Durham University
Programme and Module Handbook

Undergraduate Programme and Module Handbook 2023-2024 (archived)

Module SPAN3181: CONTEMPORARY SPANISH CINEMA

Department: Modern Languages and Cultures (Spanish)

SPAN3181: CONTEMPORARY SPANISH CINEMA

Type Open Level 3 Credits 20 Availability Not available in 2023/24 Module Cap Location Durham

Prerequisites

  • Spanish Language 2A (SPAN2011) OR Spanish Language 2B (SPAN2111) OR an equivalent qualification to the satisfaction of the Chairman/Chairwoman of the Board of Studies in MLAC or his/her representative.

Corequisites

  • Modern European Languages, Combined Honours and all Joint and 'with' programmes: Spanish Language 4 (SPAN3011). Other: see Chairman/Chairwoman of the Board of Studies in MLAC or his/her representative.

Excluded Combination of Modules

  • None.

Aims

  • To develop the students' ability to analyse and criticise filmic texts.
  • To develop the students' research skills.
  • To consolidate and refine the theoretical concepts learned by students in previous years, especially within the fields of Film and Gender Studies and to place this in the wider context of Cultural Studies.
  • To expand the students' knowledge of contemporary Spanish culture, society and history and to examine their implications in the wider European context.

Content

  • This course covers aspects of contemporary Spanish History and Culture with specific focus in 1990s cinema but in the wider context of pre and post-Franco Spanish society, history and politics.
  • Students will become familiar with important Spanish issues such as national stereotypes, European integration, violence, trauma, race, immigration and changing gender and sexual identities, as well as relevant concepts in Film Studies such as cinematic genre, spectatorship and the star system.

Learning Outcomes

Subject-specific Knowledge:
  • On completion of this course you should:
  • recognise the importance of contemporary Spanish cinema and identity in the wider context of Europe and its relation/opposition to mainstream Hollywood,
  • understand recent changes in Spanish society and its contrast with previously established images and stereotypes of Spain. These will include: eroticism, gender roles and stereotypes, machismo, the post-war years, and rural/industrial Spain,
  • manage with confidence new concepts and terminology in the fields of Film and Gender Studies and, more generally, cultural theory.
Subject-specific Skills:
  • On completion of the courses, students shoudl be able to think critically about the ways in which films represent society in general and Spanish society in particular.
Key Skills:

    Modes of Teaching, Learning and Assessment and how these contribute to the learning outcomes of the module

    • The module will be taught intensively either in Term I or in Term II on a 'short-fat 'basis.
    • Lectures (twice weekly) will deliver key information about the module
    • A weekly seminar with smaller groups will allow for individual presentations and active discussions
    • This format responds to student feedback gained in SSCC and NSS responses

    Teaching Methods and Learning Hours

    Activity Number Frequency Duration Total/Hours
    Lectures 20 2 Per Week 1 Hour 20
    Seminars 10 1 Per Week 1 Hour 10
    Preparation and Reading 170
    Total 200

    Summative Assessment

    Component: Film Analysis seen paper Component Weighting: 25%
    Element Length / duration Element Weighting Resit Opportunity
    Film analysis seen paper 1,000 words 100% No
    Component: Film Review Component Weighting: 25%
    Element Length / duration Element Weighting Resit Opportunity
    Film review 1,000 words 100% No
    Component: Essay Component Weighting: 50%
    Element Length / duration Element Weighting Resit Opportunity
    Essay 3,000 words 100% No

    Formative Assessment:

    None.


    Attendance at all activities marked with this symbol will be monitored. Students who fail to attend these activities, or to complete the summative or formative assessment specified above, will be subject to the procedures defined in the University's General Regulation V, and may be required to leave the University