Metropolis Research; Charlie Chaplin: Day 1

Our class ends today at 9:15.

Period 1: We will continue the documentary The Metropolis Case, directed by Enno Patalas (2003), Transit Film. Until 8:30, please prepare and work on either your silent film or your Metropolis paper. Research papers are due Tuesday, March 26.

• Your paper should be between 3-5 pages, double spaced.
• It should include AT LEAST 3 secondary sources that are referred to and cited in your paper. (please include an MLA formatted works cited page with your paper). MLA format can be found here. 
• PLEASE NOTE: You may not use Wikipedia as one of your 3 sources. You may use it as a 4th or 5th or 6th source if you wish.
• Your MLA formatted citation page does NOT count as one of your 3-5 page, double-spaced pages.
• You will need to take notes, research your topic, and type your final paper. 
• Please include a title for your paper that clarifies to your paper's thesis/topic. 
• The paper is due March 26. 

To cite a film or video found on a website, use the following structure:

Last name, First name of the creator or director. “Title of the film or video.” Title of the website, role of contributors and their First name Last name (if known), Version, Numbers, Publisher, Publication date, URL.

Use this citation structure if citing a film or video found on a database, such as Hulu, Netflix, Amazon Prime, and/or HBO Go.

Last name, First name of the creator or director. Title of the film or video. Role of contributors and their First name Last name, Version, Numbers, Publisher, Publication date. Database name, url.

At 8:30, let's begin our discussion of Charlie Chaplin.

Charlie Chaplin, an Overview

"All I need to make a comedy is a park, a policeman, and a pretty girl." -Sir Charles Chaplin

Sir Charles Chaplin (1889-1977)

• Born in 1889 in London, UK to theatrical parents
• Chaplin’s childhood was one of extreme poverty and hardship
• Abandoned by an alcoholic father and left with a mentally unstable mother who was unable to support him, he struggled through life in the poor house and on the streets
• He learnt much of his timing and technique in the employment of impresario Fred Karno (1866-1941) whose troupe he left during an American tour in 1913
• Offered a contract by Keystone Films
• After 1914, he convinced Keystone producer Mack Sennett to allow him to direct his own films - often wrote, directed, acted and composed his own musical scores for his films
• In many silent shorts, he established the grammar and ground rules of screen comedy using his physical dexterity and pantomime skills to create expertly choreographed, visually humorous entertainment that mixed irreverence, romance, and pathos (feeling)
• Co-founder of United Artists in 1919
• Married Oona O’Neill (daughter of playwright Eugene O’Neill)
• His left-wing sympathies caused him to emigrate to Switzerland during the 1950’s, McCarthy period
• He published his autobiography in 1964 and was knighted in 1975
• Chaplin died on Christmas day, 1977
• A writer Performer, director, composer and icon, he was a vital figure in the development of the screen comedy Films (incomplete list): Making a Living (1913) Kid Auto Races at Venice (1914) The Champion (1915) The Tramp (1915) The Pawnshop (1916) The Rink (1916) A Dog’s Life (1918) The Kid (1921) The Gold Rush (1925) City Lights (1931) Modern Times (1936) The Great Dictator (1940) Limelight (1952) A King in New York (1957) A Countess from Hong Kong (1967)

The Rink (1916, short film)

HOMEWORK: Complete your Metropolis papers drafts; shoot your silent films.