Chinese Film Classics: Course Overview

A free, self-paced online course

This course offers an introduction to eleven of the best extant films made in mainland China up to the year 1949, when the Communists won the civil war and began the process of nationalizing the film industry. What did early Chinese films look like? What stories did Chinese filmmakers tell? What artistic decisions did they make, and why? Who were the stars and auteurs of early Chinese cinema? How does early Chinese cinema relate to Hollywood, European, or other world cinemas? What should I watch or read if I want to learn more about Chinese cinema history? If you’re curious about questions like these, this is the course for you.

Each of the eleven modules of this course includes:

One Chinese film (see list below), with English subtitles
Two video lectures analyzing the historical, cultural, and cinematic significance of the film
Basic information about the film’s production, cast, and crew
A curated selection of further viewings and readings (forthcoming)
Self-study modules (forthcoming)

Start by watching these two brief introductory videos:

Introductory video 1: Welcome to the course

2:18 minutes

Contents:

This course covers eleven of the best extant films produced in China during the first half of the twentieth century.
What were early Chinese contributions to the cinematic arts?
How did filmmaking in China relate to, or differ from, other parts of the world?
What can we learn from Republican-era films about Chinese culture and society before the founding of the People’s Republic of China in 1949?

Five Tips for Getting the Most Out of This Course

3:49 minutes

Contents:

The five tips are:

Watch the film first
Read up on Chinese history, especially of the first half of the 20th century
Familiarize yourself with basic film studies terminology
Don’t stop here – learn more, and share what you know!
Get in touch – write to me with comments and questions

The films are:

Module 1: Laborer’s Love (1922)

Module 2: Sports Queen (1934)

Module 3: Goddess (1934)

Module 4: The Great Road (1934)

Module 5: New Women (1935)

Module 6: Song at Midnight (1937)

Module 7: Street Angels (1937)

Module 8: Long Live the Missus! (1947)

Module 9: Spring River Flows East (1947)

Module 10: Spring in a Small Town (1948)

Module 11: Crows and Sparrows (1949)

More to come

All eleven films and twenty-two video lectures are now available.

Additional video clips and material related to the production, history, artistry, and legacies of these films will be added to the modules in coming months. Subscribe to the Modern Chinese Cultural Studies YouTube channel for updates.

All of the films are black and white. Five are silent or have dubbed sound-on-disk; six have sound-on-film. The copies of Goddess and Sports Queen have soundtracks that were added in recent years; feel free to mute these.

The first video lecture in each module includes a plot summary (with spoilers), so be sure to watch the film first!

Also watch these two short videos that offer a course overview and tips for getting the most out of this course.

This course complements the forthcoming textbook Chinese Film Classics, 1922-1949 (Columbia University Press, 2021).

The video lectures were filmed by Transliminal Media, edited by Dr Jordan Levine and Christopher Rea, and funded with a grant from the UBC Dean of Arts office. Special thanks to Professor Rumee Ahmed for supporting this project.