This course offers an overview of the major theoretical and critical approaches to the study of cinema, as well as their historical development and applications. We will examine various formalist and realist film theories (together constituting so-called "classical" film theory), as well as theoretical and critical methods informed by structuralism and semiotics, phenomenology and cognitive science, psychoanalysis and politics, visual and cultural studies, and media studies (among others).

This course provides an introduction to theories of social interaction and research. It is designed as a selective overview with specific focus on language and social interaction approaches (e.g., pragmatics, discourse analysis, conversation analysis, ethnography of communication, critical discourse analysis). These views of communication can be applied across various channels, across various contexts, and at various levels (from individual and relational to societal and political). Required of students specializing in this area.

Building on the introductory course (COMM 445: Seminar-Screenwriting), 593D is an intensive workshop where students receive continuing, in-depth feedback on their work in progress, as they strive for professional competence in feature-length theatrical screenwriting or writing for episodic television. Included is an analysis of two professional screenplays and the films or shows produced from them, as students delve into the writer's art and craft.

Students work individually or in small groups to devote the entire semester's class time to the creation and completion of a substantial media project: e.g. short narrative film, documentary, music videos, TV or Web series, etc. Students are required to have a script or outline of the project prior to the start of the semester so that projects will commence production shortly into the semester and move on to completion of post-production, including creation of a soundtrack; run test screenings; develop marketing strategies for distribution and/or festival exhibitions.

This class introduces students to actors, institutions and public interest battles fought nationally, regionally, and globally for the control of the Internet. It considers the interaction between law, technological design, and policy solutions in shaping infrastructure, code, and content of the global web.

The Commonwealth Honors College thesis or project is intended to provide students with the opportunity to work closely with faculty members to define and carry out in-depth research or creative endeavors. It provides excellent preparation for students who intend to continue their education through graduate study or begin their professional careers. The student works closely with their 499Y Honors Research sponsor to pursue research on a topic or question of special interest to them in preparation for writing a 499T Honors Thesis or completing a 499P Honors Project.

The spring semester of the year-long Honors capstone course is devoted to carrying out and writing up the research projects that students designed in the fall. Students will both complete their own independent research projects and provide comments and suggestions on each other's work at weekly class meetings. The majority of the semester will be devoted to data collection as well as the analysis and interpretation of research findings. Students will prepare the final reports associated with their thesis research, in the form of an archivable Honors Thesis.

This is a stand-alone independent study designed by the student and faculty sponsor that involves frequent interaction between instructor and student. Qualitative and quantitative enrichment must be evident on the proposed contract before consent is given to undertake the study.

This course uses tools from the study of everyday interaction to explore one-on-one interactions in the electronic media. The course focuses on two genres in two different media: television news and call-in radio. Alongside theoretical studies, the course uses data sessions to analyze different television and radio segments. Satisfies the Integrative Experience requirement for BA-Comm majors.

This course examines the role of different kinds of nonverbal behaviors (i.e., body orientation and posture, gaze direction, gestures, space, etc.) in establishing a joint focus of attention, coordinating turn-taking, conveying meaning, sustaining institutional realities, telling stories, and navigating interpersonal relationships. We will investigate nonverbal behaviors both in ordinary face-to-face conversations and in a variety of professional settings, including courtrooms, doctors' offices, and the workplace. Satisfies the Integrative Experience requirement for BA-COMM majors.