-winning television critic Howard
Rosenberg, this course focuses on the television industry.
View selected television programs and engage in a Q&A
with guests from the show. Past guests include
Damon Lindelof (Lost), Jenji Kohan (Weeds)
and Doug Ellin (Entourage).
CTCS 467 / 4 units / Howard Rosenberg / 18210R / 7-11:00 pm / M

Film and/or Television Style Analysis:
Avant-Garde and Art Film
(CNTV)*
This course will explore some of the main traditions of
experimental filmmaking outside or on the edges of the
commercial feature industry. Topics will include the U.S.
and European avant-gardes, especially the history of the
Los Angeles avant-garde, the U.S. art film, European
and Asian art cinema, certain periods of innovation
in Hollywood, and recent innovations in video and digital
moving-image culture.
CTCS 469 / 4 units / David James / 18219R / 2-5:50 pm / M

Film and Television Style Analysis:
Hitchcock—Master Of Suspense
A profile of Hitchcock, his mordantly ironic and ambivalent
take on life, his brilliantly daring techniques, his wry
production methods and his widely public and intensely
private persona. Screenings will include such masterpieces
as Psycho, Sabotage, The Birds and The Man Who Knew
Too Much, as well as a Q&A with the Hitchcock family.
CTCS 469 / 4 units / Drew Casper / 18225R / 6-10:30 pm / W