Collaborating to Create the Cinema Studies Program
Story By: Steve Rust
Producing a great film requires the collaboration of many individuals, each bringing a unique set of skills to the project. It makes sense then, that a program seeking to produce great media scholars would also embrace collaboration.
The Cinema Studies Program is an active partnership between the College of Arts and Sciences, the School of Architecture and Allied Arts, and the School of Journalism and Communication. This collaboration is unique to Oregon: Cinema Studies majors take their courses across three different schools rather than from one department or program within one school. Because the study of cinema is a multidisciplinary process, Cinema Studies majors learn to understand the medium from a variety of disciplinary angles and perspectives. The courses offered by these three partners form the core of the major, providing a dynamic approach that grounds students in the foundations of cinema history, theory, and production. After studying the fundamentals of film and media scholarship, students can chart their own paths through the major with a wide selection of courses. By graduation, a Cinema Studies major will have gained expertise from across the University in everything from experimental animation to silent Korean cinema.
The Cinema Studies partnership extends far beyond course offerings. For example, the three Cinema Studies partners have collaborated on a variety of unique events, including a Working Filmmaker Series; talks by internationally recognized cinema scholars; film screenings organized in collaboration with the Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art and the locally-owned Bijou Theater; one-day symposia like “Women Working in Media”; and the “What is Documentary?” conference held at the Portland Turnbull Center. As a result of this dynamic partnership, Cinema Studies students are prepared to navigate the ever-changing media industry and shape—rather than simply react to—these changes.
School of Journalism and Communication (SOJC)
Faculty in the School of Journalism and Communication draw on their research and background in the economic, political and cultural aspects of film and other media to ensure that students understand these various relationships. Several SOJC faculty partners are active as both scholars and filmmakers. The SOJC offers courses in everything from the Disney company and reality television to Latin American cinema and new media. Documentary filmmaking is also a mainstay of the program. Last year, Drs. Gabriela Martinez and Janet Wasko organized the “What is Documentary?” conference at the Portland Turnbull Center, which featured panel discussions by local newscasters and producers to highlight the gender divisions pervasive in mainstream media.
Cinema Studies Program Faculty from SOJC include:
Peter Alilunas
Assistant Professor, SOJC
Gabriela Martinez
Associate Professor, SOJC
Daniel Miller
Associate Professor, SOJC
Biswarup Sen
Assistant Professor, SOJC
Daniel Steinhart
Assistant Professor, SOJC and Cinema Studies
Janet Wasko
Professor, SOJC
College of Arts and Sciences (CAS)
Faculty from across CAS departments conduct research and teach courses that primarily focus on the historical, aesthetic, and cultural aspects of cinema. Courses like History of Motion Picture, Philosophy of Film, The Films of Akira Kurosawa, Media Aesthetics, and Nordic Cinema teach students critical thinking and analysis skills through close readings of film and television programs as well as research and writing skills.
Cinema Studies Program Faculty from CAS include:
Michael Allan
Assistant Professor, Comparative Literature
Michael Aronson
Cinema Studies Director
Associate Professor, English
Sangita Gopal
Associate Professor, English
Dong Hoon Kim
Assistant Professor, Korean Literature
East Asian Languages & Literature
Katharina Loew
Assistant Professor, German & Scandinavian and Cinema Studies
Quinn Miller
Assistant Professor, English
Priscilla Peña Ovalle
Cinema Studies Associate Director
Associate Professor, English
Sergio Rigoletto
Assistant Professor, Romance Languages and Cinema Studies
School of Architecture and Allied Arts (AAA)
Faculty in the School of Architecture and Allied Arts complete this unique partnership with expertise in art-focused media production as well as the historical and theoretical analysis of cinema-as-art. As cinema undergoes its historical transition from analog film to digital media, these scholars and artists lead students into the future and provide historical context through courses such as New Media Art and Digital Discourses, Introduction to Animation, Time-Based Digital Arts, Experimental Film, and Video Art. Some of the important contributions of AAA were highlighted this year by visits from working filmmakers David Waingarten and Daniel Meyers of Portland’s Second Story Interactive Studio. Waingarten and Meyers emphasized that Second Story’s interactive multimedia installations and online applications would not be possible without the collaboration of people with backgrounds in filmmaking, digital arts, and communication.
Cinema Studies Program Faculty from AAA include:
Michael Bray
Career Instructor, Department of Art
Keith Eggener
Director of Undergraduate Studies
Marion D. Ross Distinguished Professor of Architectural History
Department of the History of Art & Architecture
Richard Herskowitz
Cinema Pacific Director
Instructor, Arts & Administration
Euan Macdonald
Professor of Practice, Department of Art
In Memoriam: Kartz Ucci, Associate Professor of Digital Arts in the Department of Art, joined Oregon’s faculty in 2004 and was a major contributor to the founding of the interdisciplinary Cinema Studies major. Her enthusiasm and vibrant personality, which imparted an exciting mix of talent and passion to her teaching, was critical to the successful early establishment of the major. Her participation was instrumental in making the connection between Cinema Studies and Digital Arts in the School of Architecture and Allied Arts; she was a vital connection for Cinema Studies students interested in pursuing digital media. Professor Ucci passed away from cancer on October 6, 2013, and her loss was deeply felt across campus as well as in the art community.
Kartz was a true artist in every sense of the word. Her vision and enthusiasm made Cinema Studies richer, more exciting, and ultimately truer to our shared idea of a program celebrated for its multiplicity of vision and practice. We pay tribute to Kartz Ucci as a contributing founder of the Cinema Studies major, as a teacher, a passionate artist, and wonderful person.