Explores the link between Franz Kafka, the great modernist author, and cinema, the most significant modern technological art form. Social and cultural context (multi-lingual and multi-ethnic Prague); Kafka’s complex personal identity (German-speaker, Jew, patient, life-long bachelor); writing cinematically; Kafka’s influence on 20th and 21st century film, especially existentialism and the “kafkaesque”; translating between media/platforms as a concern of high modernism and our contemporary technological landscape. Includes works by Franz Kafka, Fritz Lang, Orson Welles, Steven Soderbergh, Jonathan Lethem, and the Coen Brothers. Taught entirely in English, no prerequisites. Evening meeting time is for film screenings. Instructor: Gellen
Cinematic Arts