Thursday, December 3, 2015

Blog #4 MoMI Visit

FILMP/MEDP 160 Field Trip / Museum of the Moving Image Fall 2015 – Nov. 25

Visit and Blogging Assignment:

Your assignment is to go to the museum and, with your group, experience at least one of those demos, and report on your blog about that participation.

In this blog you should make an effort to explain what you discovered about a specific aspect of media production, what you learned that you didn’t know before, in a way that might communicate to the non-initiated. How have the changes in moving image technology changed the way moving images are created, how they look, and how we experience them?

This blog is 250 words in length.

Tuesday, November 17, 2015

Project #3

FILMP/MEDP 160 • FALL 2015 PROJECT 3: CONTINUITY STORYTELLING / MINI-DOCUMENTARY

You have the option of doing either a MINI-DOCUMENTARY or a CONTINUITY STORY for your final project. You will work in groups of two and create one project together. Your film may not be longer than 3 minutes.

This is an assignment that includes video and audio, so if you will have to sync sound (dialogue or interview) you will have to use double system sound (we will go over this in lecture and lab). You may also use ambience recorded at your location, music, sound effects or narration.

Preproduction documents are due in Lab 11! 

Final Project due in Lab 14 (or when your lab instructors tell you)

You will shoot during class time, but you should expect to do some editing on this project OUTSIDE of class time.

Narrative Option: Choose A or B

Option A involves one person with a clear task to accomplish. Your character needs to move through space to accomplish this task but obstacles get in the way and they try to overcome these complications. They either succeed or fail. The task, the environment, and the action should reveal character.

Option B involves creating a story, or a mystery, which involves one person chasing (or following) another. The dramatic/ narrative purpose of the chase needs to become clear at some point.

Whichever option you chose, your piece should be a complete dramatic unit with a simple but clear beginning (set up), middle (development) and end (resolution). You will be expected to maintain cinematic continuity. Emphasis is on moving character(s) through space, so you’ll need multiple locations. Take time to create interesting and appropriate frames for the action. You MUST utilize at least ONE looking/ POV/ reaction sequence.

Pre-production deliverables for this option: brief description of your story, a list of locations, a list of characters/actors, and detailed storyboards.

Documentary Option:

Hunter College, with its tens of thousands of students and thousands of staff members, is as big as a small town, and there are myriad activities that go into making it what it is. Pick an individual, group, faculty member, student or staff person who you think has something of interest to offer and create a documentary “portrait” of them. Your piece must involve at least one interview as well as other visual material that helps tell the story.

You should pre-interview, as we did with our audio profiles, and restrict yourself to 5 to 10 minutes of raw interview material. You will be working with our zoom recorders, with limited capabilities, so you will have to get close and pick a quiet location. Remember that visuals are more than just “B-roll,” and they should help tell the story on their own.

While not required, you can add additional info through narration or text cards. (No on-camera hosts please!) You will also need to create a main title, as well as “lower thirds” identifying the people you interview.

Preproduction deliverables for this option: a one-page treatment, a list of interview questions and a shot list of the visuals you hope to film.

Blog #3

MEDP/FILMP 160 FALL 2015

BLOG POST #3: Relationships Between Shots

For this assignment, you will pick a section of linear media (any genre) and examine the way it is constructed. Pick an example where you think the editing has made a significant contribution to the storytelling and the feel of the piece. What is the relationship of the sounds to the images? Of the images to one another? How are the shots organized in terms of their content, composition, color, movement, etc.? What determines how long the shots are and what order they are placed in? It there a “right” place to cut or not to cut? Are the cuts seamless or obvious? Why?

You should choose a short piece of media (2-3 minutes) you can watch several times, so preferably it will be available online or on DVD. Providing a link within your blog to the media, or embedding a clip (if you are able to – analyzing a piece of media allows you to reproduce it under the Fair Use aspects of Copyright Law) would be great but is not required.


250 Words Due in Lab #10

Sunday, October 18, 2015

Assignment 2: Audio Portrait of a Person


Your second assignment for the semester is based on an interview with one of your classmates. First, you will pre-interview a classmate in order to define a theme for your piece. As you listen to your classmate, try to identify something unique about their story that “grabs” you. The following week, you will interview the person using questions you have written up before the interview, recording the interview with the Zoom recorder. Finally, you will create a multi-track audio piece in Premiere Pro based on the interview.

When you do your recording, record ample material, but try not to go overboard. 15 minutes worth should work. The final piece should be 3 to 4 minutes in length. Your audio portrait should mix elements including the voice of the interviewee, your voice (if you choose to include it), ambient background sound, music, and other sound effects as you see fit. When you have a finished piece you will upload it so it can be accessed through your blog site.

