Module manager: David Platten
Email: D.P.Platten@leeds.ac.uk
Taught: Semester 2 (Jan to Jun) View Timetable
Year running 2025/26
| FREN2200 | Cinema in France: The Seventh Art |
This module is not approved as a discovery module
The module introduces students to the history and the specific character and qualities of French cinema, from its origins at the end of the 19th century to the present. Film, the ‘seventh art’, has played an important role in French culture – both 'high' and popular – since the medium was invented in France by French engineers (the Lumière brothers). Experience suggests that current generations of students already possess a high (if not always conscious) degree of visual literacy, which can rapidly be 'operationalised'. The module provides a grounding in film studies as a discipline, by familiarizing students with its modes of analysis and key concepts to enable them to articulate and put into practice their existing visual literacy. Cinema will also be studied within the wider context of French society and history, contributing to students' overall knowledge of French national culture. Using seminar presentations and debate, as well as 'interactive' lectures, students will be encouraged to play an active role in analysis and discussion from early in the module. Please note this is an optional module and runs subject to enrolments. If a low number of students choose this module, then the module may not run and you may be asked to choose another module.
On completion of this module, students should be able to:
Demonstrate knowledge of key aspects of the history of French cinema from its origins to the present.
Critically analyse a film or film extract demonstrating awareness of the contribution of formal components to meaning.
Identify, apply and discuss some key concepts in French film studies (eg. auteurism, poetic realism).
Understand and analyse critically relevant aspects of French cultural history.
Lectures and seminars will demonstrate and examine the methods and results of gathering, organising and deploying evidence, data and information from a variety of secondary and primary sources.
On successful completion of this module, students will have demonstrated the following learning outcomes specific to the subject:
LO1. Discuss critically the history and specificities of French cinema, both from a cinematic and cultural point of view, and of its impact on world cinemas.
LO2. Identify and evaluate the historical, social, and political contexts from which French cinema emerges and to which it responds.
LO3. Analyse films critically and with a view to comparing them productively.
LO4. Develop research questions and select the most suitable corpus of films to address them.
On successful completion of the module students will have demonstrated the following skills learning outcomes:
LO5. Present a structured and nuanced argument, using terminology and concepts appropriate to the field(s) of study.
LO6. Make connections across differing critical perspectives to explore ideas and select the most appropriate approaches.
Cinematic literacy
We will study films from the earliest silent 'shorts' made by the Lumiere brothers and Georges Melies around 1900, through the golden age of the 1930s (Renoir, Carne), on to the Nouvelle Vague (Godard, Truffaut) and the contemporary period (Subway, La Haine, Un long dimanche de fiancailles and more). Students should note that they will be required to watch the films outside the module teaching hours - film showings will be organised approximately once a fortnight.
| Delivery type | Number | Length hours | Student hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lecture | 10 | 1 | 10 |
| Seminar | 10 | 1 | 10 |
| Private study hours | 180 | ||
| Total Contact hours | 20 | ||
| Total hours (100hr per 10 credits) | 200 | ||
Students will be expected to prepare for seminars and the assessments by a) watching set films + secondary viewings and reading selected texts, b) preparing group presentations, c) reflecting on specific research questions, d) carrying out bibliographical research
Additionally, in preparation for the assessments, students will be expected to a) hand in practice essay in semester 1, b) be active in seminar discussions, c) give feedback and ask questions after weekly seminar presentations, d) conduct independent research using the library sources
Regular seminar presentations (mainly involving group presentations, although individual presentations will also be possible) and seminar contributions with full discussion and formative feedback.
| Assessment type | Notes | % of formal assessment |
|---|---|---|
| Coursework | Essay | 100 |
| Total percentage (Assessment Coursework) | 100 | |
Normally resits will be assessed by the same methodology as the first attempt, unless otherwise stated
The reading list is available from the Library website
Last updated: 30/04/2025
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