Audio And Visual Techniques

Description

Purpose

This assignment is your opportunity to demonstrate the skills and techniques you have gained during this course.

Instructions

This final assignment is your chance to apply what you’ve learned so far to a project. You may develop this project from one of your previous assignments or you may start a new one. Whatever you decide, you must pick an option from one of the following three categories:

1. Experimental
2. Nonfiction
3. Narrative Fiction

You can review examples of what each of these category types look like on the previous page, if you haven’t already.

Solo Project OR Group Work

Additionally, you have a choice between doing this final project alone or in a group. However, if you choose to do this with a group, you will accept that your grades will all be the same. Therefore, you need to communicate with your group members beforehand and throughout the project about expectations, workload. The process for each genre is a bit different, so please consider their process elements carefully when deciding on which option to pick and whether or not you want to work with a group. (You can see suggested group numbers in the descriptions below.)

For example, the experimental and nonfiction prompts may not require as much pre-production activity but will require extensive time in the editing room.  The narrative prompt has a heavier load of pre-production work, but will not take as much time in the editing room. Final projects must be submitted with titles and end credits. Whoever is submitting the group project must include a description of the prompt and names of all group members. If you are not submitting for your group, you still must make a text submission stating who has submitted for your group.

Experimental (Solo Project)

Production Plan

You must submit a production plan (1-2 pages, single-spaced) that contains:

1. Plan & Timeline (What will you do?  What is your project’s question or area of exploration?  What do you think you will find?)  Timeline: when will you shoot; when will you edit – log, capture, edit, create the sound design—and finalize and upload video
2. Treatment – What do you think the project may look like?  How will you use camera and audio techniques?
3. Locations & Permissions – Where will you shoot and who will you shoot?  Who do you need to contact for permission?
4. Audio Design – What will the final project’s sound elements be: dialogue, spoken word, music, sound effects – be as specific as possible
5. Who is the audience for this project? How will you reach them?

Content

Choose one of the following words and make a 4-5 minute piece that defines and explores all of the nuances, emotions, and textures of this word. The video should make use of movement (controlled and motivated) of the camera, subject, etc. Still images may be incorporated into your video. The video must include a main title (the word) and end credits. You are to create a video definition of one of the following words:

1. Secret
2. Danger
3. Fear
4. Contradiction
5. Betrayal
6. Revelation
7. Catharsis
8. Epiphany

Nonfiction (Solo OR 2-3 Students)

Production Plan

You must submit a production plan (1-2 pages, single-spaced) that contains:

1. Plan & Timeline (What will you do?  What is your project’s question or area of exploration?  What do you think you will find?)  Timeline: when will you shoot; when will you edit – log, capture, edit, create the sound design—and finalize and upload video
2. Treatment – What do you think the project may look like?  How will you use camera and audio techniques?
3. Locations & Permissions – Where will you shoot and who will you shoot?  Who do you need to contact for permission?
4. Audio Design – What will the final project’s sound elements be: dialogue, spoken word, music, sound effects – be as specific as possible
5. Who is the audience for this project? How will you reach them?

Content

Working with your partner(s), you will identify, research, schedule, film, and edit an investigative story (a 7-9 minute video) about a local social issue of your choice, or an issue that spans multiple places if this better suits location of your group members. This will be an interview-based project but should include observational footage/scenes to help illustrate the points you are trying to make. In addition, this project must include guiding voiceover segments performed in part on camera by a member of the production team. You should explain complex issues of policy, technology, scholarship, or science in terms that everyday people can understand. This package of stories may employ the style and voice of investigative journalism or advocacy. In either case, the stories should aim to serve the public interest by providing perspectives on the issue of choice. If working from a position of advocacy, you will need to articulate how you plan to release and share these videos, and how this relates to a broader strategic goal in relation to the social issue itself. The video must include a main title (the word) and end credits.

Narrative Fiction (3-4 Students)

Production Plan

You must submit a production plan (1-2 pages, single-spaced) that contains:

1. Plan & Timeline (What will you do?  What is your project’s question or area of exploration?  What do you think you will find?)  Timeline: when will you shoot; when will you edit – log, capture, edit, create the sound design—and finalize and upload video
2. Treatment – What do you think the project may look like?  How will you use camera and audio techniques?
3. Locations & Permissions – Where will you shoot and who will you shoot?  Who do you need to contact for permission?
4. Production Design: What are the settings going to look like for the production?  What will be on the set – paintings, furniture, windows, etc.  What costumes will the characters wear?  What are the props?  What is the lighting style – high key, low key? Can use photographs or magazine photos for this part.
5. Audio Design – What will the final project’s sound elements be: dialogue, spoken word, music, sound effects – be as specific as possible.
6. Write a short script (1-2 pages). 
7. Agreement of Task division between your group.
8. Who is the audience for this project? How will you reach them?

Content

For this project, you are to plan and produce a narrative video. The final video will be between 3 to 5 minutes long. You may make the scene in whatever genre or style you want, but you may not parody the scene or make it comedic.

Come up with a brief script, which can be in the form of a simple storyline. Scenes will be judged according to how well you pay attention to mise-en-scene, lighting, sound, and editing. 

It will be helpful to work with actors, but you will not be expected to have professionals in your project. The actors must memorize their lines, however. No scripts are to be seen in the video. You may also solicit actors from outside your group. The video must include a main title (the word) and end credits.