Visualizing Blackness: Histories of the African Diaspora Through Film

3 units

The African Diaspora and more importantly variations of blackness, black bodies, and black culture have long captured the imagination of audiences across the globe. Taking a cue from exciting trends in popular culture, this course bridges the world of history, film, and culture to explore where and how historical themes specific to African descended peoples are generated on screen (film and television). Fusing the film world with digital media (ie. online series and webisodes) this class will allow students to critically engage diasporic narratives of blackness that emerge in popular and independent films not only from the United States but other important locales including Australia, Brazil, Britain, and Canada. Moving across time and space, class discussions will center an array of fascinating yet critical themes including racial/ethnic stereotyping, gender, violence, sexuality, spirituality/conjuring, and education.