The seventh episode in the a film history playlist takes a close look at the rise and fall of German cinema of the post-World War I period. The narrator uses The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari and its expressionistic use of mise-en-scene to...

Some of the boldest films in history have been documentaries or experimental films. Explore non-narrative cinema and its avant-garde techniques with a short video about a creative faction in film history. Additionally, the video...

A film history video examines how Thomas Edison, George Eastman, and the major film companies formed the Motion Picture Patents company (MPPC) and created a monopoly that controlled the production, distribution, exhibition of films. In...

New ventures and new technologies require new ways of referring to things. In stepped Edwin S. Porter, whose films Life of an American Fireman and The Great Train Robbery used parallel action and cross-cutting to develop his narratives....

Facilitate film analysis of The Joy Luck Club with these questions. As viewers watch the 1993 version by Wayne Wang of Amy Tan's classic novel, they explore key concepts specific to the film. Questions include description and...

Begin this powerful study on the Guatemalan genocide with a nine-minute video clip, which can be easily found online. The excerpt introduces the class to this tragedy through a personal account, which is what they will be collecting....

In this Chinese history instructional activity, students answer 10 multiple choice and short answer questions based on their knowledge of Chinese history and culture.

Students conduct research on a German anti-Nazi group named "Die Weisse Rose", the White Rose, that eventually lost their lives for their resistance to Nazi rule. They view films, access the Internet, prepare responsive narratives to the...

The role of women in the early film industry, both on screen and behind the scenes, is the focus of a resource that asks class members to analyze movie posters and DVD covers from the 1910s and 1920s. Using examples drawn from the...

The second episode in a playlist on the history of film focuses on the role the Kinetograph and the Kinetoscope played in film history. The video also includes information about the contributions of scientists, Vaudeville performers, and...

Persistence of Vision? The Phi Phenomenon? Zoetropes? Camera Obscura? Kinetograph? What part do these concepts and inventions play in the history of movies? Find out with a short video that launches an informative playlist on film history.

Students are introduced to the routine of film studies class. They view a short film from Jiri Trnka called "The Hand" and write out a response. They also complete a film survey to identify and discuss their film viewing habits.

Some jobs in film production are more obvious than others. The director directs, the cinematographer films, and the special effects people create those tricky effects. But who designs the mise-en-scene, who structures the set, and who...

Did you know that tattoos date back to 8,000 years ago? From Otzi, mummified iceman of the Alps, to high society members of Victorian Britan, discover the cultural significance of tattoos amongst a wide variety of cultures and...

Explore women's history through films and filmmaking. An innovative research project prompts class members to create their own screenplay about a figure in women's history. After outlining their characters, settings, and plots, young...

Eight questions help film studies pupils reflect on the Martin Scorcese movie about the Dalai Lama, Kundun.

Explore the difficulties in compiling an oral history with this lesson plan. Young researchers conduct interviews and consider how point of view changes various accounts of a single incidence, resulting in conflicting information. They...

Pupils study and discuss a short film by Chel White in this introductory lesson provided by Oregon Public Broadcasting. There are some scenes in the video towards the end that may be objectionable.

Light up your film history instruction with an examination of the contributions of the Lumière brothers. Their cinématograph, as well as the devices of other inventors, are the focus of the third episode from a playlist on film history.

Conservatory approach or liberal arts film approach? Or self-taught? That is the question prospective filmmakers must decide when considering a film school. A helpful video ponders whether it's better to study a single craft within the...

Check out this simple, ready-to-use worksheet that your young historians can complete as they watch the motion picture Glory. It begins with a very brief list of characters to track, followed by seven short-answer questions to be...

What are the facts about the Black Panther Party? Was it, as J. Edgar Hoover contended, a terrorist organization and a threat to national security? Or a group of indviduals bound together by a desire to protect and nurture their...

Beach Boys and beach bunnies, woodies and long boards, the Billabong Pipeline Masters and Quicksilver Big Wave Invitational. Ah, but there's much more to surfing  than riding waves. A short video traces the sometimes dark history of this...