> I am slated to teach Introduction to Film and Film History courses next > year. I > want to use the Bordwell and Thompson book, Film Art, for the first > course and the B&T book, > Film History, for the second. However, these books seem so > comprehensive that I am concerned > about how to use class time in a way that will not seem redundant to > the students. Well, first off, don't assume that your students will actually do the reading. Second, there are *some* gaps in the books- for example, Film Art has nothing to say about authorship, and Film History leaves out a lot of detail about film industries which can be interesting (check out Balio's The American Film Industry to fill in a few gaps on Hollywood, for instance). I use a lot of class time focusing in on certain issues in the reading I want to highlight (including stuff in the course reader), bringing in any outside material or issues, talking about the films themselves (most especially in the case of that week's reading), and, by far most importantly: showing a lot of clips. Students love clips, of course, but they are also crucial material for the pedagogy of the course, and the books will never substitute for that. As long as copyright laws are the way they are right now, there won't be a substitute for the lecturer presenting loads of clips. PBR ---- For past messages, visit the Screen-L Archives: http://bama.ua.edu/archives/screen-l.html