Film and Media: Special Effects in the Movies

The course aims to introduce learners to the long, creative history of cinema special effects, from the earliest rudimentary trick shots to the most up-to-date uses of computer-generated imagery and machine learning, looking at clips from over 100 years of cinema and a large collection of behind-the-scenes images and documentary material.

In Week 1 we’ll examine the very first trick shots and see how early cinema was all about spectacle and novelty. Although these films are sometimes rudimentary, they laid the groundwork for many of the techniques that followed.

Week 2 is all about the art of the matte painter, seamlessly extending sets, creating new backgrounds – and even foregrounds – and sometimes creating whole worlds, with simple brushes and canvas.

We’ll take a visit to Skull Island in Week 3 for a Kong special, revisiting each of the cinematic incarnations of the mighty Eighth Wonder of the World, to see how each movie was – in its day – a pioneering showcase of special effects, from stop-motion to Suitmation, from million-dollar robots to number-crunching pixel power.

Week 4 will take us right to the cutting edge, to look at digital humans from CGI to AI. Making actors younger, and even bringing them back from the dead is an idea full of possibilities and problems. And amazingly, it all starts in the 1970s.

Finally in Week 5 we’ll take a look at special effects in what might be their natural habitat – science fiction films.

No previous knowledge is required, just a love of film.