CMS 272, "Science Fiction and other Cinematic Speculations," taught by Professor Jennifer M. Bean, fulfills the pre-requisite for the Cinema and Media Studies (CMS) major.  

Section 1: Diana Bucio  (dbucio@uw.edu)     

Section 2: Ben Coldwell (bcoldw@uw.edu)

Section 3: Shuprima Guha (shuprima@uw.edu )     

Section 4: Yandong Li (yandong@uw.edu)

****The best science fiction texts are organized analogously.  The initial data are supernatural: robots, extraterrestrial beings, the whole interplanetary context.  The narrative movement consists in obliging us to see how close these apparently marvelous elements are to us, to what degree they are present in our lives.***

                                                                                                            —Tzevtan Todorov

Overview

This course examines the development of science-fiction in American cinema from the early twentieth to the early twenty-first centuries.  At the broadest level, science fiction offers an artistic and intellectual space to speculate on what is in relation to what might be.  It is a vehicle for expressing and questioning ideas related to technology, history, society, and identity.  As Samuel Delany writes, “Science fiction is a tool to help you think.”  We can also understand the films and media objects we are studying as “speculative fictions,” meaning they encourage cognitive estrangement from the known world and inspire contemplation of alternative realities and possibilities. Importantly, however, science fiction also always engages our senses, evoking feelings ranging from terror and repulsion to awe, curiosity and wonder. 

While the structure of this course will be historical, our focus will be analytical, with special emphasis on genre theory and criticism, American culture, critical race studies, theories of gender and sexuality, and histories of film technologies and the filmmaking business.  To facilitate your engagement with the genre’s artistic-cultural history, you will develop skills for analyzing cinematography, editing, sets, décor, make-up, lighting, narrative structure, and sound design among other audio-visual techniques. 

Required texts range from films such as A Trip to the Moon (1902) to 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968), from Bride of Frankenstein (1935) to Ex Machina (2014), from War of the Worlds (1953) to Children of Men (2006), from Alien (1979) to Arrival (2016), and from Blade Runner (1982) to The Watchmen (HBO, 2019) among others.  All required films/series will be streamed through Canvas for registered members of the class.

Course Modules and Weekly Quizzes

The course is divided into 4 modules.  The modules are organized chronologically.  Each module ends with one of four formal exercises.  

While a formal exercise concludes each module, a series of quizzes concludes each WEEK.  Anticipate at least two quizzes per week, although some weeks may include up to 4 or 5 quizzes.  Your weekly quizzes must be completed by 11:59 p.m. each Saturday evening throughout the quarter. At midnight every Saturday the quiz windows on Canvas will close and you will be unable to access them. 

Formal exercises 1, 2 and 4 are also due at 11:59 p.m. on the respective Saturdays, as listed in the Schedule-at-A-Glance below.  Exercise 3 is the one exception and will be due by or before Wednesday evening, November 23, 11:59 p.m.

Lectures and Course Preparation

Lectures will be held in SMI hall 10:30-12:20, on Tuesdays and Thursdays.  You should come to lecture fully prepared.  This means you will have watched the required film/s, which will mean setting aside approximately 4-5 hours for concentrated viewing per week.   You will also need to spend anywhere from 2-4 hours per week absorbing other materials such as instructional videos, documentary excerpts, and/or readings, all of which will be uploaded in the respective module.  Finally, you will need to set aside additional time, at least four hours and sometimes more, on the weeks that a formal exercise is due.

Required Films and Recommended Films

You are responsible for viewing and studying all required films/shows in their entirety. View these films carefully.  If you are watching the film on your own and other people are nearby, use headphones.  Be comfortable and focused.  Try not to interrupt your viewing experience by pausing the film or by multi-tasking, etc.  Remember that most every film we will study—with a few exceptions such as the HBO series Watchmen in modules 9 and 10, as well as video art/space satellite projects such as Trevor Paglen’s “The Last Pictures”—was designed for a large screen in a public theater.  Your engagement with these films will be severely hampered if you view them in a distracted manner. On Canvas, required films will appear as a link in the respective module; they also can be accessed under "Assignments" on the left side of the home page.

