SCIENCE FICTION ON FILM TO 1970

We will explore together the history of science fiction on film from the earliest days of cinema tricks to the dawn of the modern blockbuster. The essential question science fiction asks is ‘What would a world with different technology to the present day look like?’. Such speculative fictions overlap with a huge range of other genres, and we will adopt an inclusive approach without getting too bogged down in monsters, space, or monsters in or from space. We will use clips and discussion to cover silent-era SF, US SF in the ‘space race’ era, and the 1960s discovery of ‘inner space’. There will be a nod to mad scientists and monsters along the way, too! The course will also include viewings of three full length features drawn from the period between the beginning of the sound era and the first humans walking on the moon.