ADVISORY:
Given class time
limitations, not all
of the films listed here
will be assigned
or screened.
Announcements will be
made in class about
required screenings,
both in-class and
on your own time.
MCOM 105
FILM STUDY:
In-Class
Screening:
The
Soloist
Google Reviews
Mental Illness
focus
Yahoo
Reviews
CBS 60 Minutes
News
feature
about the
story.
Students
are expected to
attend and actively
participate in all class
discussions and activities.
Goals
of the
MCOM
105
FILM STUDY:
1. Identify how the
issues of diversity
are portrayed in
movies
focusing on your
individual
perspective.
2. Respectfully
share your
assessments in
written assignments
and open
class
discussions.
3. Respectfully
LISTEN
to your classmates
and open your
thoughts to new
or unconsidered
perspectives.
4. Identify
common likes and
dislikes,
understanding the
reasons why.
5. Develop
informed, creative
and viable
suggestions on how
all media could
better portray
diversity to the
mass audience.
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Films to be
shown
in class will be
announced in class
in advance and
all students are
expected to
TAKE NOTES
DURING THE FILM
SCREENING.
Quotes of dialog
and opinions expressed
in films must be noted
in class discussions
and written
assignments after each
film screening.
Films
shown in class
will not be
made available to
students for private
use. Some, but
not all of the films
chosen for class study
are available online
or in local video outlets.
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Online
DIVERSITY
Info &
Resources
UNITY
Journalists of Color
Aljazeera Media:
Arabic (Portal)
English
Television
Arab-American Market
Beijing
News
News from
China
People's Daily
Online China Daily News
E-Renlai Magazine
Pan-Asian
Cultural, Social &
Spiritual concerns
El Universal
Mexico
City News
en Español
La Prensa
Nicaraguan News
en Español
La Prensa
- Honduras
en Español
Global
Online Newspapers
Locator Index
NOW
National Organization
of Women
The
Men's Center
Male affirmative resources
Catholic Church
Cultural Diversity
United State Conference
of Catholic Bishops
GLAAD
Gay & Lesbian Alliance
Against
Discrimination
American Disabilities
Association
Advocates for
disabled persons
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Historically movies &
documentaries have identified and reflected societal changes
with diversity for mass audiences. Films also educate the public
about
these realities, how personal and important they are, especially for
a general
population where many are unfamiliar with the topics or issues.
Through film studies this semester, we will explore and candidly
discuss
HOW THE MEDIA portrays:
Race & Ethnicity
Issues
The
Color of Fear
"It is an intimate portrayal of what most
folks
of color go through on a daily basis.
It is confrontational, intimate and contains extremely honest
dialogue."
This documentary film was the work of an Oakland, CA. based
company
and was the passion of an Asian-American film producer. Related
content:"Block
to Your Progress" Tim Wise -
Background Info
Institutional Racism is Real
White Privilege
Slumdog Millionaire
Academy Award Winner for best
picture in 2008. A worldwide popular
TV game show changes the lives of some young people from India
who have
struggled struggled for survival in extreme poverty conditions.
(*Available in most video stores*)
Official website
The
Namesake
Spanning two generation, two
clashing cultures, and two very different
ways of life, this film asks the question: " What does it mean
to be an
American family?" (*Available
in most video stores*)
Mi Familia
The 1995 story of
three generations of the Sanchez family. From their adventurous
journey from Mexico to California in the 1920's through the
turbulent 1950's,
to the stark realities of modern day, their struggle to live the
American dream is
sometimes darkened but never diminished.
Joy Luck
Club
This 1993 film is
an epic story about Chinese immigrant mothers and their
American-born daughters. The film takes place in present-day San
Francisco, concentrating on a group of late-middle-aged Chinese
women. Ever since
arriving in the United States after World War II, the women have
gathered
weekly to play mah-jongg and to tell stories, regaling each
other with tales of
their children and grandchildren, giving each other a sense of
hope and renewal
in the midst of poverty and hardship. It vividly portrays both
Chinese culture and
the immigrant experience in America, and has become a film
classic.