All recommended films also stream on our Canvas site.  The films listed as recommended will likely be discussed during the respective week’s lectures and will be used to provide additional historical or aesthetic context.  But you are not responsible for familiarity with the entirety of any recommended film, only for the scenes or elements from those films discussed in lectures. On Canvas, recommended films will not always appear in the respective module, but can be accessed under "Pages" on the left side of the Canvas screen.

Optional Discussion Sessions

A 50-minute discussion session will be available to you during the week prior to each of the four formal exercises.  These four discussion sessions are optional.  They provide a space for you to talk through course materials and ideas about the assignments with your peers and in conversation with different members of the teaching team.  We are currently awaiting word from the University administration regarding our request for several smaller rooms on these days, and the location/s will be announced as we learn more.  The specific class days allotted to optional discussion sections are marked in the Schedule-At-A-Glance below.

Film Analysis

A central objective of this course will be to familiarize yourself with film analysis.  We will learn to name and assess the array of audiovisual techniques used by filmmakers, especially those categorized as “Mise-en-Scène,” “Cinematography,” “Editing,” and “Sound.” The four formal exercises in this class (require you to understand these techniques and assess their meanings relative to a given film/media text. Course lectures and instructional videos will illuminate these terms and concepts.  We also encourage you to bookmark this website, the Yale Guide to Film Analysis, for ongoing reference: https://filmanalysis.yale.edu/

Assignments and Evaluation

Quizzes: 50% of final grade (expect at least 2 per week, sometimes 3 or 4); formats include multiple choice, true/false and fill-in-the-blank.  Due every week by or before Saturday at 11:59 p.m.  All quizzes are closed book.  Once you open a quiz you have 2 minutes per question to complete the assignment before the system closes.  In other words, if the quiz has 3 questions you will have 6 minutes.  If it has 5 questions you will have 10 minutes, and so on.  Only one question will appear at a time.

Formal Exercises: 50% of final grade

There are four formal exercises in this class; the first three exercises are each worth 12 % of your final grade; the fourth and final exercise is worth 14%.  A detailed description of each exercise will be provided at least a week before it is due.  These exercises include:

Exercise 1: The Film Still: Mise-en-Scène & Cinematography (1.5 pp)

Exercise 2: Editing Segmentation (1.5pp)

Exercise 3: Sonic Explorations (1.5 pp)

Exercise 4: Original Script Treatment (2 to 2.5 pp)

Academic Integrity

You must complete all assigned work on your own. You are expected to be familiar with the University’s policies concerning academic misconduct as outlined in the Student Conduct Code.

Evidence of plagiarism, cheating, or other form of academic dishonesty will result in an automatic failure of the quiz or assignment and may result in further disciplinary action, including suspension from the University.

UW Statement on Access and Disability Resources

If you have already established accommodations with Disability Resources for Students (DRS), please communicate your approved accommodations to your professor at your earliest convenience so we can discuss your needs in this course.

If you have not yet established services through DRS, but have a temporary health condition or permanent disability that requires accommodations (conditions include but not limited to; mental health, attention-related, learning, vision, hearing, physical or health impacts), you are welcome to contact DRS at 206-543-8924 or uwdrs@uw.edu or disability.uw.edu. DRS offers resources and coordinates reasonable accommodations for students with disabilities and/or temporary health conditions.

Reasonable accommodations are established through an interactive process between you, your instructors, and DRS. It is the policy and practice of the University of Washington to create inclusive and accessible learning environments consistent with federal and state law.

Religious Accommodations

Washington state law requires that UW develop a policy for accommodation of student absences or significant hardship due to reasons of faith or conscience, or for organized religious activities. The UW’s policy, including more information about how to request an accommodation, is available at https://registrar.washington.edu/staffandfaculty/religiousaccommodations-Policy)

Accommodations must be requested within the first two weeks of this course using the Religious Accommodations Form

Weekly Schedule At-a-Glance

please note: materials and dates subject to change.  

