| WEEK # | TOPICs | KEY DATES |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Introduction: Possible Worlds | |
| 2 | Techniques of Othering |
Television clip"The Paradise Syndrome." Star Trek. Gene Roddenberry and Jud Taylor. Paramount Television, October 4, 1968. Film excerptsThem! Gordon Douglas. Warner Brothers Pictures, 1954. Invasion of the Body Snatchers. Don Siegel. Walter Wanger Productions, 1956. Forbidden Planet. Fred Wilcox. MGM, 1956. Alien. Ridley Scott. 20th Century-Fox, 1979. The Brother from Another Planet. John Sayles. A-Train Films, 1984. The Fly. David Cronenberg. Brooksfilms, 1986. Men in Black. Barry Sonnenfeld. Amblin Entertainment/Columbia Pictures, 1997. "Dune." John Harrison. Evision/New Amsterdam Entertainment, 2000. District 9. Neill Blomkamp. WingNut Films, 2009. |
| 3 | First Contact |
Television clip"Daybreak, Part 2." Battlestar Galactica. 2009. Film excerptAliens of the Deep. James Cameron. Buena Vista, 2005. FilmFirst Contact. Bob Connolly and Robin Anderson. 1983. |
| 4 |
Afrofuturism, Utopian and Dystopian Guest Lecture: Prof. Alisa Braithwaite |
Paper 1 due FilmSun Ra & His Intergalactic Solar Arkestra: Space Is the Place. Jon Coney, Sun Ra, and Joshua Smith. North American Star System, 1974. |
| 5 | Vampires! |
Television clipScenes from Bloodsucking Cinema. Barry Gray. Starz Entertainment, 2007. |
| 6 | Religion | |
| 7 | Time |
Film excerptsThe Time Machine. George Pal. MGM, 1960. Jurassic Park. Steven Spielberg. Universal, 1993. The Fullness of Time. Cauleen Smith, 2007. |
| 8 |
Cyborgs and Cyberworlds Guest Lecture: Prof. Ian Condry, "Robot Anime." |
Paper 2 due Film excerptsBlade Runner. Ridley Scott. Warner Brothers, 1982. Tron. Steven Lisberger. Walt Disney, 1982. The Terminator. James Cameron. Hemdale Film Corporation, 1984. The Matrix. Larry and Andy Wachowski. Warner Brothers, 1999. Film excerpt (Prof. Condry)Genius Party. Studio 4°C, 2007. |
| 9 | War, Childhood, and Initiation |
Film excerptWar Games. John Badham. MGM, 1983. |
| 10 | Gender, Generation/Reproduction, Sexuality, Kinship | |
| 11 | Genesis, Eugenesis, Morphogenesis, Xenogenesis |
Film excerptThe Handmaid’s Tale. Volker Schlöndorff. Daniel Wilson Productions, 1990. |
| 12 | Presentations | Paper 3 due |