GERM 43 Migration, Mobility and the Movies: German Film in Global Context (in English)

European borders have become a popular setting in world cinema since the development of global tourism and the recently declared “international immigration crisis”. In this class, we study film as an aesthetic and political medium and explore how directors construct and deconstruct borders in their audience’s imagination. We analyze the concept of cinematic 'borderscapes' and examine how depictions of borders rely on narratives, images and imaginations. We do not only assess who is crossing international borders – commuters, tourists, immigrants, refugees, human traffickers and their victims – but we also examine who is welcome to cross, who is welcome to stay and who has to be expelled. We put German cosmopolitan road movies, tourist films and tales of successful and unsuccessful migration and integration in the context of global cinema and analyze differences in debates surrounding multiculturalism, migration and mobility, national identity and human rights.

Degree Requirement Attributes

Dist:INT or ART; WCult:CI

The Timetable of Class Meetings contains the most up-to-date information about a course. It includes not only the meeting time and instructor, but also its official distributive and/or world culture designation. This information supersedes any information you may see elsewhere, to include what may appear in this ORC/Catalog or on a department/program website. Note that course attributes may change term to term therefore those in effect are those (only) during the term in which you enroll in the course.