Films and Liberal Arts

The College was host last month to film educators and movie industry representatives at a national conference on film teaching and the place of film-study in a liberal arts education. About 125 participants and observers attended the three-day meetings sponsored by Dartmouth and the American Council on Education.

The conference featured the presentation of papers, panel discussions and film showings. A highlight was the American premiere of a new Columbia Pictures release, "King Rat." David C. Stewart, consultant on the arts to the American Council on Education, directed the study and conference in association with J. Blair Watson Jr., Director of Dartmouth College Films.

The conference opened with a showing of the films which won prizes at the U.S. National Student Association Film Festival at UCLA.

Papers were given by Arthur Knight, of the University of Southern California and film critic for Saturday Review; George Stoney, documentary film-maker and teacher at Columbia University; Edward Fischer, lecturer and professor at Notre Dame; Pauline Kael, author and critic; Jack Ellis, Northwestern University, on "Modes of Film Communication"; Hugh Gray, University of California, on "Film Aesthetics"; John E. Burchard, dean emeritus of the School of Humanities and Social Science at M.I.T., and by Colin Young of the University of California at Los Angeles.

A panel discussion on "Movies in the Next Decade," moderated by Arthur Knight, featured panelists Marya Mannes, essayist and critic; Shirley Clarke, producer of "The Cool World" and "The Connection"; actress Shirley Knight, and George Bluestone, motion-picture maker, author and professor.