15-PROSEM202-2BA-11
Traditionally associated with the work of both individual filmmakers and boutique divisions in Hollywood studios, independent film has become increasingly challenging to define in aesthetic, institutional and cultural terms. While addressing race, gender and identity, independent films are known for their outsider status and often feature an array of idiosyncratic characters, including eccentrics, loners or slackers. To understand what exactly constitutes the “indie” label and what makes it distinctive from both mainstream and avant-garde cinema, we will discuss the rapidly shifting landscape and meaning of independent film with the special focus on New Hollywood (late 1960s to late 1970s; Coppola, De Palma, Scorsese) and contemporary independent film (1980s to date). Along the way, we will examine the key trends and movements in the history and present-day of independent filmmaking, ranging from race and exploitation films or the early work of John Cassavetes, the indie “godfather,” to Blaxploitation (Van Peebles, Parks), L.A. Rebellion (Burnett, Dash) and the 1980s and 1990s burgeoning of independent cinema (Coen Bros, Jarmusch, Linklater, Soderbergh, Tarantino, Van Sant), which has led to the proliferation of feminist (Borden), new race (Eyre, Wang), new queer (Araki, Dunye) and new black realist films (Lee, Singleton), boutique independents and digital filmmaking.
- Nauczyciel: Kornelia Boczkowska