Wednesday, April 22, 1998
Innovative class examines sexuality in film
THEATER: Professor shows how mass media portrays many
alternative lifestyles
By Emi Kojima
Daily Bruin Contributor
The Homecoming Queen is bisexual and she goes to the big dance
with a lesbian who plays quarterback. The Homecoming King is gay
but bashes others because he is afraid of how his family will
act.
This is part of the story line of a performance that students
watched as part of professor Chon Noriega’s film class.
The class is new to the School of Theater, Film and Television
(TFT). It surveys homosexual and bisexual representation in
American cinema from the time of the silent film to the
present.
The theatre group was invited to perform because "this type of
performance is not necessarily seen on TV or in a movie," Noriega
said.
"There is an interest in the one-on-one relationship with the
audience. (It) brings up the issue of what we see through the mass
media," he said.
"Film Genres," a six-unit class, meets twice a week and gives
students general education credit.
Despite the class’s specific focus on gender and sexuality,
Noriega emphasized that he would use these issues to explore the
mass media in general and the social and historical context of the
film.
The class attracted 110 students who decided to take the course
for very different reasons. Some took the class because of its
topic, and some took the class simply for the experiences in
film.
"I look at film, trying to put myself in the place of a
homosexual," said Vanessa Roverto, a junior transfer student
majoring in Italian.
Because the film school admits very few students, enrolled
students work toward a variety of different majors.
In addition to understanding different interpretations of film,
Noriega tries "to provide tools for really understanding the mass
media."
"We all watch more TV than we’ll admit to, we go to the movies,
and we now will be surfing the Internet. We have to make sense of
(the mass media) and deal with a society that we wouldn’t
necessarily want to be a part of," he said.
Recent films have featured more movies with homosexual
characters. Noriega, however, does not see the trend as necessarily
a good thing.
"’My Best Friend’s Wedding,’ ‘The Object of My Affection,’
‘Chasing Amy’ – while everyone is mooning over lovable gay and
lesbian characters, they never feature gay and lesbian sex, and
characters are straight in the end. Or they are ideal for a member
of the opposite sex," he said.
Due to a scheduling mishap, the School of TFT had to post
flyers, advertising the class as "a chance to talk about sexuality,
gender and film."
"I’m excited at the turnout of the class and the level of
engagement," Noriega said.
"We really do try to have a discussion as a group of 110," he
said.
Teaching assistant Kristen Hatch said that the students like
being presented with different perspectives.
"They seem to be very interested in the films. People seem to
like reading against the grain," she said.
Noriega and some of his graduate students came up with the idea
to have the class because the gender and sexuality in film has not
been taught before.
They wrote up a grant to purchase $5,000 worth of film from a
San Francisco company and have researched the subject for a couple
of years before launching the class.
The class probably will be offered in the future, perhaps next
year by a visiting professor.
Noriega has worked with the department of Lesbian, Gay and
Bisexual Studies, in which students can take a minor.
In the future, Noriega said he hopes the course will be an
cross-departmental one that applies toward the women’s studies
major as well as the minor.
"I try to teach courses that deal with ethnicity, gender and sex
that delve into the specific topic and also tell about general
issues in society," he said.
Courtesy of Fringe Benefit
Actors from the theater group Fringe Benefit performed "90210
Goes Queer" before Chon Noriega’s film class on homosexuality.