Remember to identify a theme that will make your piece say something special about the world, or the “human condition.” A story becomes compelling when it communicates something unique that others can relate to.

DUE: Lab 9

Sunday, October 11, 2015

John Cage on Silence and Sound


Interesting and informative words by influential composer John_Cage.  Think about some concepts he discussed in this video when you go out on your soundwalks.


More on Soundwalks...

Blog Assignment #2

FILM/MEDIA 160 FALL 2015

Blog Assignment #2: “What I Hear” This exercise has 2 parts.

Part 1. The Soundwalk

Spend an hour doing a “Soundwalk” around a particular neighborhood in NYC.

“Soundwalk” is a term invented by R. Murray Shafer, a musician and professor at Simon Fraser University. Shafer noticed in working with his music students that most of them couldn't remember even five sounds they had heard earlier that day. He created the soundwalk, a kind of walking meditation, as an “ear cleaning exercise,” a way to increase sonic awareness.

In An Introduction to Acoustic Ecology, Kendall Wrightson writes, “In order to listen we must stop, or at least slow down – physically and psychologically. We need to try to be human beings, instead of
“human doings.” So – during your sound walk, do not answer your phone, text, browse, read or do anything but be, and listen.

The goal of this exercise is to “open your ears.” New York offers a rich sound environment. 
Close your eyes and listen.


Part 2: The Blog

What is the texture of the sound? What are the specific instruments in the city symphony? What sounds are clues to a specific neighborhood? A specific time of day? What are sounds that are unique or meaningful to you? Expected or unexpected?
Some of Shafer's terminology might be useful to you in writing about your experience on the soundwalk:

                 • Keynotes: background sounds 
                 • Sound Signals: foreground sounds intended to attract attention. 
                 • Soundmarks: sounds particularly regarded by a community or its visitors
                   (analogous to visual “landmarks”)


250 words. Due in Lab 7. Oct. 21st

Wednesday, September 9, 2015


MEDP/FILMP 160
FALL 160


Camera workshop exercise

In your groups, go out (not too far!) and shoot the following:
  1. One subject shot with three different frame sizes
  2. One subject from low and high camera angles
  3. A shot where the camera does not move and there is movement within the frame
  4. One subject, shot directly in front, and then on an angle using the Z-axis
  5. A closed frame and an open frame
  6. A symmetrical frame
All shots should use the rule of thirds. Plan your shots before pushing the record button. AVOID recording while figuring out what you want to shoot next, also known as “visual hiccups.” 

Student Example: https://youtu.be/pLwB-r5Yk1Y

Sunday, September 6, 2015

PROJECT #1: DEFINE A PLACE

In this exercise students are required to “define a space or location” through visually controlled and expressive shooting.

Begin by choosing a location either on campus or close by.

Before shooting anything, observe the space for a while. What is happening there? What details exist that can tell a story about the space (signs, activities, objects, etc.)?

Now, make a mental “shopping list” of shots. Think about what camera position, shot size and composition will work best for each shot. Try not to move the camera unless your move has a clear beginning and end. Remember that a still frame with movement going on in the frame can be more powerful than a moving shot.

Each team member will conceive of and shoot 10 shots and then all the shots will be pooled for editing.

Think carefully about what you wish to convey. It could be an emotional tone you feel in the location (claustrophobia, fear, energy); or it could be that you are interested in the quality of light in the space; or perhaps what intrigues you is what goes on there; or maybe you like the architectural details, or the colors; you could also contrast interior with exterior, light and dark, movement and stillness ... it’s up to you! You don’t need to make a huge statement, but you must find some specific angle on the space and reveal that visually.

Also consider how your shots might eventually come together in the editing. Do you want your images to lead us into the space from the outside? Or do you want to create a question as to where we are before you reveal the larger space? There are many different ways to approach this.

Each student will then edit their own short film using the team’s material. Although the material should be silent (no natural sound) footage can be cut to an appropriate music track.

THIS IS A GROUP PROJECT. You must both agree on the location and the concept. Each person can design their own shots or you can agree together on each shot. Everyone must handle the camera and shoot.

HAVE FUN WITH THIS!

BLOG ASSIGNMENT #1 ARTIST STATEMENT

BLOG ASSIGNMENT #1 ARTIST STATEMENT 
FILM/MEDIA 160 
FALL 2015 
LENGTH: 250 Words 

This short statement is to help you and your potential audience get an initial glimpse of the media maker behind the work. It is an important part both of thinking about yourself as a creator, a producer of ideas, images and more, and of getting the word out about your work. 

