Quiet Beauty: Silent Film
Taught by Andrew J. Douglas, Ph.D.
Director of Education, Bryn Mawr Film Institute

Long before Garbo talked, Jolson sang or Norma Desmond readied for her close-up, there were movies.

This course introduces students to silent film, a blanket term covering the period in cinema from the Lumieres’ Paris premiere in 1895 to the establishment of synchronized sound feature films as the Hollywood standard in 1929.

We examine some of the medium’s key precursors, pioneers and practitioners in technology and technique, documentary, drama and comedy. A highlight of the course is a 35mm screening of a Buster Keaton classic.

Don’t miss your chance to experience the era that saw the movies go from being dismissed as a petty arcade amusement to being hailed as a major art form and a mighty industry.

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