Memories, Dreamscapes, and the Archive

This course will explore the intimate use of memories and dreamscapes within the art of moving images to employradical re-examinations of identity, culture, and history. We will analyze experimental methods used to decolonizethe archive within film and video, serving as a medium for constructing, deconstructing, and reconstructingindividual and collective realities. Often blurring the line between truth and fiction, our selection ofboundary-pushing films and videos poses the question of what is real and imagined, where the dream begins andends, and who has the right to dictate one's truth. While the course is rooted in a Black feminist framework, a rangeof films are viewed and considered through the lens of gender and sexuality, collective memory, and alternativehistories. This seminar will guide us on a multidimensional journey and excavation that redefines, shifts andchallenges traditional narrative forms and archival practices.