FAVz093 Splitscreen as Symbolic Form

Faculty of Arts
Autumn 2021
Extent and Intensity
2/0/0. 5 credit(s). Type of Completion: zk (examination).
Teacher(s)
prof. Malte Hagener (lecturer)
Mgr. Martin Kos, Ph.D. (assistant)
Mgr. Veronika Lengálová (assistant)
Mgr. Ondřej Pavlík, Ph.D. (assistant)
Guaranteed by
Mgr. Šárka Jelínek Gmiterková, Ph.D.
Department of Film Studies and Audiovisual Culture – Faculty of Arts
Supplier department: Department of Film Studies and Audiovisual Culture – Faculty of Arts
Timetable
Thu 11. 11. 12:00–15:40 C34, Thu 18. 11. 15:00–17:40 C34, Fri 19. 11. 14:00–15:40 C34, Mon 22. 11. 11:00–13:40 C34, Tue 23. 11. 12:00–13:40 C34, Wed 24. 11. 10:00–13:40 C34, Thu 25. 11. 12:00–15:40 C34
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is also offered to the students of the fields other than those the course is directly associated with.
The capacity limit for the course is 50 student(s).
Current registration and enrolment status: enrolled: 3/50, only registered: 0/50, only registered with preference (fields directly associated with the programme): 0/50
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
Course objectives (in Czech)
The splitscreen might seem like a marginal aesthetic form with little or no intrinsic value to an understanding of the audiovisual media that characterise the 20th and 21st Century. I will argue differently and suggest that a study of the splitscreen from the late 19h Century to our present day can show the transformations and permutations of media culture in the past 130 years. It will especially shed light on recent transformation of visuality in the age of digital media and instant connectivity.

The splitscreen, thus, can be seen as a shorthand, one way of understanding the functioning of media today – in its double structure of providing a possibility of observing the way media is constructed and used, as well as in giving one direct access to the sensations of synchronicity, modularity and flexibility. In this sense, it is a symbolic form that provides an idea of how we are connected to the world. If today’s technologies and media are not anymore about controlling and disciplining bodies directly as in the industrial and Fordist time period, but rather about modulating consciousness and desire, than the splitscreen is a symbolic form that might be said to play a key role in this – it gives us the impression to be in contact with the world in real-time (and thus with our loved ones and peers), it promises constant novelty and surprise, it also provides the sensation of direct feedback, while it at the same time constantly sidetracks us into something else and while it allows other forces (algorithms, companies, state institutions) to monitor and track everything we do.
Learning outcomes (in Czech)
By the end of this course, students should be able to:
• Explain the concept and characteristics of splitscreen
• Describe the historical variations and developments of the form
• Understand in which way film interacts with other media forms (television, internet) in relation to this particular form.
Syllabus (in Czech)
  • Lecture 1: Introduction – Splitscreen as a Symbolic Form
  • Lecture 2: Splitscreen in Early and Silent Film
  • Lecture 3: Allegories of Modernity – splitscreen in classical Hollywood
  • Screening - PILLOW TALK (US 1959, Michael Gordon)
  • Lecture 4: Managing Complexity in transitional film
  • Screening - THE BOSTON STRANGLER (US 1967, Richard Fleischer)
  • Lecture 5: Brian dePalma as a Splitscreen Auteur
  • Screening - SISTERS or BLOW UP
  • Lecture 6: Into Our Digital Present
  • HULK (US 2003, Ang Lee).
Literature
    required literature
  • Eyal Peretz: Becoming Visionary. Brian De Palma’s Cinematic Education of the Senses. Stanford: Stanford University Press 2008.
  • Elena Dagrada: “Through the keyhole: Spectators and matte shots in early cinema”. In: Iris, vol. 6, no. 2 [=11], 1990: 95-106.
  • .L. McCallum: »Mother Talk: Maternal Masquerade and the Problem of the Single Girl«. In: Camera Obscura, no. 42, Sept. 1999: 70-95.
  • Richard Combs: ”Fearful Symmetry”. In: Film Comment, vol. 44, no. 1 (Jan/Feb 2008): 58-67.
  • Erwin Panofsky: Perspective as Symbolic Form. [1927] New York: Zone Books 1991.
Teaching methods (in Czech)
This module consists of six lectures. Currently they are planned to be held in the contact form; however if the pandemic/travel situation changes for the worse, the course will be held on MS Teams platform, live and online.
Students are required to read all the items from the obligatory reading list. All of the required materials will be provided. Films will be screened in the screening room C34 at designated times in the schedule, their attendance is not obligatory.
Assessment methods (in Czech)
Apart from the compulsory attendance students will have to pass two test. First test is a preliminary one and it will take place just before the start of the first lecture. With two questions, the test will check the knowledge of the required items from the reading list for the first three lesson. The other test is final, consisting of three questions testing both students' acquaintance with the reading list as well as their knowledge and skills gained throughout the course itself. Ten points maximum can be gathered from both of the test; five points are the necessary minimum in order to pass the course successfully.
Language of instruction
English
Further comments (probably available only in Czech)
Study Materials
  • Enrolment Statistics (recent)
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