THE OTHER SIDE OF THE SHADOW:
A NEW LOOK AT ORSON WELLES
A 12-WEEK ONLINE COURSE
(March-May, 2021)
PRESENTED BY MATTHEW ASPREY GEAR
This original 12-week online course, delivered via the Google Meet platform, is designed for serious Orson Welles fans as well as newcomers. We’re going to have a lot of fun as we dive deeply into the work of one of the 20th century’s greatest filmmakers.
My lectures will cover the obvious Welles classics — Citizen Kane, The Magnificent Ambersons, Touch of Evil, and Chimes at Midnight — but will also explore some of the lesser-known films and TV programs, including many works that have appeared posthumously (and many unproduced screenplays that have never been published). I’m also eager to share the discoveries I’ve made in the Orson Welles archives in Turin, Munich, Michigan, and Indiana.
Each week I’ll give an original fifty-minute multimedia lecture on a set film and topic and then lead an in-depth group discussion. All students will have a chance to contribute. The only weekly homework will be to watch a film (or two) in preparation for the session. Many of the films are easily available on YouTube. There will be no final exam or essay. This course is designed purely for enjoyment and discovery. All are welcome.
I will be running two identical sessions each week to accommodate different international time zones. Choose whichever you prefer. Each group will be limited to a maximum of 12 students.
American session: Sundays 3pm PT/6pm ET
European session: Mondays 7:30pm GMT/8:30pm CET.
(NB. The lecture portion of the session will be recorded and available for download if you are unable to attend a live session and need to catch up.)
Price per student: US$120. Please email me at matthewaspreygear@gmail.com to book your place in the course.
LECTURE PLAN
INTRODUCTION
March 7 (US)/8 (EU)
Lecture 1: The Myths and the Man
Movie: MAGICIAN: THE ASTONISHING LIFE AND WORK OF ORSON WELLES (documentary, 2014)
A: WELLES’S STYLE AND METHODS
March 14 (US)/15 (EU)
Lecture 2: Orson and Film Noir
Movie: THE LADY FROM SHANGHAI (1947)
March 21 (US)/22 (EU)
Lecture 3: Inventing Independent Film
Movies: FILMING OTHELLO (1978); ORSON WELLES: ONE-MAN BAND (documentary, 1995)]
March 28 (US)/29 (EU)
Lecture 4: The Essay Film
Movie: F FOR FAKE (1973); PORTRAIT OF GINA (TV special, 1958)
** ONE-WEEK BREAK **
April 11 (US)/12 (EU)
Lecture 5: Return to Hollywood
Movie: THE OTHER SIDE OF THE WIND (1970-76/2018)
B: WELLES’S WORLD
April 18 (US)/19 (EU)
Lecture 6: Orson’s 19th Century: Dinesen, Conrad, and Melville
Movie: THE IMMORTAL STORY (1968); Screenplay reading: THE DREAMERS (c. 1979)
April 25 (US)/26 (EU)
Lecture 7: Orson Across Europe
Movie: MR. ARKADIN (1955)
May 2 (US)/3 (EU)
Lecture 8: Orson’s Spain
Movies: AROUND THE WORLD WITH ORSON WELLES: PAYS BASQUE I (TV episode, 1955); IN THE LAND OF DON QUIXOTE: TEMPO DI FLAMENCO (TV episode, 1964)
C: WELLES AND LITERATURE
May 9 (US)/10 (EU)
Lecture 9: Adaptation
Movie: THE TRIAL (1962)
May 16 (US)/17 (EU)
Lecture 10: Shakespeare
Movie: CHIMES AT MIDNIGHT (1965)
D: WELLES AND AMERICA
May 23 (US)/24 (EU)
Lecture 11: Power in the Streets
Movie: TOUCH OF EVIL (1958)
May 30 (US)/31 (EU)
Lecture 12: The Post-Lincoln Republic
Movie: THE MAGNIFICENT AMBERSONS (1942) and CITIZEN KANE (1941)
*
– Elliot, Switzerland