A Question of Taste? Film Curating between Theory and Practice

Film curating or programming, which is the act of selecting and exhibiting audiovisual texts, is gaining greater importance in recent years within both professional and academic circles. As part of this shift, there is a growing recognition in the complexity that undergirds film curation, as a creative-intellectual endeavor that transcends personal taste towards broader spheres of meaning and influence. The class will investigate this complexity as it manifests in cine-clubs, cinematheques, art-house theatres, and especially film festivals. For this purpose, we will employ a variety of theoretical essays, event catalogs and websites, and even conversations with local film curators, which provide the broadest practical and theoretical perspective on the set of constraints and possibilities inherent to a seemingly simple act of selection. 

(For those enrolling to the class before the first term, and who intend to remain in the class during the second term, there is the optional opportunity of taking part in the selection process for the European University Film Award. Ahead of the school year, class participants will preview five feature length films selected by a professional jury at FilmFest Hamburg, and after special deliberations, will determine the top three finalists. In addition, one of the students will be flown to Hamburg at the expense of the festival in order to take part in final jury selections for the award together with other student representatives from various universities around the world. For more details: https://www.eufa.org/en/#about).