Film and Video

The History of Motion Picture Arts course explores the motion picture as an art form, a business, and a representation of society. Students will examine how film has become a dominant force in American culture through study of the birth of film, the golden age of silent films, World War II, non-Hollywood films, the New Cinema of the 1960s era, and the Hollywood Renaissance.

The Introduction to Film and Video course examines the fundamental disciplines and principles inherent within the world of film, television, and digital media production. During the course, students will learn how writing, directing, producing, cinematography, art direction, makeup, and sound function as elements of the filmmaking process as well as how these specializations intersect during preproduction and production. Students will learn aspects of theory related to each department. An emphasis will be placed on the study of filmmaking as an artistic and technical industry, and students will hone important skills of collaboration, artistic expression, and technique.

The Scriptwriting Techniques course introduces students to the foundation of successful writing for film and television. Students will learn the fundamentals of formatting using industry-standard software, structural techniques, character development, conflict, and scene construction. The similarities and differences among formats will be evaluated, enabling students to make successful writing choices for each platform.

In the New Media Tools course, students will evaluate new-media tools along with past methods and media outlets. Students will examine these communication avenues and their effectiveness. Students will explore a variety of media used in digital and online environments to accomplish course projects and further their understanding of new-media tools, including images, text, and streaming video and audio. Students will gain an understanding of the unique possibilities and challenges of new media by learning the technology, techniques, and methods of storytelling on multimedia platforms. By studying examples of existing interactive programs, students will develop strategies to solve real-world problems, which will assist them in their future media careers.

In the Introduction to Postproduction course, students will build upon the specializations within visual storytelling to learn how sound and editing function as parts of the filmmaking process during the production and postproduction stages. Focus will be on postproduction theory. Students will learn problem-solving techniques to apply to logistical, aesthetic, and technical components of telling a story.

In Project I: Film and Video, students will combine the fundamentals of digital video and film production for a variety of media platforms in a hands-on learning environment. In this course, students will apply their knowledge of story development and script writing to outline, write, and storyboard a media project. Activities will require students to incorporate the technical basics of video production into their creative process, helping to demonstrate how video, audio, and editing principles support the telling of a story.

In Portfolio I: Film and Video, students will prepare and create video content they can post to various outlets using industry-proven new media interactive applications. Students will reflect on the knowledge and experience they have gained in order to strategize their future career paths.