Archive for April, 2009

Experimental Cinema

Wednesday, April 29th, 2009

Today we watched:

Diary of a Shinjuku Thief, dir. Oshima Nagisa, 1968  (excerpt)

My Crushed Right Eye, dir. Matsumoto Toshio, 1968 (3 screen projection)

Great Society, dir. Oe Masanori and Marvin Fishman, 1967 (six screen projection)

Shiki Soku Ze Ku, dir. Matsumoto Toshio, 1974

Screening for Anime Class

Wednesday, April 29th, 2009

I remember we were supposed to give suggestions on what the screening should be for the Anime class.

The other day, I stumbled onto a page listing Ten anime films you should see before you die.

As such, I believe we should screen one of those films (my personal pick leans towards either Ghost in the Shell or Akira).

ANTIMATTER: A Viewpoint on Contemporary Japanese Art

Monday, April 27th, 2009

A Lecture by YURI MITSUDA
Curator, The Shoto Museum of Art, Shibuya, Tokyo


(L) Solo exhibition by Jiro Takamatsu in 1966
(R) Studio of Nakanishi Natsuyuki in May 2008,
in preparation for his “Chains of Paintings, Forest of Lights” exhibition

ANTIMATTER:  A Viewpoint on Contemporary Japanese Art

Time: Friday, May 1, 6:30 - 8:30 PM
Place:
The Japan Foundation, Toronto [Event Hall]
131 Bloor St. W., 2nd Floor
Language:
Japanese with English interpretation

Admission: Free
RSVP required:
www.jftor.org/whatson/rsvp or (416) 966-1600 x 229

In conjunction with <Passage to the Future: Art from a New Generation in Japan>
March10 ~ June 9, 2009 at The Japan Foundation, Toronto.
www.jftor.org

Introducing works by Japanese artists which light-heartedly present different ways of seeing our world, transforming the objects and landscapes of everyday life.
In the exceedingly hyperactivated environment of Contemporary Japan, we are surrounded by cryptic signs full of characters and edited images. The root of this phenomenon can be traced back to the 1960s when “information” as a concept began to be discussed widely.
By comparing the works of the past and present, the lecture will provide suggestions and ideas on decoding contemporary art.

Screening for April 22

Tuesday, April 21st, 2009

We will be watching Oshima’s Death By Hanging so please concentrate on pp 61-81 of the chapter,”Rituals, Desire, Death.”

Final Paper Assignment

Wednesday, April 15th, 2009

Due in class on May 13, 2009
12-15 pages including bibliography, double-spaced, 12 point font.

Final Paper
Given the readings and class discussions, do an analysis of at least one of the films we have watched in class. You are expected to justify your approach to the film (i.e. audience reception, contextual reading of the film in relation to the historical moment, textual analysis, etc). You may use a combination of several approaches.
You may choose to concentrate on one film or write about a series of films. You may include Japanese films not shown in class, but you must include at least one film shown in class in your discussion. You may find it useful organize your essay around a theme such as landscape, subjectivity or sexuality especially if you are covering more than one film.
You are encouraged to use the reading from the course packet but are also required to do research beyond our class readings. You must use appropriate academic sources and properly cite sources you use. Plagiarism will be dealt with severely.
Follow a recognizable bibliographic method (Chicago Manual of Style, MLA, etc). The York Library homepage offers useful research tips: http://www.library.yorku.ca/ccm/Home/ResearchAndInstruction/index.htm
All assignments must have your student name and number, and course title and number clearly indicated on the front page. Do not slip assignments under doors. Ensure that you keep hard copies of all submitted work. In case of lost assignments you are responsible for a replacement.
No papers will be accepted after 9am May 18. If you are unable to turn in the essay in class make sure you hand in a copy of the essay in the drop box outside of CFT225 by 9am May 18 and e-mail a copy to hayashi@yorku.ca with FILM3610 in the subject line.

Paper Proposal (optional) due by April 29, 2009
If you would like me to look at a proposal for your paper please e-mail me a proposal as an MS Word file by April 29. It should be around 500 words (2 pages, double spaced, 12 pt font) plus a preliminary bibliography. The proposal is an opportunity for you to test out your ideas and get feedback from the professor and is designed to help you organize and think through your final paper before your write it. It should discuss the major themes you intend to tackle and reasons why you have chosen certain films and readings (included on the syllabus and from other sources). It should indicate what you intend to write about, any ideas you already have on the subject, and how you intend to go about writing your paper.  Explain why the subject interests you, and try to propose some preliminary questions that you hope to answer through research and analysis. I expect the paper to be related to the class and take up an issue, a writer or a theory that we have dealt with.  You should try to demonstrate to me that you have learnt something from this class, and that you have something original to say about the films you have chosen.