(*Available
in most video stores*)
Other Cultural
Films Websites:
* The sampling of films highlighted may not be
easy to find or access
locally.*
__________________________________________________________
Gender Issues
Knocked Up
"They say opposites
attract," says the movie DVD cover. "A slacker and a career
girl, one intoxicated evening,...go through a heartwarming
journey."
(*Available in most video stores*)
Why Did I Get Married?
Actor, writer,
producer and film director Tyler Perry shows how some attitudes
and decisions made by professional women and men can cause
serious problems
when those secrets come out.
(*Available in most video stores*)
The Mulligans
The story of a college man who brings
his best friend home for the summer
and everyone discovers a personal truth that rocks the family.
Film website
Press
kit
__________________________________________________________
Sexual Orientation Issues
Brokeback Mountain
"It was a friendship that became a
secret."
Academy Award nominated for best
picture in 2005.
Two early 1960's
western cattle herders wrestle with their emotional attraction
in a tough guy,
homophobic community.
(*Available in most video stores*)
Milk
Academy Award nominated film for best
picture in 2008.
Actor Sean Penn
won the award for best actor in his portrayal of a San Francisco
gay rights pioneer.
Based on a true story.
(*Available in most video stores*)
Prayers
for Bobby
A Lifetime television movie based on a true
story.
A devout Christian woman, who
raises her children with the conservative teachings
of the Presbyterian Church, believes God can cure her son of
what she considers
his 'sin' and persuades him to pray harder for relief for
his growing depression.
List of
Gay/Lesbian Films
Full length and
short features on LOGO Online
__________________________________________________________
Religious/Spirituality
Issues
Religulous
In 2008, HBO Comedian &
Issues talk show host Bill Maher took an irreverent
look at people's spiritual and religious beliefs
around the world.
(*Available in most video stores*)
The
Passion of The Christ
A 2004 film co-written, co-produced
and directed by
Mel Gibson. It is based on the
New Testament accounts of the arrest, trial, torture,
crucifixion, and resurrection of
Jesus,
events commonly known by Christians as "The
Passion". An extremely graphic
depiction of the brutal and severe capital punishment technique
of the ancient
Roman Empire. Due to this unique violent content, viewer
discretion is advised.
When shown in theatres worldwide, this film grossed more than
$600 million. See how this film did in the
United States.
Christian Spotlight:
Movie Review
The Ten
Commandments
A 1956 major motion picture
that dramatized the biblical story of
Moses,
an adopted
Egyptian
prince-turned deliverer of the
Hebrew
slaves. This more than three
hour film depicts a revered religious story within the Jewish
culture and faith.
This film remains so popular worldwide, every spring around
Passover and Easter,
one of the major TV networks airs the entire movie.
In June 2008, the American Film Institute revealed its "Ten
top Ten"—the best ten
films in ten "epics"
American film genres—after polling over 1,500 people from the
creative community. The Ten Commandments was acknowledged
as
the tenth best film in the epic genre.
__________________________________________________________
Persons With Disabilities
Issues
Rory O'Shea Was Here
Two Irish young adults with
disabilities strike out on their own and learn
just how willing and able society is ready to accept them &
their needs.
(*Available in some specialty video stores or
online*)
Yuvvraaj
This international
film is about three brothers who discover each other after
the
death of their millionaire father. The eldest, Anil Kapoor
suffers from ‘Williams’
syndrome, a condition where the patient has an unusually
cheerful demeanor,
violent outbursts and passion for music.
Aparna Sen was the only
director to
portray the disabled in her Bengali and Hindi films.
More Films on
Disabilities
Disabilities
Film Festival
Reel Life: Lists of Disability Films
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Learn more about
MCOM 105: Diversity & Lifestyles in Media
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