[image: images.jpg]
May 7 — Jun 25 2019
The course takes place on Tuesday evenings from 7-9pm.
*booking:
https://opencitylondon.com/courses/visual-anthropology-and-the-city-2/
<https://opencitylondon.com/courses/visual-anthropology-and-the-city-2/>*
Led by Dr Barbara Knorpp, ‘Visual Anthropology and the City’ looks at
documentaries on the city starting from the city symphonies of the 1920s to
the video diaries of Jonas Mekas in New York and James Benning’s style of
‘Slow Cinema’ in Los Angeles. Urban anthropology has fascinated
journalists, photographers and policy-makers since the emergence of the
Chicago School in the 1920s. Ethnography and long-term research facilitated
deeper insights into the everyday lives of urban neighbourhoods that were
often associated with violence, crime and housing problems. Cinema and
photography have also since their inception engaged with the urban, and
their development is deeply entwined with that of the modern metropolis. We
are interested in films, photography, and writings that look at modernity,
subcultures, non-western cities, regeneration, urban elites, domestic
space, social movements and urban architecture. Those taking this course
will have the chance to hear about, watch and discuss films, photography
and writings on the subject.
*Session 1: The City Symphonies of the 1920s*
Looking at early examples of documentary and city films revolving around
urban life style and modern architecture, e.g. Walter Ruttman’s* Berlin:
Symphony of a Great City* (1927), and Dziga Vertov’s *Man with a Movie
Camera *(1929).
*Session 2: Jean Rouch and Cinéma Vérité*
Best known for *Chronicle of a Summer *(1961), Jean Rouch is one of the
most controversial figures in ethnographic filmmaking. His film *Petit à
Petit* (1970) tells the story of an African businessman who is conducting
ethnographic research in Paris – a reversed anthropology.
*Session 3: The Heart of the Angel and Observational Cinema*
Working from Molly Dineen’s *The Heart of the Angel* (1989), a film
following 48 hours in the everyday lives of the people who work on the
London Underground, this session will discuss the history of British
documentary and the stylistic conventions of observational cinema.
*Session 4: La Haine and Docu-Fiction*
Mathieu Kassovitz’s powerful drama *La Haine *(1995) takes an unblinking
look at a racially diverse group of young people trapped in the Parisian
economic and social underclass. Using the film as a starting point, this
session will explore the history of the city’s colonialism.
*Session 5: US Filmmakers and Slow Cinema*
Filmmakers such as Safi Faye, Jacques Rivette, Apichatpong Weerasethakul,
Lav Diaz, Chantal Akerman or James Benning have experimented with slow
representations of time and silence. In contrast we will watch personal
accounts of everyday life by Jonas Mekas.
*Session 6: [Guest Speaker] Dave Swindells on Club Culture in London
1980s-1990s (former Timeout Nightlife Editor and Photographer)*
Dave Swindells will talk about the photographs that he took as a nightlife
editor at Timeout on club culture and subculture in London during the
1980s-1990s.
*Session 7: ‘The Exiles’ and Native Americans on Film*
Kent MacKenzie spent his student days in the bars of Los Angeles where he
befriended a gang of Native Americans. Following their dreams of urban
life, *The Exiles* (1961), offers a refreshing perspective on people living
in exile away from their native lands and traditions.
*Session 8: Shinjuku Boys in Tokyo*
Kim Longinotto’s film introduces three ‘onnabes’ – women who live as men
and have girlfriends but don’t usually identify as lesbians -, working as
club hosts in Tokyo. *Shinjuku Boys* (1995) is a remarkable documentary
about the complexity of female sexuality in Japan.
*Image courtesy of Dave Swindells.*
Tutor
Barbara Knorpp is an anthropologist with a special interest in film
history. Her work is situated in the interdisciplinary arena between
anthropology, cinema, media studies, and fine art. Before her PhD she
worked in an international photo press agency, collaborated with artists,
and worked in documentary and fiction film in Germany, Japan, and
Australia. She was a Teaching Fellow in Museum and Cultural Heritage
Studies at University College, London in 2015-16 and has been a Visiting
Lecturer in Anthropology at Brunel University since 2007. Barbara is also a
Tutor at Goldsmiths and a member of the RAI Film Festival film committee.
She recently published a book on African Cinema: "African Film Cultures:
Context of Creation and Circulation" edited by Winston Mano, Barbara Knorpp
and Anuli Agina (2017). She has a background in Anthropology, Theatre,
Film, and Television Studies, and Art History.
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