In this module we study the ways in which
filmmakers have recycled, updated, and given new life to canonical and popular
literatures, to graphic novels and comics, and to movie originals. We look at
different types of adaptation, such as free adaptations, intermedial
borrowings, and the literary film, and we analyse what is involved in the
transposition of narrative from one medium into another. We also explore the
differences between remakes and reboots, and the differences between adaptations
which retell the “same” story again (and again) and transmedia storytelling
which arguably invents prequels, sequels and spin-offs out of a desire of never
wanting a particular story to end.
We study a range of works from movie classics such as Nosferatu (1922, based on Stoker's Dracula novel) to the transmedia franchise Avengers: Endgame (2019).
Assessment:
100% Coursework Mark
Coursework:
95% Essay + 5% participation mark
Professor Littau has published widely in the fields of print and visual cultures. Her main research interests are in film and literature, cross-media adaptations, and transmedia storytelling. Her most recent book is Cinematicity in Media History (2013, with her colleague Professor Jeffrey Geiger). Her next book is a history of the relations between film and literature.