Intro to Film is by no means an easy class. Professor Fay is, however, a wonderful and incredibly knowledgeable lady. Her love for her subject is always apparent, and her enthusiasm is contagious. I've learned a lot from her. Lecture is always worthwhile, but recitations with my TA were completely useless. Definitely don't take this unless you're willing to sacrifice some GPA points to really learn something.

This class is very difficult. Only take it if you are going to be a film or film studies major. You will learn a lot, but the majority of the class is graded on your ability to comprehend and apply a full text book of vocabulary. Class discussions are tedious and drag on forever. Gets very boring.

DO NOT take this class if you are not a English Film or MAT major or at least extremely passionate enough about film that you want to ruin that appreciation for movies. This class had its way of not only helping me appreciate movies better and get a better understanding of how they are made, but it really made me hate them as well.



Fay is absolutely brilliant. She is an encyclopedia of vast movie knowledge. From her class you will learn tons about how movies are made, can be critiqued and countless other things. She is enthusiastic and encourages class discussions the whole time. However the class is structured 1 class of an hour lecture then 2 hour film, then 1 hour recitation, then a class for a 2 hour discussion. Talking about the movie becomes SO tedious. You have to be prepared with something to say, and if you don't, Fay gets very upset if she doesn't get the kind of discussion she is hoping for. Discussion is 20% of your grade. The rest is made up of 20% quizzes, 20% tests, and 20% a paper.



You must attend all classes, otherwise you will miss small unimportant detail which you will be tested or quizzed over. Also to get your participation points. The quizzes are typically 3 multiple choice questions and two short answer from the weeks readings (about 40 pages on avg.) and film that week. There is usually a quiz each week.



The tests (only two) have about ten multiple choice questions similar to the quizzes. These are not typical common knowledge MC questions, they are usually taken from the dark corners of your text book, some small useless detail like "What film school did this style come from?" or will ask some ridiculous question that makes your mind stretch back to something Fay said weeks ago in lecture. Then there is vocabulary identification, usually techniques or theories that you must define, provide an example from a movie in class. This is pretty easy for 4 out of the 5, there is always one that escapes you it seems. Then there is an essay section which you must be able to write an essay based on a scene from a movie or a few movies and apply the vocab like its your job.



The paper is a 6 page paper, usually over movies you haven't seen before or would have a difficult time analyzing. You are required to single out two scenes in the movie, compare style in them, across the whole film, to the films larger meaning, blah, blah. Again, excessive use of vocab is necessary.



The class is graded tough, but if you force yourself to every lecture, recitation, do all the readings, study before the tests, and don't blow off the paper, you are bound to pass. But you better know your shit if you want to get a decent grade.

This is honestly the worst and hardest class I have ever taken in my life. The class is formatted so that 20% participation, 20% quizzes, 20% paper, and 20% exams.



Participation- In addition to the almost 5 hours you have to meet in lecture, you are also required to meet in section in another building early in the morning. My TA Nicole was the worst "teacher" I've EVER experienced, EVER. She has no idea what she is talking about, wastes all of section trying to fumble with the projector, and doesn't facilitate the discussion whatsoever. THEREFORE you get no discussion points because not only in the material difficult but both the TA and Fay make you feel really stupid anytime you say anything.



Quizzes- The quizzes are facilitated in section, they're typically short but cover pages and pages of material and lecture. This means you have to give your 100% attention to lectures and remember details from the reading. Also if you miss section (which is so tempting to skip due to the TERRIBLE TA, the earliness of the class, and the overall pointlessness of it) then you cannot make up the quiz. Section in terms of this class was made so the TA could explain the vast amount of material covered in discussion but the TA I had only further confused me and made me feel as dumb as ever.



The paper- I worked on this paper for DAYS. The movies you have to write the paper on are not at Blockbuster and therefore you have to either hunt for them or buy them. With some miracle, I was able to pull a 3.5 but this is only because I spent days and days on it.



The exams- although they're not IMPOSSIBLE, they're FAR from easy. If you want to do well on the exam then you really truly have to understand the material, remember all the thousands of clips played in class, and be able to construct a lengthy essays.



