Common Course Outline

Course discipline/number/title COMM 1106: Cinema as Communication

Catalog Description

Credits 3
Hours/Week 3
Prerequisites (Course discipline/number) None
Other requirements None
MnTC Goals (if any) Goal 6/The Humanities, the Arts, Literature, and Philosophy, Goal 7a/Human Diversity

Course Description

This course surveys Hollywood filmmaking as an art form, economic force, and as a system of cultural communication. Stylistic elements are examined from the perspective of various genres and time periods. Students will learn the language of cinema; increase their understanding of how films work as art and how films communicate meaning as cultural artifacts. Students will also learn analysis skills to become more active and critical viewers.

Date Last Revised (Month, year)

February, 2026

Outline of Major Content Areas

  1. Communicative function (mise en scene)
    1. Camera technique
    2. Character development
    3. Lighting
    4. Social trends
  2. Genre conventions
    1. Comedy
    2. War films
    3. Film noir
    4. Alternative (e.g., films by and about marginalized populations)
    5. Science fiction
    6. Horror
    7. Westerns
  3. History
    1. Early film technology
    2. Silent films
    3. Studio system
    4. 1960’s counterculture cinema
    5. Film school generation
    6. Contemporary motion pictures
    7. International cinema evolution

Learning Outcomes (General)

The student will be able to:

  1. Demonstrate awareness of the scope and variety of films according to genre and time period.
  2. Respond critically to films by using the technical vocabulary of motion pictures.
  3. Describe how films communicate the meaning of group identities through the history of cinema.
  4. Recognize the role of film in communicating about the experience of marginalized groups on society.
  5. Name important directors and their major stylistic conventions and contributions to film history.
  6. Analyze their own reactions to provocative films that challenge attitudes toward race, gender, and social power.

Learning Outcomes (MnTC)

Goal 6/The Humanities, the Arts, Literature, and Philosophy

The student will be able to:

  1. Demonstrate awareness of the scope and variety of works in the arts and humanities.
  2. Understand those works as expressions of individual and human values within a historical and social context.
  3. Respond critically to works in the arts and humanities.
Goal 7a/Human Diversity

The student will be able to:

  1. Understand the development of and the changing meanings of group identities in the United States’ history and culture.
  2. Analyze their own attitudes, behaviors, concepts, and beliefs regarding diversity, racism, and bigotry.
  3. Describe and discuss the experience and contributions (political, social, economic, etc). of the many groups that shape American society and culture, in particular those groups that have suffered discrimination and exclusion.

Methods for Evaluation of Student Learning

Methods may include but are not limited to:

RCTC Core Outcome(s)

This course contributes to meeting the following RCTC Core Outcome(s):

Critical Thinking
Students will think systematically and explore information thoroughly before accepting or formulating a position or conclusion.

Special Information (if any)

None