You should think about your personal motivation, as well as about the medium in which you work (or in which you hope to work!) and your background. 

Where do your curiosities lie? What have you studied that interests you? What experiences have helped shape your worldview? Try to be specific. Questions of memory? Family relationships? Identity? Music? Theater? Politics? 

What about influences? Are there certain artists or filmmakers that you admire or appreciate? TV Shows? Websites? Games? 

Most importantly, think not only about “what you’re interested in,” but about why something interests you, and about what you are trying to say with your work. What truths about the world or your life are you trying express in your work? What are you truly passionate about? In other words, it's not enough to say, “I’m interested in cartooning.” Rather, dig into what cartoons might express that you identify with: “I’m interested in showing that humor can help people broach the most difficult ideas and feelings.” 

DUE: Lab 2 
Wednesday, September 9th (BEFORE LECTURE)

Wednesday, September 2, 2015

FILM/MEDIA 160 FAL 2015 SYLLABUS

***REVISED 9/10/15***

FILMP/MEDP 160: Media & Film in a Digital Age Pt. 2

Fall 2014

Prof. Kelly Anderson Office hours Mondays 3-5 and Tuesdays 5-7 Rm 508HN (kellyjmanderson@gmail.com)

Prof. Shanti Thakur Office hours Tuesdays 12-2 Rm 501AHN (sthakur@hunter.cuny.edu)

Lectures: Wednesdays 11:10 – 1 Room 714HW

Labs (Room 432HN)
LAB 01 Wednesday 3:10 - 5PM (Mathew Galindo, mathewgalindo@gmail.com) 
LAB 02 Wednesday 5:10 - 7PM (Mathew Galindo, mathewgalindo@gmail.com) 
LAB 03 Thurs 9:10 - 11AM (Francesca Coppolla, fcoppolafilm@gmail.com) 
LAB 04 Thursday 11:10 - 1PM (Francesca Coppolla, fcoppolafilm@gmail.com) 
LAB 05 Monday 9:10 – 11AM (Rachel Brown, oikofugic.rchl@gmail.com)
LAB 06 Monday 11:10 – 1PM (Rachel Brown, oikofugic.rchl@gmail.com) 
LAB 07 Monday 1:10 - 3PM (Betty Yu, bettyyu21@gmail.com)
LAB 08 Monday 3:10 - 5PM (Betty Yu, bettyyu21@gmail.com)
LAB 09 Monday 5:10 - 7PM (Kaija Siirala, kaijasii@gmail.com)

LAB 10 Monday 7:10 – 9PM (Kaija Siirala, kaijasii@gmail.com)

Course Description:
MEDP/FILMP 160 introduces students to the practical fundamentals of film, video, and digital media production in a lecture/lab format. It is a foundations course in time-based media. Students are introduced to a range of media production equipment and techniques, including:
  • ●  Time-based visual storytelling
  • ●  Film, video and audio technologies
  • ●  Basic editing techniques
  • ●  Image composition and framing for motion pictures
  • ●  The use of digital video cameras and digital audio recorders

    This course is a prerequisite for all film majors. For media majors, both 150 and 160 are required.

    Students will be required to host a blog that will be linked to their individual portfolio websites. In their blog entries, they will write about their class experiences and analyze the media around them, using analytical tools gained in the class. Blog entries are due on the date indicated in the syllabus and should be 250 words in length.

    The required text for this class is Voice & Vision: A Creative Approach to Narrative Film and DV Production by Mick Hurbis-Cherrier, Focal Press: 2nd Edition. 2011 (available at Shakespeare & Co. across from Hunter on Lexington Avenue). Additional readings will be posted on Blackboard and are also required reading.
Students are required to purchase a portable USB drive (16 GB minimum size), which will cost less than $20. This will give you space to store your original media.

Blackboard Site: We will be using Blackboard as an integral part of the class. You will be required to download readings from Blackboard and to check Blackboard for general course announcements. We are using a Master Course (Fall 2015: FILMP MEDP 160 Master Course) so make sure you use that for course access instead of your particular section. If you need help accessing Blackboard please contact SNET help desk at 212-650-3624 or email snet@hunter.cuny.edu.

Labs: In order to complete required assignments, you may have to work on editing your assignments outside of class time. Weekly open lab hours will be available in 432HN, 478HN and the ICIT Mac lab on the 10th floor of the North Building.

Video and sound equipment will not be able to be used outside of class time (there are limited exceptions).

