Olivia’s talk is called, “Frankly My Dear, I Do Give a Damn: Teaching Film as Mythic Literature”
Film Studies is a field which examines the techniques of storytelling through film and the impact which it has upon society. From the high school classroom to student filmmaking to film festivals, our academic and cultural society is starting to look at what makes a movie great and why we care so much about these films. In my Film Studies course, I hold that a film functions as our “text” much as a novel would in a traditional English course. My students examine film through the lens of literary, dramatic, and cinematic criticism along with Joseph Campbell’s “Hero Cycle”.
In this presentation, I explore my approach of teaching film as mythic literature in order to gain the skills of summary, analysis, and critique along with an appreciation of the mythic storytelling behind good films. I outline my use of genre and media studies alongside the use of prompt response and my film analysis form. My goal is to share how one may approach teaching film as mythic literature to understand better how to integrate film and myth in teaching key rhetorical skills.
About Olivia
Olivia Happel-Block, PhD, is a Latin, Mythology, Theory of Knowledge, English, and Film Studies teacher at Dos Pueblos High School in Goleta, CA. There she serves as the Extended Essay Coordinator (a four thousand word research essay composed by IB students over the junior and senior year). She has created her own curriculum for both the Mythology and Film Studies course at DPHS. Her dissertation, That Which Is Not Yet Known: An Alchemical Analysis of Michael Maier’s Arcana Arcanissima, explores themes of mythology, alchemy, and religion. Olivia serves as the Pacifica Graduate Institute Alumni Association’s Vice President. She has presented at the American Academy of Religion Regional Conference as well as the Pop Culture Association’s Regional and National Conference. Her academic interests include myth, religious studies, alchemy, and classics. She seeks to pursue the #immutablediamondbody throughout her life, scholarship, and career. Follow her on Instagram @doctorhappel.