Environmental film class
Hi there College Eight students,
I'm Neil Schaefer, one of the College Eight Core Course instructors. I hope your Winter quarter is going well. Just want to see if you would like to sign up for a 2-credit seminar I'm offering this Spring Quarter called Environment and Society in Film. It will meet on Wednesdays from 6pm to 9pm in College Eight room 301. It is a nice, fairly large seminar/conference room with good chairs, a large table, a video/dvd projection system, and a fairly large screen. If you'd be driving to the class, parking is available for free in the West Remote Lot after 5pm.
Some weeks there will be a short article or two to read before the class, but there will be no textbook. I have tried to choose the cream of the crop of environmental films. Here are the films I've tentatively chosen to show in the seminar (in no particular order):
- Akira Kurosawa’s Dreams. A classic set of eight short artistic films with various environmental themes, directed by the legendary Akira Kurosawa. We will see some of them. (1990, 120 min.) - Chernousenko on Chernobyl. On the nuclear meltdown at Chernobyl. (1997, 30 min.) - Flow: For Love of Water. Water supplies & environmental justice. (2008, 84 min.) - Fresh. An inspiring film about the sustainable agriculture movement featuring Michael Pollan, who wrote a couple articles used in the College Eight Core Course Reader. (2009, 72 min.) - Wolves at our Door. A pack of wolves are raised by the filmmakers. They explore the behaviors and social lives of the wolves. (1997, 50 min.) - Taking Root: The Vision of Wangari Maathai. Documentary on Maathai, who is a Nobel Peace Prize winner for her environmental work as head of the Green Belt Movement in Kenya. Those in the movement planted over 40 million trees. (2008, 81 min.) - An Inconvenient Truth. Al Gore’s Academy Award Winning documentary on global warming. (2006, 96 min.) - Erin Brockovich. Dramatic Hollywood version of a woman gathering facts for a legal battle to compensate victims of groundwater contamination by PG&E. (2000, 132 min.) - The Wilderness Idea. John Muir and Gifford Pinchot in the battle over whether to create Hetch Hetchy reservoir in Yosemite National Park. (1992, 58 min.) - Encounters at the End of the World. Master filmmaker Werner Herzog directs this documentary on Antarctica and its human and other inhabitants. (2007, 101 min.) - Koyaanisqatsi: Life Out of Balance. Stunning visuals of nature in the Southwestern U.S. jarringly juxtaposed with urban images. No dialog, but a hypnotic musical score by Phillip Glass. (1982, 87 min.)
After viewing a film or films each week, there will be some informal in-class writing and discussion. Grades will be based primarily on attendance, class participation, and a three page film review plus a rewrite of it. Everyone will be expected to participate in discussion each week.
If you have any questions, please contact me at NEIL_SCHAEFER@YAHOO.COM or 831-466-3633 (afternoons or evenings). If you've decided you want to be a part of this seminar, please let me know that as soon as you can, and also PLEASE LET ME KNOW YOUR MAJOR(s), YOUR MINOR(s), AND YOUR YEAR at UCSC (I seek a diversity of majors and a diversity of years). If your major is undecided, then please let me know a couple of your academic interests. Feel free to also let me know what interests you about the class, but that is not necessary. (If you probably want to be in the course, but are undecided about it due to possible schedule conflicts or something else, please let me know, and then follow up with me right after you decide whether you want to be in.)
It may take several days for me to respond. If you get in, I will then give you the class number you'll need to officially register; the class number is not in the public database of UCSC courses. Currently it is unclear whether this course will be offered in future years.
If you prefer to take the seminar Pass/No Pass instead of for a grade, please let me know that soon. If you have a friend who might like to take the seminar or has questions about it, please forward this email and they can write or call me directly if they are interested or they have questions.
Best, Neil
2011
"Environment and Society in Film" is a two-credit course, below are the films from last year, which may change.
Some weeks there will be a short article or two to read for the class. Over the last few months I have reviewed many films and have tried to choose the cream of the crop. Here are the films I've tentatively chosen to show in the course:
- Akira Kurosawa’s Dreams. A classic set of eight creative short films with various environmental themes, directed by the legendary Akira Kurosawa. Many of these short films will be shown with other films they complement in the course. Thus, Kurosawa's work will be a unifying thread in the course. (1990, 120 min.)
- The Wilderness Idea. John Muir and Gifford Pinchot in the battle over whether to create Hetch Hetchy reservoir in Yosemite National Park. (1992, 58 min.)
- Erin Brockovich. Dramatic Hollywood version of a woman gathering facts for a legal battle to compensate victims of groundwater contamination by PG&E. (2000, 132 min.)
- Wolves at our Door. A pack of wolves are raised by the filmmakers. They explore the behaviors and social lives of the wolves. (1997, 50 min.)
- King Corn. Two Friends plant an acre of corn and follow the harvest into the US food supply. (2007, 90 min.)
- Encounters at the End of the World. Master filmmaker Werner Herzog directs this documentary on Antarctica and its human and other inhabitants. (2007, 101 min.)
- Gasland. About the alarming effects of the hydraulic fracturing method to obtain natural gas. (2009, 107 min.)
- Fresh. An inspiring film about the sustainable agriculture movement featuring Michael Pollan, who wrote a couple articles used in the College Eight Core Course Reader. (2009, 72 min.)
- Flow: For Love of Water. Water supplies & world environmental justice. (2008, 84 min.)
- Koyaanisqatsi: Life Out of Balance. (1982, 87 min.) Stunning visuals of nature in the Southwestern U.S. jarringly juxtaposed with urban images. No dialog, but a musical score by Phillip Glass.
- Taking Root: The Vision of Wangari Maathai. Documentary on Maathai, who is a Nobel Peace Prize winner for her environmental work as head of the Green Belt Movement in Kenya. Those in the movement planted over 40 million trees. (2008, 81 min.)
After showing a film or films each week, there will be informal writing and discussion. I plan for the course grade to be based on class participation, a few short papers and rewrites, in-class informal writing and note taking, and attendance.
If you have any questions, please contact me. If you would like to sign up for the course, please contact me soon for the room number, course number, and the class number you'll need to register. The class number is not published, and I can only give it out to 18 students due to the size of the room. The sooner you contact me, the more likely you'll get in the course. Note that the UCSC registration system allows you to sign up for up to 14 credits on the first pass. First-pass/Priority Registration for UCSC begins Wednesday, February 23. If you have a friend who might like to take the course or has questions about it, please forward your friend this email and they can write or call me directly if they are interested or they have questions. neil_schaefer AT yahoo.com
