FOCUS: Film Philosophy
FOCUS is a free, public series at Goodyear Arts that uses film to facilitate deep, collaborative conversations about real-world issues. Over the course of eight sessions, attendees will view four films: Alfred Hitchcock’s Vertigo (1958), Spike Lee’s Do the Right Thing (1989), Miyazaki Hayao’s Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (1984), and Claire Denis’ L’Intrus (2004). They will think through the aesthetic, ethical, sociopolitical, and metaphysical questions raised by these ground-breaking films.
After each screening at Goodyear Arts, Dr. Eric Mullis (Queens University of Charlotte) and Dr. Philip Kaffen (UNC-Charlotte) will facilitate open discussions. Personal reactions will surface philosophical issues concerning romantic love, the nature of human freedom, and the natural environment. Attendees will then return for a second session that digs deeper into those topics. Concepts and arguments from optional readings by contemporary film philosophers will be presented and discussed, with an eye on connecting them to points made by the attendees in screening sessions. Over the course of the series, the group will learn how diverse filmmakers use film to convey and grapple with complex ideas. They will also learn powerful tools of philosophical inquiry and participate in collaborative conversations. Using accessible, thought-provoking films, the series will enact a unique form of public philosophy which is increasingly necessary in a time when thoughtful, sustained public discourse aimed at increasing understanding and personal enrichment is less and less common.
The reading for the October 4th session (Noël Carroll’s essay “Vertigo: The Impossible Love”) is available HERE.
The reading for the November 22rd session (Jean-Luc Nancy’s essay “The Intruder”) is available HERE.
