We begin with the elements and evolution of documentary film language and genres in the United States as a foundation for understanding how Asian American media artists utilize   mediums of film and video toward particular communication goals.
We will also trace movements of documentary subjects and techniques in the context of Asian Americans’ historical exclusions, racialized representations, and social roles in nonfiction films. As we view a range of works by and about Asian Americans, we will consider how various makers engage strategies for production style and content, target audiences, subjectivity, emotional truth in evolving environments of technology and access, social movements, ethnic notions. Students will pose their critical understanding of cinematic  language and social meaning to the considerations and challenges a creator or storyteller faces to record lived experiences, and acts of stewardship for a documentary film.
Days: MO WE  03:00-03:50 PM

This course examines how the global reach of popular Hindi-language cinema of India referred to as Bollywood film creates new representations of nationalism and national narratives. Increasing travel, changing modes of life and material expansion even within India and within the Indian diasporas have generated transnational and international movements of people, media and commodities and Bollywood is a major player in these movements and markets.

The masculinist space of nation as represented in older films is transformed as gender and sexuality intersect with social categories of class and particularly caste and religion. As an increasingly transnational and global product,  Bollywood’s glittering, glitzy dance and song routines reconstruct femininity and masculinity, gender and sexuality, and family identities in ways that attempt to challenge patriarchal,  and nationalist discourses. Selected films include The Lover Wins the Bride, Monsoon Wedding and My Name Is Khan.

As a counterpoint to Bollywood's conventions of gender production, we analyze some independently produced films that deploy the language of Bollywood, and attempt to contest its conflicted messages of gender and nation.
Days: TU TH  12:30-01:50 PM

The class brings together diverse perspectives on the experiences of South Asians in America. South Asian countries include India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and Bangladesh among others.
From the historical presence of South Asians in America in the 1920s, to the experience of pop culture like bhangra remix, and the lives of working class taxi drivers in New York City, after 9/11. We examine the experience of South Asians in America as one of multiple belongings, and hybrid identities that are complicated connections between the culture of the U.S. and the homeland.
Selected materials include stories by Pulitzer Prize winner Jhumpa Lahiri, sociological readings on citizenship dilemmas after 9/11 and selected films like Turbans, Junky Punky Girlz and Knowing Her Place.
Days: TU TH  03:30-04:50 PM

Analyzes experiences of refugees and immigrants from Southeast Asia, which may include those from Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, and the Philippines, as well as the experiences of later generations born in the US. Examines histories, communities, and identities.
Days: TU TH  09:30-10:50 AM

We begin with the elements and evolution of documentary film language and genres in the United States as a foundation for understanding how Asian American media artists utilize   mediums of film and video toward particular communication goals.

We will also trace movements of documentary subjects and techniques in the context of     American Americans’ historical exclusions, racialized representations, and social roles in nonfiction films. As we view a range of works by and about Asian Americans, we will consider how various makers engage strategies for production style and content, audience engagement, subjectivity, emotional truth in evolving environments of technology and access, social movements, ethnic notions. Students will pose their critical understanding of documentary film operations and social meaning to the considerations and challenges a producer faces to develop a documentary film.
Days: MO WE  03:00-03:50 PM

This course will introduce students to major themes in the social, cultural, political, and economic history of China since 1800, with a focus on key events including the Opium Wars and Boxer Uprising, the 1911 Revolution and overthrow of the Qing dynasty, the Second World War, and the rise to power of the Chinese Communist Party. Themes include political and ideological change from the late imperial period to the communist takeover; changing gender roles; urbanization and rural development; foreign imperialism and popular resistance; and the growing pressure to "modernize" China's politics and culture.
Days: TU TH  12:30-01:50 PM

Emphasis/Category: Locating Asias (Nation, Culture, and Diaspora)
No description is currently available.
Days: Mo We  11:00-12:20 PM

Emphasis/Category: Pacific Rim, Locating Asias (Nation, Culture, and Diaspora)
By drawing on literary works that depict interactions between the colonized and the colonizer during Japanese rule over Korea (1910-45), this course examines the complicated terrain of day-to-day life in a subjugated land under foreign rule. In order to appreciate the implications of the literary works for examining the issue of colonialism and to understand the stories’ historical context, students will also read critical essays on the colonial relationship and a history book on Japanese Assimilation Policies in Colonial Korea. The course aims to introduce students both to important literary works about Korea’s colonial experience and to the fields of colonial and postcolonial studies in East Asian context.
Days: TU TH  02:00-03:20 PM

Emphasis/Category: Inter-Area Studies, Pacific Rim, Locating Asias (Nation, Culture, and Diaspora)
"Virtualizing Cultures” is an interdisciplinary course that explores the dynamic landscape of digital technology and cultural practices, utilizing Virtual Reality (VR) and Mixed Reality (XR) to dive into how cultures are represented, transformed, and experienced in virtual spaces.

Students will engage with concepts from digital anthropology and media studies to investigate digital ethnography, the impact of technology on cultural norms, identity in virtual communities, and the ethical considerations of digital cultural interactions. Through virtual tours, interactive simulations, and project-based learning, students will critically examine cultural diversity, digital citizenship, and the impacts of digital environments on cultural understanding. 

Note: Each student will be provided with a Meta Quest headset by the instructor, ensuring access to VR technology throughout the quarter.
Days: TU TH  12:30-01:50 PM

Emphasis/Category: Locating Asias (Nation, Culture, and Diaspora)
The class brings together diverse perspectives on the experiences of South Asians in America. South Asian countries include India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and Bangladesh among others.
From the historical presence of South Asians in America in the 1920s, to the experience of pop culture like bhangra remix, and the lives of working class taxi drivers in New York City, after 9/11. We examine the experience of South Asians in America as one of multiple belongings, and hybrid identities that are complicated connections between the culture of the U.S. and the homeland.
Selected materials include stories by Pulitzer Prize winner Jhumpa Lahiri, sociological readings on citizenship dilemmas after 9/11 and selected films like Turbans, Junky Punky Girlz and Knowing Her Place.
Days: T TH  03:30-04:50 PM

Emphasis/Category: Locating Asias (Nation, Culture, and Diaspora)
This course examines how the global reach of popular Hindi-language cinema of India referred to as Bollywood film creates new representations of nationalism and national narratives. Increasing travel, changing modes of life and material expansion even within India and within the Indian diasporas have generated transnational and international movements of people, media and commodities and Bollywood is a major player in these movements and markets.

The masculinist space of nation as represented in older films is transformed as gender and sexuality intersect with social categories of class and particularly caste and religion. As an increasingly transnational and global product,  Bollywood’s glittering, glitzy dance and song routines reconstruct femininity and masculinity, gender and sexuality, and family identities in ways that attempt to challenge patriarchal,  and nationalist discourses. Selected films include The Lover Wins the Bride, Monsoon Wedding and My Name Is Khan.

As a counterpoint to Bollywood's conventions of gender production, we analyze some independently produced films that deploy the language of Bollywood, and attempt to contest its conflicted messages of gender and nation.
Days: T TH  12:30-01:50 PM