Basically, if you're not a film major spare yourself and don't take this class. This class was a complete and utter waste of my time and it's not to say I'm going to do amazing. This class was my main focus this semester and not because I was trying my hardest to 4 point it but rather to PASS it.



I've been on the Dean's List for many semesters now, my GPA is high, and I am not a slacker but this class is just something else. Only take this class if you want to be made felt like you are worthless and dumb. Stay far far away from Fay and ESPECIALLY the worst TA to existent on this planet, Nicole.

Prof. Fay is really enthusiastic and does know a lot about the films we go over, which is why she gets the .5 instead of a 0. She is very nice in class, but when I got my papers back I found her comments to be really insulting and unnecessary instead of encouraging or helpful. I had no idea what she wanted, because she didn't give any constructive criticism, just a bunch of comments about how she was blown away by how much i suck at everything or something like that. it's weird because i've never gotten below a 3.5 on a paper in my life (and i'm on my 7th semester at MSU..) so i'm a little hesitant to believe her when she tells me i have no writing abilities at all and shouldn't be in college-level classes with writing. The only comments about what she would have liked are telling me how she doesn't agree with my arguments and that I should have used different articles as my sources.. so basically she should have told us what argument she wanted us to make and which articles she wanted us to use instead of instructing us to come up with our own. She is also very nitpicky, I've gotten 3-5 points off on quizzes for leaving one small detail out of an answer that was 90% correct and the quizzes are only 10 points in total. The quizzes are also always picking one or two random details out of at least 50 pages of reading, so although the reading load wouldn't be too bad if you could spread it out over the week you really have to do it right before class or you'll have no idea what she's talking about for the quizzes. My last complaint, which I also have with any art history sort of class I've taken, is that it is NOT a class about the history of film! We learn a little about the history but the biggest factors in our final grades are based on our abilities to analyze films. If you don't have to take this class, don't.. if you're interested in a class about history take an HST course because those are actually about history and not about analyzing and critiquing films that were made in the past.

she forgets this is an INTRODUCTION course. I have had 400 level courses easier and less time consuming than this one. You have to come to class everyday prepared to speak about a lame film that you almost slept through or there goes 15% of your grade. A lot of movies suck... The Conversation for example, she liked. Your exam will be in essay form and two questions that you have to hand write in about 10 pages. It sucks! She is very passionate about everything and if you are not, then prepare to have a bad grade because she is very critical to your answers (all essay form) in tests and quizzes. You have a quiz every week!! There are no opportunities to improve your grade once you see how she has slammed your work. She takes attendence but does not count it towards your participation points, stated clearly in the syllabus. You don't take your first exam until after the drop out with refund has passed by. She seems like a nice person and all but she is really just too into what she teaches and takes it personal if you don't like it as much as she does, so people only speak out if they know she is going to like to hear what they say. She just doesn't take into account that not everyone wants a doctorate in film studies. This is an intro course so you think you are going to get the basic knowledge and terminology.... but much much more is expected. It is a good preparation for you if you plan to do film studies, if not, do not waste your valuable time for this. It is no fun at all!

Fay is brilliant. Bottom line. The most articulate, intelligent, and charismatic person I've ever met in my life. That being said, the woman knows her films, and she expects you to know them as well.



Eng 330 was the only class I was sweating over last semester. It was the only class I got lower than a 3.5 in (2.5 ew). The material for 330 is rough. I had her for ENG 230 as well, but the TA sucked and there was no personal time. 330 was much smaller and more intense, so participation in this class ACTUALLY counts in terms of tangible percentage. Like I said though, the material is tough. When you think classical cinema you might think Chaplin, Humphrey Bogart, silent films and black and white. While you do get some of that you definitely get some thicker stuff to work with. Once you learn about Sergei Eisenstein and his theories of montage you'll want to kill yourself. In the end I found it cool to learn and wish I had done the readings more (but they are BRUTAL) but relevance? I don't know. Film theory is important I guess, but if you're like me you came to school to MAKE films, not STUDY outdated ones. Sure, Battleship Potempkin is a must to watch no matter what, but Play Time? COME ON. That movie was the antithesis of Pulp Fiction, The Godfather, Avatar, etc. (BTW, do yourself a favor and see the latter in theatres while it's in 3-d, movie changed my life).

