Program Details

  1. Home
  2. Program Details

A Summer of Cinematic Matinees, Part II: The Unforgettable Cinematic Journey of India's Legendary Director

Instructor
Shelly Isaacs
SUM243B
Video Catch-up
Available

Course Description

Considered one of the masters of 20th Century Cinema, and celebrated as India's "extraordinary filmmaker," the legendary Satyajit Ray has been credited with opening the world's eyes to life in India, with his humanist tales involving coming of age, marital life, class and his country's own troubled history. Akira Kurosawa, one of cinema’s most honored directors said of Ray: "To have not seen the films of Ray is to have lived in the world without ever having seen the moon and the sun." This session we will view the Award winning cinematic achievements that brought him to the world’s attention: "The World of Apu." Following the trilogy, we will also see Ray's final film, "The Stranger."

Lectures

  1. "Pather Panchali" - 1955: Apu, a young boy, and his life in a small village in rural Bengal during the early twentieth century. We will see all those events of childhood, trivial and meaningful, which shape the adult he will become.
  2. "Aparajito" -1956: In this second installment, Apu, now 10, begins his schooling and we see him mature into adolescence, weathering his existence, having moved with his mother to Calcutta.
  3. "Apar Sansar" - 1959: In the final episode of his story, Apu, now a 23-year old idealist, struggles as an author, marries, and faces obstacles and tragedies to overcome.
  4. "The Stranger" - 1991: In Ray's final film, exploring identity and memory, a well-off family is paid an unexpected, and rather unwanted, visit by a man claiming to be the woman's long-lost uncle.

Course Info

  • Time: 2:00 PM - 4:00 PM
  • Date: Tuesdays, July 11, 18, 25; August 1
  • Location: Friedberg Auditorium, Lifelong Learning Building
  • Fees: Member - $60
    Non-member - $80
    One-time guest pass, Member or Non-member at the door - $35.

About the Instructor

  • Shelly Isaacs, M.A. is founder and host for Café Cinematheque International, a foreign language film program presented in venues throughout South Florida. As a creative director/writer/producer and director in advertising, Isaacs specialized in promoting movies & entertainment. He earned a master's degree in media ecology studies from New York University, and taught graduate-level courses in cultural studies. In 2009 he launched Cinematheque at Sea, a film program available on luxury cruises throughout the world.