Topics in Chinese Film and Media Studies: Cinematic Soundscapes

Harvard FAS

This seminar examines the soundscapes of Chinese film and audiovisual media, with musical highlights from the dawn of sound cinema to the present day. We will proceed chronologically from Republican-era Shanghai cinema, through 1950s to 1970s Cold War musicals and post-1980s New Wave auteurs, to contemporary televisual theme songs and KTV music videos. The film and media under discussion include musical comedy and musical horror, adaptations from Hollywood and from…