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Study Abroad > Rome, Italy - Winter 2010

Cinema Studies is thrilled to offer its first annual winter-quarter study abroad program in Rome, Italy that will consist of three courses that fulfill 15 credits:

• The Eternal City: Rome in World Cinema and Literature (5 credits)
• From the Soviets to Italian Neorealism (5 credits)
• The Power of Images, the Art of Propaganda (5 credits)

Program Description

In a country known for its rich film tradition, the Italian capital of Rome remains one of the most cinematically recognizable cities on the globe. All the great Italian auteurs – and many from other countries – have shot films here: Fellini, Rossellini, Wyler, Minghella, de Sica, Pasolini, to name a few. This 15-credit course of study, part of the UW Cinema Studies program, offers students the chance to explore Rome as film object and as a living, breathing metropolis – in the process discovering the ways cinema recreates real time and space in accordance with its makers’ vision.

Through courses examining the visual representation of Rome in art; the important film movement of Neorealism (as well as its antecedents in early Soviet silent cinema); and the ways writers and filmmakers of different nations have depicted the “Eternal City,” program participants will come to know Rome the ancient capital and modern mega-city, along with its filmic, literary and artistic incarnations.

The program is conducted at the Palazzo Pio, the University of Washington’s Rome Center, located in the historic center of the city. The palazzo, a fully remodeled seventeenth-century structure that sits on the foundations of the ancient theater of Pompey (55 B.C.), rises next to the Campo de’ Fiori, one of Rome’s favorite locales, a bustling open market during the day and lively social venue at night.

Program Staff

• Jose Alaniz, Associate Professor, Slavic Languages and Literatures
• Lisa Schultz, Lecturer of Art History

Course Descriptions

The Eternal City: Rome in World Cinema and Literature

(C LIT 497 – 5 credits)
Alaniz

They say all roads lead to Rome, and at over 2,500 years old, the city has received more than ample artistic, literary and cinematic representation throughout its history. This course focuses on Rome as artistic and cultural institution, particularly in art and film, by both Italians and foreigners. As a special treat, we will do what audiences cannot: “step into” the various films we watch – by visiting the locations where the movies were shot, for a consideration of how cinematic montage captures, reorganizes and reshapes the spatiotemporal aspects of its subjects. Films include Wyler’s Roman Holiday (1953), Negulesco’s Three Coins in a Fountain (1954), Fellini’s La Dolce Vita (1960) and Roma (1972), and Minghella’s The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999). As part of our investigation into Rome as cinematic object, we are requesting to visit the city’s world-famous Cinecittà film studios.

From the Soviets to Italian Neorealism

(C LIT 315/RUSS 423 – 5 credits)
Alaniz

How do cinematic movements transcend borders, and morph to suit different cultures? This course explores the links between early Soviet silent cinema (its revolutionary techniques as well ideological underpinnings) and post-war Italian Neorealism, in many ways a continuation of the Soviets’ leftist project. Russian directors sampled include Sergei Eisenstein, Dziga Vertov and Vsevolod Pudovkin. Many of the Italian films we’ll watch were shot in Rome; the course will take advantage of our location to explore the aesthetic, geographic and political choices made by the various auteurs, which include Pier Paolo Pasolini, Federico Fellini, Vittorio de Sica and Roberto Rossellini. As part of our survey, the class will take a field trip to Naples, the setting of Rossellini’s 1954 Viaggio in Italia.

The Power of Images, the Art of Propaganda

(Art H 497 - 5 credits)
Schultz

An increased awareness and knowledge of past and related visual culture practices in Rome will enhance the students' appreciation of the films we view in this quarter. In this course students will study the interaction of art, politics and religion in Rome through outstanding representative monuments that show both continuity and change over the major epochs of the city’s history. Specifically, we will examine how art and architecture functioned as a tool of propaganda to advance the goals of the state, the church, and the individual in Rome. Rome was not built in a day. To the contrary, it is distinguished among cities as a place of layers, of memories, of overlappings, and occasionally of dramatic cancellations. In some ways the focus of our seminar is really the city itself – how it has been transformed, exploited, and embellished by successive generations. By studying the works of art and architecture in their original settings we will gain a deeper understanding of their place in art history and the history of civilization in Italy.

Program Expenses

This program will cost approximately $5,100 per student. Course costs include living accommodations, complete use of the Rome Center facilities: students will have classroom and library use, a student lounge, computer lab, wireless access, ability to check out computer and A/V equipment, an in-house "movie theater" for screenings, and staff to assist them. Field trips and excursions, admission fees to all museums and exhibits, and some group meals are also included.

Course fee does NOT INCLUDE the required Rome Center Fee (approximately $2,200 for undergrads, paid in lieu of tuition to Student Fiscal Services by the regular winter deadline – a significant savings for those who would normally pay out-of-state tuition); an IPE concurrent enrollment fee ($250); airfare; food, and personal spending money.

Payment Schedule (including IP&E fee): 

*Rome Center Fee will be approximately $2,200 for undergrads and $3,500 for grads. Participants pay this fee in lieu of UW tuition. 

IP&E will automatically charge student accounts for all program payments and fees.

The Financial Aid office can provide student loans for not only the cost of the course, but also travel, food, and other related costs. Short-term loans are also available to cover pre-travel expenses. A limited number of scholarships will be available through the IP&E Office. See also: http://www.goglobal.washington.edu/apply.php 

Refund Policy

A $350 deposit and the $250 IPE fee are required at the time of acceptance. This $600 deposit is non-refundable. Any student withdrawing after October 16, 2009 will be liable for a percentage of the program fee, depending on the date of withdrawal. No part of the $5,100 fee is refundable once the program has begun. Notice of withdrawal from the program must be made in writing to the Cinema Studies Office and to the office of International Programs & Exchanges. 

Travel

To Rome:

Participants are responsible for making their own travel arrangements to and from Rome. Act quickly to reserve the lowest fares; you may wish to explore budget fares offered on websites such as Travelocity and Expedia, as well as Council Travel on the Ave.  

Within Italy:

Students and instructors will take an overnight trip to southern Italy. We will also be making several day-excursions. The program fee covers these group travel expenses. Students are responsible for their own individual local transportation. Students will also have opportunities to travel on their own for two or three day-jaunts.

All participants must have a passport that is valid for not only for the duration of the program, but for 6 months after the program ends. It may take as long as six weeks to obtain or renew a passport.

Application Instructions

If you are interested in the Cinema Studies program in Rome, please fill out the online application.

The Rome faculty and the Cinema Studies Program will determine final acceptance.

Questions?

General questions about topics such as graduation requirements, financial aid and course content inquiries should be directed to Jose Alaniz (jos23@u.washington.edu) or Lisa Schultz (lschultz@u.washington.edu).