This seminar explores the understandings of the US through an analysis of race, class, gender, and national identity in films and TV series. It questions the role of authenticity in film and TV representation, focusing on works that examine how Americans define themselves and each other. Students screen, discuss, and write about recent films and TV series made by Americans who intervene in simplistic narratives of their own diverse cultures. Through the creation of their own essay films, students compare these contemporary works with earlier media to investigate the ways American culture(s) has evolved onscreen, and how far it still must go.