Overview
The Film Culture Program at Gregory College House devotes itself to film-lovers of all sorts. Our posh cinema lounge hosts a regular schedule of screenings, often more than 150 per year, that covers the history of the medium and the scope of world cinema today. The program hosts faculty discussions on a variety of cinematic subjects make numerous excursions to Philadelphia film venues, and provides endless opportunity for participants to analyze, appraise and argue about the film... whether The Seventh Seal or Star Wars, La Grand Illusion or Get Out, L'Avventura or The Lord of the Rings. The program is located in Van Pelt Manor, 3909 Spruce Street. Check out our Facebook page, Twitter, and Instagram page!
All Gregorians (only!) are welcome to participate in the program for academic credit (CIMS 180.301). The extremely manageable credit option lends substance to the conversations while still maintaining the low-key fun characteristic of Gregory. See the syllabus for the current semester below.
Goals and Expectations
FCP provides an immersive yet flexible cinema studies experience, intended to introduce students to a wide range of films and to provide considerable practice both speaking and writing about the art form. Each semester features 3-6 screening series, reflecting numerous genres and time periods and totaling 50-75 films, almost all followed by a moderated discussion. To fully engage with contemporary cinema, the program also offers a minimum of six excursions per semester to area theatres to view and analyze new and significant releases. In the past decade these trips, often advance screenings, have included Lady Bird, The Social Network, Moonlight, Parasite, Gravity, Us, The Master, The Irishman, Marriage Story, Gone Girl, Black Swan, 12 Years a Slave, Spotlight, The Grand Budapest Hotel, A Star is Born, The Shape of Water, Manchester By the Sea, Black Panther, Little Women, Blade Runner 2049, Green Book, Jackie, Joker, Moneyball, A Separation, Bohemian Rhapsody, Whiplash, The Favourite, Ad Astra, Anomalisa, The Artist, Star Wars: The Last Jedi, Everybody Wants Some!, 1917, Her, The Hurt Locker, Avengers: Endgame,The Arrival, The Skin I Live In, The Martian, The Florida Project, Portrait of a Lady on Fire, Argo, Hugo, Hidden Figures, Drive, Captain Marvel, Inside Llewyn Davis, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing Missouri, Interstellar, Holy Motors, Nebraska, First Man, Room, A Serious Man, Slumdog Millionaire, Zero Dark Thirty, The Invisible Man, Sully, Hail Caesar!, Blue is the Warmest Color, The Descendants, Inherent Vice, Beauty and the Beast, Avatar, Steve Jobs, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, Isle of Dogs, The White Ribbon, The Fighter, Amour, Jojo Rabbit, The Dallas Buyers Club, Shoplifters, The King's Speech, You Were Never Really Here, The Wrestler, Certified Copy, A Dangerous Method, Lincoln, Milk, Bombshell, The Hunger Games and The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, Winter Sleep, Can You Ever Forgive Me?, The Past, It Follows, Uncle Boonme Who Can Recall Past Lives, 127 Hours, Silver Linings Playbook, Precious, Star Trek, Life of Pi, Girl Who Walks Home Alone at Night, Of Gods and Men, Only Lovers Left Alive, Lost City of Z and many more!
Application Process for the 2020-2021 Year
First-Year Students: Consult the first-year program communities website for full instructions. No essay is required for Film Culture! Freshmen are housed in four-bedroom quads on the fourth floor of Van Pelt Manor.
Returning Gregorians
Do NOT take part in the Program Community Process. Apply for Housing between January 23rd and February 6th. Take part in either the "Retention" Process or the "Return to House" process as appropriate. You can live anywhere in Gregory and take part in Film Culture!
New Upperclassmen
Do NOT take place in the Program Community Process. Upperclassmen who do not currently live in Gregory apply between January 23rd and February 17th and take part in the Move to Another House process. You can live anywhere in Gregory and take part; we do not set aside particular rooms for Film Culture. We do recommend that new Gregorians interested in Film Culture live in the Van Pelt building, which houses our cinema lounge, but that is not required.