OneFilm Workshops and Discussions

As I mentioned before, I will be talking this next Saturday on Empire of the Sun as part of a city-wide series of public talks, discusssions, and workshops in the OneFilm Philadelphia series. I thought I'd highlight it and a few of the other film/media scholar-led topics on the schedule, as well as some panels of critics and makers.

Saturday, February 23, 3:00 PM

FILM AS HISTORY AND THE FILM IN HISTORY:
SIX APPROACHES TO EMPIRE OF THE SUN
Temple University, Annenberg Hall, Room 3, 2020 N. 13th Street, (215) 204-4812
This discussion, led by Chris Cagle, Lecturer of Film and Media Arts at Temple
University, will examine Empire of the Sun and explore methods by which film
scholars understand cinema’s relationship with the study of history.

Monday, February 25, 6:00 PM

COMBAT FOOTAGE: STEVEN SPIELBERG,
SPECIAL EFFECTS, AND THE WAR FILM
Scribe Video Center, 4212 Chestnut Street, 3rd Floor, (215) 222-4201
Blending special effects and elaborate production designs to create immersive
onscreen worlds, Steven Spielberg is one of the most technically accomplished
filmmakers working today. Led by Bob Rehak, Assistant Professor of Film and
Media Studies at Swarthmore College, this workshop will examine Spielberg’s use
of special effects in Empire of the Sun and other works—including Saving Private
Ryan and War of the Worlds—exploring ways in which film technology, genre, and
authorship come together to produce images and meanings of war.

Wednesday, February 27, 6:00 PM

AUTEURISM ON TRIAL: SPIELBERG AND COPYRIGHT LAW
Free Library of Philadelphia, Philadelphia City Institute
1905 Locust Street, (215) 685-6621
Steven Spielberg has been involved in many copyright disputes, and has also
successfully led the charge to secure special legal protections for film directors
in the United States. In this lecture, Peter Decherney, a Professor of Cinema
Studies at the University of Pennsylvania, will discuss Spielberg’s impact on
copyright law, and the place of the auteur in American culture.

Thursday, February 28, 6:00 PM

INSIDE THE INDUSTRY:
A DISCUSSION WITH PHILADELPHIA FILM CREWS
Free Library of Philadelphia, Central Library on the Parkway
Skyline Room, 1901 Vine Street, (215) 567-7710
Join local filmmakers and film crew members for an in-depth discussion of
ONE FILM’s inaugural featured selection, Empire of the Sun. Clips from the film
will be screened, and panelists will share behind-the-scenes knowledge of
filmmaking processes in their respective trades. Panelists will include Eugene
Martin (writer/producer/director), Rodney Wittenberg (sound and music
director), Mike Lemon (casting director), Patricia Taggart (location manager),
and special guest Garrett Brown (inventor of the Steadicam). The discussion
will be moderated by Bob Rehak, Assistant Professor of Film and Media Studies
at Swarthmore College.

Monday, March 3, 6:00 PM

EXILE AND OTHERNESS IN EMPIRE OF THE SUN
Free Library of Philadelphia, Walnut Street West Branch
201 S. 40th Street, (215) 685-7671
Many of Steven Spielberg’s films depict figures in exile or center on characters
that have been defined as “other”—foreigners, racial and ethnic minorities,
even artificial life forms. This workshop, led by Homay King, Professor of Film
Studies at Bryn Mawr College, will look at Empire of the Sun and other Spiel-
berg films from a cultural studies perspective, examining depictions of relation-
ships between self and other, and home and elsewhere.

Tuesday, March 4, 7:00 PM

CRITICAL THINKING: A PANEL DISCUSSION
OF EMPIRE OF THE SUN
World Cafe Live, 3025 Walnut Street, (215) 222-1400
Film critics Carrie Rickey (Philadelphia Inquirer), Sam Adams (Philadelphia City
Paper), Patrick Stoner (WHYY), and Matt Prigge (Philadelphia Weekly) will
share their insights and opinions at this panel discussion of Empire of the Sun.
The discussion will be moderated by Louis Massiah, director of the Academy
Award-nominated documentary Eyes on the Prize (1990) and executive
director of Scribe Video Center

Wednesday, March 5, 6:00 PM

SHARKS, SPACESHIPS AND SPECTACLES:
THE FILMS OF STEVEN SPIELBERG
The Black Box at the Prince Music Theater, 2nd Floor
1412 Chestnut Street, 2nd Floor, (215) 569-9700
Lester Friedman, Chair of the Media and Society Program at Hobart and
William Smith Colleges, will give a presentation on the films of Steven
Spielberg—touching on everything from mechanical sharks to flying bikes
to UFOs. Author of Citizen Spielberg, Friedman is a foremost scholar of
Spielberg’s work, and his presentation is sure to enlighten as well as entertain.
Drinks and hors d’oeuvres will be served. Individual tickets to this event are
$10, and are available at the Prince Music Theater Box Office.

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