Overview of Course

The medium of film is more powerful than ever thanks to widely-available technologies and democratized access to digital media. SPCM 357: Film and Social Change is designed to introduce you to the ways in which visual storytellers, past and present, have sparked significant social changes at home and abroad. Focusing on narrative fiction films as well as documentary features and shorts, we’ll look back at landmark films to uncover the relationship between artistic expression, cultural diffusion, and societal impact. With a focus on race, gender, religion and national identity, this course will explore and analyze how film continues to impact societal, economic, environmental, and political concerns. We will view a variety of films from filmmakers hailing from Semester at Sea ports of call. We’ll examine and appreciate the methods of documentary filmmakers, including conventions and techniques, ethics and politics. And we’ll discover how fictional storytellers use their craft to persuade, inspire, and illuminate in support of societal change.