Great woman, hard curriculum, but she cares every bit to make sure you understand the material. Either way, gotta love the J Fay.

Fay is amazing.

The TA I had, Nicole, was kind of a brat and a little stupid, and we never got anything accomplished in section, BUT it was all worth it in lecture.

Fay knows her films backwards and upside down, you can learn so much from her. She's very sweet and whether your comment is good or bad, it doesn't really matter, because she can somehow relate even the most obscure comments people have right back to the discussion. Completely, completely brilliant. I took this class when I needed a pick-me-up to get back on the right track with film, and this was more than I could have asked for.

I literally want to take her for every class I can. Absolutely everything you need to know is either in her notes in class or in an obvious place in the readings. Yes, you do have to do the readings, but they're not really that much at all. If you expect to pass a class just by showing up and watching the films you're probably not going to do well, so keep an open mind. The readings aren't difficult, either, and you can easily relate what was in lecture to them.

I recommend going to the film collective, if it's still going on, when you can -- talking to Fay about films when you're not in class makes the experience more enjoyable.

Okay, the poster below me must have been skipping class because Prof. Fay doesn't grade your exams or your papers. Your grade largely depends on your TA, so it's out of Prof. Fay's control.



Prof. Fay lectures weren't bad, but sometimes I felt like it dragged since there were no breaks. I enjoyed this class (especially watching Grizzly Man), but unfortunately, my hard work that I put into this class will not be reflected upon in my grade. Also, there was this really annoying apple-shiner in my class and that got on my nerves.



I can't blame Dr. Fay because she didn't grade anything, but I wish there would've been guidelines that TAs followed in terms of grading papers and exams. The grading was inconsistent, hence the 2.0 rating.



And who cares what she's wearing!? This isn't What Not To Wear, it's a class that I'm paying for to learn something and get a good grade.



Besides, she can get away with anything she wears and I'd rather see her wearing combat boots and a skirt than some sorrority girl's muffin top and combat boots.

To say Jen Fay has a lot of energy would be an understatement. She has an encyclopedic knowledge of all the films we watched in class (and just about every other film ever made, for that matter), and sometimes has TOO MUCH to say about them. That's her one downfall -- she manages to take an entertaining film, and tear it down to the subatomic level, which can make lectures tedious and BO-RING. Intro to film was a great class, but it could really be cut waaaay down in terms of in-class time. We have a 3 hour Monday viewing + lecture, a 50 min Tuesday recitation (which was pretty pointless, other than to burn you with weekly quizzes from the textbook), and a 2 hour Wednesday lecture. That's nearly six hours of classtime for a four credit class! Still, Prof. Fay manages to fill that time every week, and keep things (relatively) interesting, without burning you out too much. The one heads up I'll give though: this is NOT a BLOWOFF class. If you don't take it seriously, you will struggle, but it is ultimately worth the effort.

She's absolutely nuts; good and bad.

She is a really, really nice woman. She definitely knows her material and is always extremely enthusiastic. That's the good.



Now for the bad, she is the most nit-picky teacher I have ever, ever, ever had. In my life. You better memorize every single word/sentence of the book, her lectures, the movies, and just simply what she says.



I've been studying film my whole life, hence, it is my major, yet, I still had a difficult time with this class. Do I know the material? Yes. Like the back of my hand, but can I memorize word for word everything she wants. Absolutely not! I'd like to see her take one of her own tests in an intro college class and see how she feels about it.



If you are NOT a film major or a TC/MAT major, do NOT take this class. It will not be easy for you at all. All the kids that are not film majors bitch constantly about it. And me, who IS a TC major still bitches...I'll just leave it at that. I hope I don't get less than a 2.5 in this ridiculous class.

She is very energetic, no doubt about that. She also really knows a lot about movies. I feel that all the people who said she was brilliant were right. However, the class is terrible unless you're a film major. I worked really hard on those 2 papers we were given and I didn't get above a 2.5 on either of them. The midterm was outragous as well. I used up the entire amount of time given and I wrote a lot down but again, not above a 2.5. I think she is trying to prevent people from taking this as a blow off movie class, so she overcompensates and grades really tough. Oh and ps in a lot of the other reviews it was said that the TA does all of the grading. In my class, the TA graded the quizzes (which aren't that bad as long as you read the HUGE amount of reading assigned to you) but the two papers and the midterm and the final the two TAs and Prof Fay all sat down and graded them all together. Or at least that's what we're told.

