COURSE AND INSTRUCTOR INFORMATION
Course Title: FILM APPRECIATION DRAM 2366 0382
Semester/Year of course: Spring 2026 2nd 8 weeks
Semester start and end dates: March 16, 2026 - May 8, 2026
Modality (Face to face/Synchronous or Asynchronous online/Hybrid): Online
Class meeting location, days, and times: Online (Sunday through Saturday, with assignments due Saturday by end of day.
Semester credit hours: 3 hours
Course description: An introductory course in motion pictures that surveys the film industry as a business, a means of communication, and most importantly as an art form. The course places an emphasis on the analysis of the visual and aural aspects of selected motion pictures, the dramatic aspects of narrative films, and the historical growth and sociological effect of film as an art. You will be required to have access to view films assigned for the class, (via a streaming service, purchase on Amazon or another film vendor site) in order to assess, discuss, and write in detail about elements of film, including examples from each film. (Films: Citizen Kane, 13 going on 30, Schindler's List, Quigley Down Under, Into the Woods, An Inspector Calls - with David Thewlis 2015.) and Rudy.
Extra Credit Film: Hugo - View early if you want to use this for extra credit, write and submit a critical paper no later than April 11, 2026.
Course prerequisites: None
Required course materials: Looking at the Movies, 6th Edition (Referenced in Canvas Files)
Optional: Writing about Movies, 5th Edition (Referenced in Canvas Files)
Name of instructor: Karlie Saumier
Telephone number:
E-mail address: ksaumier@nctc.edu
Office hours for students: after class or by appointment
SYLLABUS CHANGE DISCLAIMER
The faculty member reserves the right to make changes to this published syllabus if it is in the best interest of the educational development of this class. Any such changes will be announced as soon as possible in person and/or in writing.
SUMMARY OF COURSE ASSIGNMENTS
Each week in this online 8 week course, you will be responsible for seeing 1 film and reviewing Chapter detail notes and taking quizzes for both. You will have 2 critical papers due during the 8 weeks, with the opportunity for extra credit throughout the course. The Final will be available during finals week from Monday through Wednesday, so you can schedule around your other exams. The final will be within a 2-hour time frame and you will most likely complete within 30-45 minutes.
GRADING CRITERIA – 8 weeks
10 Chapter Quizzes (20 points each) 200
8 Discussion Forums (20 points each) 160
7 Film Quizzes (20 points each) 140
2 Critical Reviews (150 points each) 300
Final 200
TOTAL POSSIBLE POINTS 1000
Breakdown of points and Grade
900 – 1000 Points A
800 – 899 Points B
700 – 799 Points C
600 –699 Points D
Below 600 points F
Late work policy: Late work is accepted for partial credit IF the student has communicated before the due date. Please see the professor on an individual basis regarding assignments and assignment due dates listed in the assignment portion of Canvas. Notify the instructor via email/canvas regarding absences or missing a weekly quiz before the absence for a late submission. Extra credit is offered on specific projects assigned in class.
SEE CANVAS FOR THE COMPLETE COURSE CALENDAR, OUTLINE, DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF GRADED WORK, AND OTHER RELATED MATERIAL.
COURSE POLICIES
Academic Integrity Policy: Scholastic dishonesty shall include, but is not limited to cheating, plagiarism, academic falsification, intellectual property dishonesty, academic dishonesty facilitation and collusion. All writing will be reviewed through Grammarly for plagiarism. Faculty members may document and bring charges against a student who is engaged in or is suspected to be engaged in academic dishonesty. See the Student Handbook linked hereLinks to an external site. for more details.
Consequences for academic dishonesty may include:
- Grade of ZERO on quiz, paper or in course
- Dropped from Class
Attendance Policy
Points are given for each day of attendance. If you miss class, you do not receive those points. Attendance is taken at the beginning of class. If you are late to class and miss attendance, you may receive partial credit by notifying the instructor at the end of class. Your overall grade will be affected by missing class and discussions. Significantly late arrivals or early departures (more than five minutes) will count as an absence.
