HART381 History of Experimental Film 3 cr.

In this course we trace the physical, physiological, and psychological investigations
of experimental filmmakers over the last seventy years. Studying these three trajectories-matter,
body, and mind-reveals “film” to be a complex interplay between what Paul Sharits described in
1969 as “celluloid, two-dimensional strips; individual rectangular frames; the nature of
sprockets and emulsion; projector operations; the three-dimensional light beam; environmental
illumination; the two-dimensional reflective screen surface; the retinal screen; optic nerve
and individual psycho-physical subjectivities and consciousness.” Students watch at least two hours
of experimental film each week in preparation for classroom discussion. In addition to viewing the
films themselves, students analyze several kinds of written accounts-by artists, by critics, and
by historians-surrounding experimental film practices from 1945 to the present

Prerequisites: HART100

Spring Only