Animation and the Arts

4.0 credits

What does “animation”—whether as a film genre or, more broadly, as the enlivening of seemingly inanimate forms—do to our perception of the world? While the term “animation” is most commonly used to refer to animated film, the verb “to animate” is synonymous with moving to action or giving life. This course examines animated films of the 20th and 21st centuries, from experimental films and stop motion animation to the impulse to animate static images across a range of visual and narrative media. We will examine the aesthetic effects and emotional impacts that arise from this medium and delve into the relationship between narrative and the medium as a world-making mode.