Participants in the spring 2014 African Women in Film course are required to prepare and submit reaction papers, or reviews, for any two of the films we will screen in the course. This note outlines the specific requirements and schedule for submission of reaction/review papers at course website on D2L. This note is also available at the D2L website under the drop-box menu.
References for review essays include John Moscowitz's chapter on preparing to write about film and, the Handy-Dandy Guide. Both are available on the D2L website. Please refer to the course outline (D2L) for the list of films we will screen in class.
The review should have an appropriate title. It should contain at least two sections. The first section should reflect what Moscowitz calls ‘the boilerplate' treatment and basic information. That section should tell the reader about what they might need to know about the film and its producer, director, the setting, lead characters, production funders and collaborators, etc. This section should be guided by Moscowitz. Beyond that first section is what we might call the "beyond the boiler- plate" section. Here is where you want to provide the substance of your review. The issues that grab your attention are the issues to focus on in this section. Relationships between characters, aspects of African culture, portrayals of Africa/Africans (women especially), and other issues of interest to you should be the focus. This again should be guided by Moscowitz and the Handy-Dandy Guide.
The review essay should be typed, at least three pages but no more than five pages long, and double-spaced. In terms of word count, the essay should be at least 600 words long. It should be done in MS WORD or its equivalent.