A potentially fun and interesting class turns boring and arduous in Fay's hands. Quizzes are sometimes easy points, other times require you to remember a single sentence from the massive reading for that week. Tests, seem impossible to score well on considering you need to memorize the authors of all the essays you've read in the class. Lectures are very long and usually boring. Get this: when asking questions during lecture, if nobody's hand flies up to answer her question (which is usually worded so poorly you don't know what she's asking for) then she gets mad and says, "fine if you don't want to talk about it, we wont." But we're still expected to know it. Don't take this class with this prof unless you have to. Anything good to say? The movies, for the most part, are excellent.

Jen Fay is an amazing prof and this class was interesting and very fun, but tough. I got a 2.5 in the end. Normally I'd be ok with that, but I liked Fay so much, I felt like I was disappointing her! It might sound strange, but she made you want to learn it and get excited about the material.

On top of her extraordinary enthusiasm, the movies we watched were interesting and perfectly highlighted the lessons she taught about film.

And even on top of that, Jen is smokin' good looking. It makes you want to come to class even more. And I agree with the post below — very nice legs!

But seriously, she's very intelligent and enthusiastic and a pleasure to have as a teacher.

Fay is a wonderfully nice woman and she knows what she is talking about in her field. No matter what class you are taking with her, be prepared to step up and say something--if you participate regularly she will know what level of thought to expect from you.



If you have trouble with literature, you'll have trouble with film. Film is harder than lit, it's just the fact of the matter. Her tests are pretty difficult and pull from reading material (which there is a lot of) more than lecture. Her class is informative and enjoyable if you like the subject matter. If not...why are you in a film class if you don't like to analyze film?

I was in a love/hate relationship with this class.

I loved coming to class to watch the movies and hear the professor talk about them. But the exams.... feared them.

Basically you must remember ever little thing from the book, lecture, anything she says.

Also my ta SUCKED. She didn't help facilitate discussion at all. Most of the discussion class we would be sitting in silence while the ta awkwardly fumbled around trying to get the dvd player to work. Not sure about the other ta though.

Basically do NOT take this class unless you have to. It sounds like it should be fun, and it is to a point. Exams and the paper get you.

First off, this is not a blow off class. You definitely have to work hard if you want to get a good grade in this class. Overall I really liked her, she is very knowledgeable and I really liked some of her analysis. She's enthusiastic and sometimes goes off on tangents, but she's very open to discussion. And even when you are clearly "wrong" she isn't obnoxious about saying the right thing.



But...



Her tests are really nit-picky, so basically you really have to read the chapter for that week, attend lecture and watch the movie closely. It was an interesting class and but be warned: you will have to work in this class.

I took this class as an English major that wants to write screenplays. I have always been very passionate towards films, but this class disgusted me. It brings out the douche in everybody. "I noticed the protagonist in scene three had red lipstick, then in scenes 8 and 9 there is a red car in the background. Perhaps the director is showing us something." Nope. Who gives a fuck. You're an ass. You have to be ready to work hard and dissect a lot of aspects in film. She is really lovely and very intelligent, but I really didn't enjoy this class.

I think she was a fairly good teacher but her apperance drove me crazy. I felt that she just woke up in the morning and said to herself "I am just going to teach a class who cares what I look like?". I am not saying that apperance is everything not at all, but combat boots? black tights (is she four?), and has she ever heard of a hair straightner? Also I didn't feel that I learned anything in the class. It was a nice break from all my engineering classes and some of the books were good. I would reccomend the class.

Fay is a VERY cool professor. SHe always has so much energy, making the class easy to stay awake in. Also, she brings out some very interesting points. But in order to do well you MUST take good notes (copying not only whats on the ppt's but what she is saying as well). 2papers, mandatory recitation (fridays) and midterm and final... bothe of which are complete constructed responses. again, they are very easy if you take good notes.



Regarding Animals if the course name... its great!