Lateness and Absences: Attendance to both lecture and lab sections is mandatory. Three missed classes (either lab or lecture) will result in the reduction of your grade by one full letter grade on top of the 10% for attendance! Medical emergencies must be documented to be excused. Being late to class negatively impacts your attendance record and will damage your grade. Late assignments that are not excused by your section leader will have their grades reduced at the rate of one letter grade per week.

Please note that you must notify your section leader ahead of time if you cannot attend class on the day of a quiz or exam, so we can arrange an alternate time for you to take it. This will only be done in cases where there is a well-documented reason for missing the exam date.

OMG! NO PERSONAL ELECTRONIC NETWORKING DURING CLASS (incl. cell phones, web surfing, email, tweeting, texting, instagram or any new networking technology yet to be discovered.)

Grading Breakdown:
Attendance and participation (including in lecture): 10% 
Blogs (4) 10%
Assignment #1 (Define a Space): 10%
Assignment #2 (Audio Portrait): 15%

Assignment #3 (Final Project): 15% 
Quiz #1: 10%
Quiz #2: 10%
Final Exam: 20%


Accessibility: If you have a disability that will affect your coursework, please notify your lab instructor within the first two weeks of class to ensure suitable arrangements and a comfortable working environment. Contact : The Office for AccessABILITY, Hunter East 1119; Phone (212)772-4882 or 4891, TTY (212) 650-3230.
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FILMP/MEDP 160 Fall 2015 • Page 2

Academic Integrity
Hunter College regards acts of academic dishonesty (e.g., plagiarism, cheating on examinations, obtaining unfair advantage, and falsification of records and official documents) as serious offenses against the values of intellectual honesty. The College is committed to enforcing the CUNY Policy on Academic Integrity and will pursue cases of academic dishonesty according to the Hunter College Academic Integrity Procedures.

CLASS SCHEDULE FALL 2015 Lecture 1 (Sept. 2)
Semester overview. Intro to the creative process. Intro to Blog 1: Artist Statement.


Lab 1: SEC 001, 002 meet Sept. 2; SEC 003 and 004 meet Aug. 27 & Sept. 3; SEC 005, 006, 007,008, 009 & 010 meet Aug. 31. Introductions, semester overview, set up student accounts and blogs.

Lecture 2 (Sept. 9)
History of the Moving Image, Framing and Composition, Intro to Assignment #1: Define a Place 

Read for today: Erik Barnouw, Documentary: a history of the non-fiction film, pp. 1-13 (Blackboard),Voice & Vision, pp. 48-61.

Lab 2 (001 & 002 meet Sept. 9, 003 & 004 meet Sept. 17, 005-010 meet Sept. 10): Share Artist
statements, camera workshop and exercise.

Due in lab 2: Blog #1 

Lecture 3 (Sept. 16)
Framing and composition continued. The Lens.


Read for today: Voice & Vision pp. 221-234, 241-242.

Lab 3 (001 & 002 meet Sept. 16, 003 & 004 meet Sept. 24, 005-010 meet Sept. 21): Shoot Project 1: Define a Place.

NO CLASS SEPT 23

Lecture 4 (Sept. 30)
History and Technology of Video


Read for today: Voice & Vision, pp. 190-216; Reading from Documentary Voice & Vision (on Blackboard).

Lab 4 (001 & 002 meet Sept. 30, 003 & 004 meet Oct. 1, 005-010 meet Sept. 28): Intro to Premiere Pro. Edit Project 1.
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Lecture 5 (Oct. 7)
Quiz No 1.
Interview Techniques and Approaches. Intro to Blog # 2: What I Hear and Assignment 2: Audio Portrait.

Read for today: Rabiger, Michael, “Conducting and Shooting Interviews,” from Directing the Documentary (on Blackbard); Storycorps’ “Great Questions” at http://storycorps.org/great-questions/

Lab 5 (001 & 002 meet Oct. 7, 003 & 004 meet Oct. 8, 005-010 meet Oct. 5): Finish editing Project #1, upload and link to blog.

Due in Lab 5 by end of lab: Project 1. 

Lecture 6 (Oct. 14)
Audio theory, recording equipment, sound recording techniques. Intro zoom recorder.

Read for today: Voice & Vision, Ch. 15, pp. 351-358.

Lab 6 (001 & 002 meet Oct. 14, 003 & 004 meet Oct. 15, 005-010 meet Oct. 19): Review Assignment #1. Pre-interview for Assignment #2: Audio Portrait.

Lecture 7 (Oct. 21)
Sound Design and Editing. Review Quiz 1 and Project 1. 

Read for today: Voice & Vision, pp. 471-486.

