Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey

Searchable Course Catalog

header image

ENAM 1043

Asian American Indie Cinema

Asian American Indie Cinema
From The Joy Luck Club (1993) to Crazy Rich Asians (2018), we have seen Asian American films sporadically achieve mainstream and commercial success in the last few decades. In these discussions, however, less attention is often paid to the rich and storied tradition of Asian American independent cinema. From its inception, Asian American cinema has necessarily had to be “independently” produced and distributed due to the historical, political, and material circumstances of Asian American racial formation. In this course we will survey, view, and analyze selections from the canon of Asian American indie cinema. What social themes do Asian American filmmakers engage with in their works? Which cinematic traditions do they borrow from or re-envision? Films studied may include: Chan Is Missing (1982), Double Happiness (1994), Better Luck Tomorrow (2002), Saving Face (2004), and Minari (2020).
Subject:
English & American Literatures
Department:
English & American Literatures
Division:
Literature
Requirements Fulfilled:
AMR ART NOR WTR

Sections in Winter 2022

Winter 2022

ENAM1043A-W22 Lecture (Wang)