Author: Stephan Apicella-Hitchcock

Pictures of Ghosts, by Kleber Mendonça Filho ?>

Pictures of Ghosts, by Kleber Mendonça Filho

Pictures of Ghosts, 2023, directed by Kleber Mendonça Filho

Tuesday, April 14, 6 pm, Lincoln Center, Visual Arts Complex, RM SL24L
Panelists: Associate Professor of French Audrey Evrard, Department Chair, Languages & Cultures, and Professor Carl Fischer, Professor of Spanish, Department of Languages & Cultures. Moderated by Professor Apicella-Hitchcock, Head of the Visual Arts Program. Open to all. There will be pizza and a raffle prize.

Pictures of Ghosts, from acclaimed Brazilian director Kleber Mendonça Filho, “Is a multidimensional journey across time, sound, architecture, and filmmaking that explores the rich, complicated history of the filmmaker’s home city of Recife—the coastal capital of the state of Pernambuco—through the great movie theaters that served as spaces of conviviality during the twentieth century. Paeans to dreams and progress, these temples of cinema have also come to reflect major shifts in Brazilian society and politics. Combining archival documentary, mystery, film clips, and personal memories, Pictures of Ghosts is a map of a city through the lens of cinema, offering a delightful tour…”

About season two:
This spring, Films Worth Talking About, Even If Difficult, expands its programming into a broader interpretive territory. “Difficult Films” is not limited to films that are emotionally challenging or politically provocative; it can also refer to films that are visually experimental, sonically demanding, historically complex, or with multi-threaded or temporally shifting narratives. Ultimately, the series is a cinematic pretext for hanging out, eating, and talking—a communal exercise where we discuss, discover, and sometimes disagree, which is all part of the experience.

The Office of the Arts & Sciences Dean invites you to step outside your regular streaming queue, experience something different, and join a community of curious film lovers throughout the year. Please bring your friends, an open mind, and have a question ready. Additionally, to sweeten the deal, we offer raffle items connected to the film. By participating, you could walk away with a special prize AND a different perspective.

Documentary Photography: Italy 2026! ?>

Documentary Photography: Italy 2026!

Each year, students from this class put together and publish a book of photography. You can see 2025’s book here!

We encourage students with a passion for travel and photography to apply for this course. No prior experience required. Please notes that a digital camera will be provided for the duration of the class.

Program Dates: June 3rd – June 28th, 2026
Program Cost: $4,150 + Tuition (This includes housing, excursions, health insurance, and local transportation.)

Application Deadlines:

Priority Deadline: January 15, 2026
Final Deadline: February 1, 2026

To find out more about our Summer in Rome program, click here.
The 2025 Summer Session One Documentary Photography: Italy class book ?>

The 2025 Summer Session One Documentary Photography: Italy class book

Dear photography lovers and patrons of the arts,

I am proud to announce the release of the 2025 Summer Session One Documentary Photography: Italy class book. At 150 pages, Annamo is Roman for Let’s Go!, is a pleasure to behold. The volume is rich in variety and sharp in perception, thanks to the class participants’ clever brains, quick wits, and indefatigable feet. Also, all those espressi certainly helped.

Çağla, Katherine, Molly, Cat, Bailey, Camille, Grace, and Chelsy—Rome may seem like a beautiful and distant dream at this point in the fall; however, by the time you are several pages into your book, you will undoubtedly hear the clanging of church bells and clinking of espresso cups, smell the glorious truffle pasta (that’s Orvieto, actually), and be transported back to our beloved Eternal City of summer 2025. The phrase “Experiential Learning” frequently pops up in academia, but now it probably makes much more sense after all that glorious gelato.

Your over-caffeinated-image-obsessed guide, Stephano Apicella, would like to invite you to the book release party on Thursday, October 30th, 5 pm in Keating 1st (just before the screening of The Exorcist at 6 pm). Come see your images on the big screen, billboard-sized, and enjoy all your smart & hard work. In the meantime, if you can’t wait, you can preview your entire book here. Enjoy!

Grazie mille!

📸☕🇮🇹👍 Stephano

Films Worth Talking About, Even If Difficult: Halloween Edition: The Exorcist ?>

Films Worth Talking About, Even If Difficult: Halloween Edition: The Exorcist

The Office of the Arts & Sciences Dean and the Visual Arts Program present:
Films Worth Talking About, Even If Difficult: Halloween Edition: The Exorcist

The Exorcist

Directed in 1973 by William Friedkin, based on the 1971 novel by William Peter Blatty.
Thursday, October 30th, 6 pm, Rose Hill Keating 1st. All are welcome, so invite your friends. Pizza will be served on the early side.

Featuring:

Dr. Rachel Annunziato, Professor of Psychology, Vice Dean for Arts & Sciences; Father David Marcotte, S.J., Associate Professor of Psychology. Stephan Apicella-Hitchcock, Clinical Professor, Head of the Visual Arts Program, Dean Fellow, will moderate if things heat up. Two randomly chosen lucky winners will take home a terrifying prize.

About the film:
The Exorcist is a horror film released in 1973, directed by William Friedkin and written by William Peter Blatty, who adapted the screenplay from his 1971 novel of the same name. The story chronicles a single mother’s struggle to save her daughter from a mysterious ailment later revealed to be…

Spoiler alert—read no further!

…demonic possession. She enlists the help of two Roman Catholic priests, who attempt to perform an exorcism. The Exorcist was a massive commercial success, bringing in $428 million in its box-office run. It also earned 10 Academy Award nominations, including for best picture and director (the film would win two Oscars, for sound design and adapted screenplay). The Exorcist is a stylistic landmark for the supernatural horror genre and widely considered one of the greatest—and most unsettling—horror movies ever made.

Beyond the highly viceral and disturbing nature of the film, it is also a story about the challenges of modern medicine, the power of faith, doubt, sacrifice, redemption, love, and—of course, it is also about adult anxiety regarding teenage sexuality, loss of identity, motherhood, and the disintegration of the American family—you know, scary stuff—oh, and pea soup (you will know what I mean later).About the series:

For the Films Worth Talking About, Even If Difficult film series, we ask professors, administrators, and staff from across the university to present significant films to the Fordham community that might be unfamiliar or challenging. At screenings, we enjoy pizza together, watch a film, and then discuss it afterward.

As the series title suggests, the films selected, both old and new, are not always easy to digest or understand, and would benefit from thoughtful unpacking by people familiar with the film’s content. Our guest leaders guide attendees in exploring the film’s themes, characters, context, social impact, and stylistic choices. Ultimately, this is a communal exercise where we discuss, discover, and disagree sometimes—which is all part of the experience.

The Office of the Arts & Sciences Dean invites you to step outside your regular streaming queue, experience something different, and join a community of curious cinephiles throughout the year. Please bring your friends, an open mind, and be ready with a question. Additionally, to sweeten the deal, we offer raffle items connected to the film. You could walk away with a special prize AND a different point of view.

Up Next:

Coming in November is Mati Diop’s film, Dahomey, with special guests Associate Professor of African & African American Studies Professor Laurie Lambert and Associate Professor of Art History Maria Ruvoldt.

Previously:

Akira, directed in 1988 by Katsuhiro Otomo, and based on his 1982 manga Akira.
Sponsored by the FitzSimons Civics and Civility Initiative in collaboration with the Office of the Arts & Sciences Dean and the Visual Arts Program
Faculty panelists: Nushelle de Silva, Assistant Professor of Art History; Terrence Mosley, Adjunct Professor, Theatre Program; Anthony A. Berry, FitzSimons Fellow; and Stephan Apicella-Hitchcock, Clinical Professor, Head of the Visual Arts Program