Withdrawal Policy:
A student may withdraw from a course on or after the official date of record. It is the student’s responsibility to initiate and complete a Withdrawal Request Form.
The last day to withdraw from the course with a “W” is: April 20, 2026.
Student Learning Outcomes:
Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to:
- Identify genre, classification, style, and type of films.
- Analyze film through written responses to scripts and/or live performances.
- Demonstrate a basic knowledge of film and dramatic elements of film.
- Describe the collaborative nature of film and all areas involved in creation.
- Discern elements of analysis when watching a film.
- Communicate specific ideas and the influence films have on society and culture
- Analyze the structure and development of a film from beginning to end.
COLLEGE POLICIES
STUDENT HANDBOOK
Students are expected to follow all rules and regulations found in the Student Handbook.
ADA STATEMENT
NCTC will adhere to all applicable federal, state and local laws, regulations and guidelines with respect to providing reasonable accommodations to afford equal educational opportunity. It is the student’s responsibility to contact the Office for Students with Disabilities to arrange appropriate accommodations. See the OSD Syllabus Addendum.
AI STATEMENT
Absent a clear statement from a course instructor, use of or consultation with generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) or other similar technologies shall be treated analogously to assistance from another person, agency, or entity. In particular, using generative AI tools to substantially complete an assignment or exam is not permitted. Students should acknowledge the use of generative AI (other than incidental use) and default to disclosing such assistance when in doubt.
When students use generative AI to replace the rigorous demands of personal engagement with their coursework, it runs counter to the educational mission of the college and undermines the heart of education itself. Artificial Intelligence, large language models, and other such technologies hold promise for deploying knowledge in service to others and accelerating the discovery of new knowledge. However, such technology poses new challenges to pedagogy and to integrity. Within the context of the teaching mission of the college and consistent with the Student Code of Conduct, the authority to define the appropriate use, study, and deployment of these technologies rests with the faculty.
Individual course instructors, in coordination with their divisions, set policies regulating the use of generative AI tools in their courses, including allowing or disallowing some or all uses of such tools. Course instructors will set such policies in their course syllabi and clearly communicate such policies to students. Students who are unsure of policies regarding generative AI tools are encouraged to ask their instructors for clarification.
Prohibited
This course assumes that all work submitted by students will be generated by the students themselves, working individually or in groups. Students should not have another person/entity do the writing of any substantive portion of an assignment for them, which includes hiring a person or a company to write assignments and using artificial intelligence tools (from UMass Amherst Center for Teaching and Learning)
Specific Use
Use of ChatGPT (or other similar tools that generate text) is allowed in this class for specific assignments only. When use of the tool is allowed, it will be explicitly noted in the assignment directions. If you utilize ChatGPT for any part of the assignment (from idea generation to text creation to text editing), you must properly cite the source. (from UVM Center for Student Conduct)
Encouraged or Permitted
The use of generative AI in this course is encouraged with certain tasks and with attribution. You can choose to use AI tools to help brainstorm assignments or projects or revise existing work you have written. When you submit your assignment, you must clearly attribute what text was generated by the AI tool. (from UT Center for Teaching and Learning)
STUDENT SERVICES
NCTC provides a multitude of services and resources to support students. See the Student Services Syllabus Addendum for a listing of those departments and links to their sites.
QUESTIONS, CONCERNS, or COMPLAINTS
The student should contact the instructor to deal with any questions, concerns, or complaints specific to the class. If the student and faculty are not able to resolve the issue, the student may contact the chair or coordinator of the division. If the student remains unsatisfied, the student may proceed to contact the instructional dean.
Name of Chair: Dr. Aaron Wood, Interim Division Chair, VPA
Office location: 2010 Performing Arts Center, Gainesville
Telephone number: (940) 668-3385
E-mail address: awood@nctc.edu
Name of Instructional Dean: Mary Martinson, Dean of Instruction & Learning Support
Office location: Gainesville Campus room 1409 (Library)
Telephone number: 940-668-4209 ext. 4377
E-mail address: mmartinson@nctc.edu