Welcome to the web site for English 293–Introduction to Film at the University of South Carolina Aiken. We will be using this site to manage the class and discuss the films we will be viewing.
Marial Arts Films
In this brief “how to” video, La Frances Hui, film curator for the Museum of Modern Art, discuss the sub-genres of martial arts films with a specific emphasis on Lau Kar-leung, who she considers the grandmaster of the kung fu genre. I’ve watched a few Jackie Chan and Bruce Lee films and had some laughs as a kid laughing at the movies dubbed into English but had not heard of Lau Kar-leung. Watching the snippets here, though, makes me realize that I have not seen a “real” kung fu film.
Film Meets Art
Here is a three-part series of videos that include film shots opposite the famous pieces of art that inspired them.
Deep Focus–Long Shots
Jim Emerson has compiled some classic long shots and posted them to Vimeo. The shots are categorized by the specific strategy the director was attempting and the value of the long shot’s contribution to the film.
Deep Focus from Jim Emerson on Vimeo.
Digital Movie Posters
Kottge.org reports that a huge collection of movie posters have been digitized and made available online. If you’re a fan of old movies and/or vintage movie posters, you might want to have a “look-see.”