EN0FN-Film Narrative

Module Provider: English Literature
Number of credits: 20 [10 ECTS credits]
Level:F
Terms in which taught: Spring term module
Pre-requisites:
Non-modular pre-requisites:
Co-requisites:
Modules excluded:
Current from: 2023/4

Module Convenor: Prof Lucinda Becker
Email: l.m.becker@reading.ac.uk

Type of module:

Summary module description:

EN0FN Film Narrative will help you explore different types of narrative in film through close analysis of film sequences and more discursive discussion of film narrative structures and their effect. The module will cover four areas of narrative: unreliable narration (Fight Club), theatrical narration (Much Ado About Nothing), docudrama narrative (The Duke) and complex narratives (Memento).

Each week there will be a close analysis session on the module film, and students will be invited to suggests other films to be included for analysis. Students will also be given the opportunity to produce their sequence analysis on a film on the module or another film of their choice.

The module and its assignments will prepare you for tasks you will encounter later in your degree programmes, such as textual analysis, close analysis in a group situation, recording analysis in a logical way and presenting your ideas both through detailed fact sheets and an essay format. You will also see a clear line from their seminar work to their assessment tasks.

Aims:

This module aims to promote a theoretical and practical understanding of film narrative, and to provide students with conceptual frameworks and a critical vocabulary to analyse some of the ways in which meaning is generated through film making and narrative structure. Students will also be encouraged to explore films of their choice away from the set films on the module, in a collaborative creation of the curriculum.

One key aim of the module is to help students recognise different forms of narrative, a skill which can then be applied to narrative in other situations in their degree programmes, such as the close analysis of texts and the ability to create their own narratives in their academic outputs. The narrative forms chosen on the module relate well to other areas students are likely to encounter in a range of degrees.

Assessable learning outcomes:

By the end of the module it is expected that students will be able to:

• understand and interpret techniques of visual narrative, including through close sequence analysis


• apply appropriate theoretical perspectives and critical language to analysis of the films on the module and other films of their choice


• demonstrate an awareness of ways in which film messages circulate within and beyond the text


• engage critically with the ideas presented in lectures, seminars, and secondary materials

These outcomes will be demonstrated in assignments which are authentic to the module, by asking students to build on the close analysis and overview work they have carried out in class, and also authentic to their aspirations beyond university, by asking them to produce detailed, relevant and professionally presented analysis sheets.

Additional outcomes:

The module will give students the opportunity to:

• See the relevance of film narrative techniques to other narratives, in literature and beyond


• Develop their group working skills


• Create and sustain arguments about narrative


• Feel confident about discussing narrative in films beyond the set films on the module

Outline content:

The module will cover four areas of narrative. Each area will be exemplified by a set film, whilst students will be encouraged to explore other recommended films in each category. For example, unreliable narration will cover Fight Club as a set film, but students would also be encouraged to consider films such as Knives Out or Sixth Sense in this category. In the theatrical narration category, Much Ado About Nothing would be used as the set film, but otherfilm versions of Shakespeare's plays could be recommended. In the category of docudrama, students will study The Duke as the set film, but television docudramas such as The Walk-in might also be explored by students. Complex narrative will be represented by Memento as a set film, but students might also like to explore films such as Love Actually or Inception.

Global context:

Students will have the option to work on films from across the world as they develop their ideas and produce their assignments, and to consider global responses to films and their narrative structures.

Brief description of teaching and learning methods:

Teaching on the module will take the form of:

• a guided viewing workshop for each of the set films on the module


• lectures on film narrative, genre, film-making techniques, and on each of the set films on the module


• seminars in which close sequence analysis will be demonstrated and then carried out in groups.

The module will need to be taught in three-hour sessions so as to cover an entire film in the directed viewing sessions.

Contact hours:

	Autumn	Spring	Summer
Lectures		11
Seminars		22
Tutorials		0.5
Project Supervision		1
Supervised time in studio/workshop		12
Guided independent study:
Wider reading (independent)		46
Wider reading (directed)		20
Advance preparation for classes		22
Preparation for seminars		2.5
Completion of formative assessment tasks		8
Revision and preparation		27
Essay preparation		18
Reflection		10
Total hours by term	0	200	0
Total hours for module	200

Summative Assessment Methods:

Method	Percentage
Written assignment including essay	80
Set exercise	20

Summative assessment- Examinations:

Summative assessment- Coursework and in-class tests:

1. Sequence analysis sheet to a maximum of three pages, including any images (20%) - to be submitted in Week Seven of Spring Term


2. Essay (1000 words) - to be submitted in Week Eleven of Spring Term

Formative assessment methods:

The formative work for the sequence analysis sheet will be carried out by each student in class and immediate oral feedback will be offered.

The sequence analysis sheet acts in part as the formative work for the essay, but the option of a formative essay of 500 words will also be offered to students.

Penalties for late submission:

The Support Centres will apply the following penalties for work submitted late:

• where the piece of work is submitted after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline): 10% of the total marks available for that piece of work will be deducted from the mark for each working day (or part thereof) following the deadline up to a total of five working days;
• where the piece of work is submitted more than five working days after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline): a mark of zero will be recorded.

The University policy statement on penalties for late submission can be found at: https://www.reading.ac.uk/cqsd/-/media/project/functions/cqsd/documents/cqsd-old-site-documents/penaltiesforlatesubmission.pdf
You are strongly advised to ensure that coursework is submitted by the relevant deadline. You should note that it is advisable to submit work in an unfinished state rather than to fail to submit any work.

Assessment requirements for a pass:

40%

Reassessment arrangements:

Re-examination in August. Coursework will be carried forward if it bears a confirmed mark of 40% or more. Otherwise it must be resubmitted in August.

Additional Costs (specified where applicable):

1) Required text books: 

2) Specialist equipment or materials: 

3) Specialist clothing, footwear or headgear: 

4) Printing and binding: 

5) Computers and devices with a particular specification: 

6) Travel, accommodation and subsistence: 

Last updated: 30 March 2023