ROMANTIC COMEDIES AS A TOOL FOR CULTURAL UNDERSTANDING

Taught by Faridah Gbadamosi
Tuesdays, 5:00 PM – 6:30 PM
6 Sessions, November 24 – December 29
Registration deadline: November 20
$169 ($149 for JxJ Donors of certain levels*)

Romantic comedies are some of the most popular films of the last 50 years. They’ll make you laugh; some will make you cry; many will make you swoon; and a few might make you groan.

But romantic comedies are more than just meet-cutes and satisfying endings (though there is nothing wrong with a little satisfaction). Romcoms are actually blueprints for our society. The very things the genre is often derided for—its formulaic structure and set ending—actually make these films blank canvases for cultural insights. Over the course of 6 sessions we will look at the different ways one can look at romantic comedies and how they ultimately serve as a cultural roadmap.

Classes will be comprised of lectures illustrated with film and audio clips, and small-group discussion. This is not a filmmaking course, and filmmaking experience is not expected or required.

Note: Additional streaming film rentals required 

Teacher: Faridah Gbadamosi is a pop culture-obsessed lover of film working toward making the space more inclusive. She works as a writer, producer, and film curator.

Gbadamosi is the Director of Distribution for David Magdael & Associates, and a film programmer at the Mill Valley Film Festival, the Coven Film Festival, and the Outstream Festival (among others).