MODULE I (1890s-1930s)

Week 1, Sept 29: Introduction

Introductory lecture Thursday Sept 29, SMI Hall

Required viewing, “Form versus Content in Film” (18 min)

A quiz on the syllabus and on "Form versus Content," and also your written introduction due Saturday, Oct 1 11:59 p.m. 

Week 2, Oct 4-6: Technological Modernity and Moving Images

Required films include Trip to the Moon (1902, Georges Méliès, 13 min), an array of early Lumiere and Edison films, Ex Machina (Alex Garland, 2014),  and the instructional video “How to Speak Movies: Mise-en-Scène” (11 min.)

Recommended film: Metropolis (1927, Fritz Lang).

Quiz windows close Sat Oct 8 11:59 p.m.

Week 3, Oct 11-13: Mad Scientists and the Studio Era

Required films: Bride of Frankenstein (James Whale, 1936), and “How to Speak Movies: The Camera.”

Recommended films: The Invisible Man (James Whale, 1933), The Hulk (Ang Lee, 2003), and The Fly (David Cronenberg, 1986)

Thursday, Oct 13: no lecture; optional discussion sections prepare for Exercise 1

SMI 307: Section 3 11:30-12:20

SMI 120: Section 2 10:30-11:20;

SMI 120: Section 1 11:30-12:20

Zoom, Section 4 10:30-11:20

Quiz windows close Sat Oct 15 11:59 p.m.

Exercise 1 Due: The Film Still—Mise-en-Scène & Cinematography, Sat October 15 11:59 p.m.

MODULE 2 (1950s-1980s)

Week 4, Oct 18-20: The Imagination of Disaster

Required: War of the Worlds (1953), Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956), and “How to Speak Movies: Editing.”

Recommended: Forbidden Planet (1956); War of the Worlds (2005)

Quiz windows close Sat Oct 22, 11:59 p.m.

Week 5, Oct 26-27: Space Race and the New Hollywood

Required: 2001—A Space Odyssey (Stanley Kubrick, 1968) and Alien (1979, Ridley Scott) plus informational videos and excerpts from documentaries on Kubrick and Scott

Recommended: Star Wars (1977, George Lucas)

Quiz windows close Sat Oct 29, 11:59 p.m.

Week 6, Nov 1-3: Post-Modern Replications

Required: Blade Runner (1982, Ridley Scott) plus informational videos pertaining to post-modernism

Thursday, no lecture: optional discussion sessions prepare for Exercise 2, location TBA

Exercise 2 Due: Editing segmentation, Sat. Nov 5, 11:59 p.m.

MODULE 3 (1990s-2010s)

Week 7, Nov 8-10: The Face of Time

Required: Biidaaban [The Dawn Comes] (2018 Amanda Strong/Michif), 19 min., “Game Changers” ep from Time Travelers (Skawennati/Mohawk, 5.5 min) and Arrival (2016, Denis Villeneuve) 114 min.

Recommended: 12 Monkeys (Terry Gilliam, 1995) and Interstellar (Christopher Nolan, 2014)

Quiz windows close Sat Nov 12, 11:59 p.m.

Week 8: Nov 15-17: Climates of Hope

Required: Children of Men (Alfonso Cuàron, 2006); Sense 8 (Wachowski sisters, 2016-18, ep 1-4) OR Dune (Denis Villeneuve, 2021) and “The Last Pictures” (Trevor Paglen, et. al, 2012, 15 min), plus readings

Recommended: Gravity (Alfonso Cuàron, 2013) and District 9 (Neill Blomkamp, 2009)

Week 9, Nov 22: Discussion

Exercise 3: Sonic Explorations, due Wednesday, Nov 23, 11:59 p.m.