ASIAN 2261 - Cinema and Anime in Japan

@ (LA-AS)

Fall. 3 credits.

B. de Bary.

An introduction to Japanese film that traces its evolution from the early 20th century. We will consider topics such as the impact on film of kabuki, shimpa, and shingeki theatrical traditions; the relation of politics and melodrama in early film; surrealism and silent film; social realist films of the early 1930s; film and national imperialism; war films and the emergence of anime; postwar humanism; New Wave cinema; the anti-Ampo movement in documentary and New Wave films. A final section of the course will deal with the extent to which anime builds on or diverges from established film traditions, and the abundant new literature that addresses the social and aesthetic significance of anime. (LL)