This course examines the paradigm of image and sound "capture" as it takes shape in different fields: in cinema and photography, but also in the practices of surveillance, espionage and the identification of individuals. Together, we will discuss certain aspects of the history of audiovisual capture techniques, but we will mainly examine how technical invention has been recuperated, diverted and, sometimes, denounced in cinematographic fiction. Our filmic corpus will help us understand the interplay of invention between technical reality and the imaginary, from early cinema to contemporary experimental films, via the detective and spy genres.
Objectives
Students should be able to identify, characterize and analyse the presence of surveillance devices in film sequences.
The first half of the semester is devoted to an in-depth introduction to the key terms of surveillance and film analysis. It is completed by a guided analysis of sequences that involve voyeurism or surveillance. Then, over the second half of the semester, students present their own take on various film sequences using the tools of film analysis.
Assessment and Final Grade
• A short presentation or a short written paper focusing one of the topics studied (25%)
• A written exam at the end of the semester (75%)
Libraries
Practical information
