[Cwgrad-announcements] Prof. Winer's Winter Graduate Seminar

[Andrew Winer]

Dear MFAs,
Per your requests, please find below a description of my Winter graduate seminar.  The texts will be available at the UCR bookstore at the beginning of the quarter.
Best,
Andrew

CRWT 251 - Hollywood & The Novel - Winter 2007

Andrew Winer

Thursdays 2:10-5pm

Description:

It is an old Hollywood adage that middling novels make good films. In this seminar, we will examine what Hollywood did with five august works of literature. In the process, we will learn about the fundamentals of telling a large story, in both the novel and film form. Students will study five novels, their screenplay adaptations, and the resulting films. The quarter will be divided into five two-week cycles: the first week of each cycle will be devoted to an examination of a particular novel, using precepts from Robert McKee’s screenwriting book, Story, as a filter for discussion about screenplay adaptation strategies. In the first week of each cycle, students are required to come to class having read the novel assigned for that cycle, and having written a brief response paper (based on questions I will hand out). The second week of each cycle will be devoted to a discussion of the transition of the novel to screenplay, noting the stylistic, structural, and character changes and variations. Students will be asked to write a paper which compares their own ideas for adaptation (from the first week of the cycle) to the actual execution of the screenplay, paying particular attention to failures and successes, strengths and weaknesses in the adaptation.

Please note: The course will be heavy on reading, and the reading will not be light (to wit: James, Wharton, Roth, et. al.); be prepared to dedicate yourself to an intensive reading load if you enroll in this seminar. 

Texts:

Story: Substance, Structure, Style, and the Principles of Screenwriting, Robert McKee

The End of the Affair, Graham Greene

The Unbearable Lightness of Being, Milan Kundera

The Human Stain, Philip Roth

The Portrait of a Lady, Henry James

The House of Mirth, Edith Wharton

Class Reader – CRWT 251 (contains the five screenplays – purchase at Printing & Reprographics)

Writing Requirements:

C Five brief response papers (1-2 pages, typed, double-spaced).

C Five essays analyzing the adaptations (5 pages, typed, double-spaced).
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