Lab 7 (001 & 002 meet Oct. 21, 003, & 004 meet Oct. 22, 005-010 meet Oct. 26): Record Project 2. 

Due in Lab 7: Blog Entry #2, “What I Hear.”
Lecture 8 (Oct. 28)
Quiz No 2.
How images fit together: Visual storytelling conventions in fiction and non-fiction moving image media. Intro to Assignment #3: Final Project.


Read for Today: Voice & Vision, Ch. 4.


Lab 8: SEC 001 & 002 meet Oct. 28; SEC 003, 004 meet Oct. 29; SEC 005-010 meet Nov. 2. Edit
Audio Project.

Lecture 9 (Nov. 4)
Visual Storytelling, Pt. 2. Intro to storyboarding, overhead diagrams, shot lists, scripts. Listen to student projects. Intro to Blog #3: Editing Analysis
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Read for today: Voice & Vision, pp. 21-31, pp. 102 -108, Ch. 21. Hampe, Barry, “Visual Evidence” and “B-Roll as Evidence, Visual Illustration and Wallpaper,” from Making Documentary Films and Videos (on BB).

Lab 9 (001 & 002 meet Nov. 4, 003 & 004 meet Nov. 5, 005-010 meet Nov. 9): Finish audio projects and upload.

Lecture 10 (Nov. 11)
Lighting Concepts and Techniques. Review Quiz 2. Listen to audio projects.

Lab 10 (001 & 002 meet Nov. 11, 003 & 004 Nov. 12, 005-010 meet Nov. 16): Listen to Project 2, workshop storyboards & scripts if ready.

Due in Lab 10: Blog #3: Editing Analysis


Read for today: Voice & Vision, pp. 269-275, 281-290.

Lecture 11 (Nov. 18)
Screening: Visions of Light. Intro Blog #4: MOMI Visit Reflections


Lab 11: (001 & 002 meet Nov. 18, 003 & 004 meet Nov. 19, SEC 005-010 meet Nov. 23): Shoot Final Project.

Due before lab via email: Storyboards or Scripts. 

Lecture 12 (Nov. 25)
Class visit – Museum of the Moving Image

Lab 12 (SEC 001 & 002 meet Nov. 25, 003 & 004 meet Dec. 3, 005-010 meet Nov. 30): Edit Final Project.

Lecture 13 (Dec. 2)
Finishing and distribution.
Read for today:
Documentary Voice & Vision Chapter 23 (Blackboard)

Lab 13 (001 & 002 meet Dec. 2, 003 & 004 meet Dec. 10, 005-010 meet Dec. 7): Edit Final Project. Due in Lab 13: Blog #4: MOMI Visit Reflections.

Lecture 14 (Dec. 9)
Screen Project #3, Review for Final Exam.

Lab 14 (001 & 002 meet Dec. 9, 003 & 004 meeting TBD, 005-010 meet Dec. 14): Edit Final Project and upload.

Due: Assignment #3: Final Project.
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Lecture 15 (Dec. 16)
Final Exam (cumulative) Place and time TBD

For e-book readers: Voice and Vision 2nd edition pages correspond with the following section headers:

pp. 21-31
Chapter 2: The Screenplay, beginning of chapter up to (but not including) “Screenplay Language and Style”


pp. 48-61
Chapter 3: The Visual Language and Aesthetics of Cinema, from “The Frame and Composition” up to (but not including) “Motivation and the Moving Camera.”


pp. 102 -108
Chapter 5: From Screenplay to Visual Plan, from “Overhead Diagrams” up to (but not including) “The Director and Previzualizing: a Method.”


pp. 190-216
Chapter 8 from “Guage/Format” to end of Chapter. Chapter 9: The Digital Video System from beginning of chapter up to “Compression and Subsampling, bottom of second paragraph.


pp. 221-234
Chapter 10: The Lens, from beginning of chapter to end of 3 bullet points in “Controlling Depth of Field.”


pp. 241-242
Chapter 11: Camera Support, from beginning of chapter up to (but not including) The Tripod.


pp. 269-275
Chapter 13: Basic Lighting for Film and DV, beginning of chapter up to (but not including) “Camera Filters and Lighting Gels”


pp. 281-290
Chapter 13: Basic Lighting for Film and DV, “Light and Directionality” up to (but not including) “Exterior Lighting”


pp. 351-358
Chapter 16: Location Sound Techniques, beginning of chapter up to (but not including) “Boom
T echnique.”


pp. 471-486
Chapter 22: The Sound Design in Film, beginning of chapter up to (but not including “Sound Design Strategies”).
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FILMP/MEDP 160 Fall 2015 •