Basic Elements of Video Syllabus

BASIC ELEMENTS OF VIDEO FILM - 222, LAB 851
Summer 2009 / June 22 – July 16
Monday - Thursday / 9:00am – 12:45pm / Mitchell Hall B-56

Instructor: Alex Torinus
Office Hours: Mon. 1-2pm & Tues. 1-2pm / B-55B
Email: atorinus@uwm.edu
Office Phone: 229-3907
Film Dept. Office: B-70
Film Dept. phone: 229-6015
Mailbox: B-70

Course Goals: To introduce you to the basic concepts and techniques of digital camera and audio work, shooting and lighting for video, and the essential steps of editing with Final Cut Pro 5. You will participate in all aspects of video production, including proposing, planning, and shooting a video project, learning creative problem solving by viewing and critiquing your own footage and editing as well as that of other students, and negotiating the most imaginative path toward the completion of a final video project.

Course Blog: http://basicvideosummer.blogspot.com

Required Supplies / Cost:

- 4 or 5 Sony Premium Mini DV tapes / $3.98 each (at Riverwest Film and Video), about $5.00 each (at Target)
- Other brands (Panasonic and Maxell especially) not recommended

You can get them at: Riverwest Film and Video
824 E. Center St. (next to Fuel Cafe)
414-265-8433
Hours: 3 -11:00pm, seven days a week.

Strongly Recommended: Final Cut Pro 5 by Lisa Brenneis
$27.57 for a new copy of FCP 5 at amazon.com, from $4.06 used, from $1.10 for a used copy of FCP 4 at amazon.com

Requirements: - Minimum of 20 hours of production time outside of class each week.
- Regular and prompt attendance - more than 2 absences will
result in a drop in grade by one full letter, 1/2 letter grade drop
for each additional class missed. Significant tardiness will result in ½ absence per late arrival. Strictly enforced.
- Notes taken during all technical lectures. Missed technical lectures cannot be made up.
- No late assignments accepted.

Equipment Room Hours: Mondays + Wednesdays from 12pm – 6pm
Tuesdays + Thursdays from 12pm – 2pm
Room B-54
229-4643
UWMEquipmentRoom@gmail.com

Equipment:

JVC camcorders, Panasonic GS400 camcorders,
Microphones: RE-10, SP lav, PZM, Rode,
Zoom Handy H4 recorders, Tube Kits, Gitzo tripods

Campus Security:

229-4627 / Use this number to gain access to Mitchell Hall after (non-emergency) regular Film Dept. operating hours with a work permit + a student ID. You must call 15 minutes prior to odd hours only (9pm, 11pm, 1am, 3am, 5am, etc.). For instance, if you want to want to gain access at 11pm, you would call security at 10:45pm.

To get 24/7 hand scan access to Mitchell Hall, visit the PSOA Box Office in the Zelazo Center Monday through Friday,10am – 4pm. The door with the hand scan unit in Mitchell Hall is the basement entrance near the loading dock.

Assignments:


Carnival Video Project: 15%

Based upon your creation of a short project (no longer than 2 minutes) that illustrates an unpredictable perspective of a place, event, object, or person. To accomplish this goal, you will use sounds that provide sufficient detail to define the place, event, object or person, sounds that change the expectation delivered by the place, event, object or person, and images that are unpredictable, fresh, and personal…as well as in focus, well lit, and properly white-balanced. Your grade will also be based on the quality of your audio recording. This video is meant to be a jump-start for capturing images and sounds for your final project.

Rough Edit: 15%

Based upon the quality of editing (see below for “qualities of an excellent or “A” project”), as well as the quality of shot compositions, lighting, and audio recordings selected to create a rough cut for your final project.

Class Participation: 20%

Based on the following:

- the effort and imagination given to video work in progress and the final project proposal and questionnaire
- the feedback you give your fellow students to help them realize successful projects and creatively solve problems
- acting on the feedback and critique you receive
- bringing footage to class ready to view
- meeting deadlines for questionnaire, final project proposal, raw footage due date, rough cut due date, and fine cut due date (counts as 10% of the 20% for participation, 2% for meeting each deadline)
- work on in-class exercises and assignments
- general classroom conduct

Final Project: 50%

Based on the imaginative conclusion of the shooting, sound, and editing used to express the idea put forth in your project proposal. A title and at least three sound tracks are required. This project can be no longer than 5 minutes.

______________________________________________________________________________________

No video project will be accepted on time unless it is contained within a plastic Mini DV case, and it has a label both on the tape itself and on the tape case with the following information:

- Your full name
- The assignment (Carnival Project, Final Project)
- The date (day, month, year)
______________________________________________________________________________________

Course Schedule:

Monday, June 22 – Introduction to the Course & Project Ideas / Scavenger Hunting
Tuesday, June 23 – Introduction to the Cameras and Lighting, Bring a Mini-DV tape to class
Wednesday, June 24 - Individual Appointments & Questionnaires due
Thursday, June 25 - Introduction to Audio and Microphones, Bring a Mini-DV tape
+ batteries to class


Monday, June 29 - Raw Footage Due, Final Project Proposal due
Final Cut Pro Capturing and Editing
Tuesday, June 30 - Continued viewing of raw footage, Capturing raw footage
Wednesday, July 1 - Final Cut Pro Editing and Audio
Thursday, July 2 - Final Cut Pro Titling, Effects, and Exporting, Editing Techniques Lecture


Monday, July 6 - Carnival Videos Due, Raw Footage Viewed
Tuesday, July 7 - Editing in Class, Individual Help + Critique
Wednesday, July 8 - Rough Cuts Due
Thursday, July 9 - Rough Cuts Viewed and Critiqued


Monday, July 13 – Fine Cuts Due
Tuesday, July 14 – Editing in Class, Individual Help + Critique
Wednesday, July 15 – Fine Cuts Viewed and Critiqued
Thursday, July 16 – Final Projects Due & Screened
______________________________________________________________________________________

Facility Access and Work Permits:
Students using the department facilities must have an updated Work Permit, which will be distributed in class. The Film Department facilities are normally open from 9:00am-4:30pm, Monday-Friday. Some of the studios have card-swipe access. Keys for other editing rooms and studios may be signed out in the Equipment Room or B-70 Film Dept. Office. When the Film Office is closed, access to rooms is available from department staff or campus police, following posted guidelines. After hours, access to Mitchell Hall is available for all students enrolled in the “hand reader” lock system, via the northwest entrance (below the loading dock). Students register at the PSOA Box Office on the 1st floor of the Zelazo Center.

Equipment Room Eligibility:
1. You must be a UWM student, enrolled in a production class.
2. You must have received training from your instructor on individual pieces of equipment. When you have demonstrated competency in using the equipment, your instructor will forward a note to the Equipment Room informing them about your eligibility.
3. Eligibility from previous semesters will be carried over to the present.
4. You are only eligible to check out equipment for which you have received training.
5. You are fully responsible for damage or loss of any and all equipment checked out to you.
Special Needs and Questions:
If you will need accommodations in order to meet any of the requirements of this course, please contact me as soon as possible. Feel free to visit me at my office during office hours to discuss assignments or any questions or requests you have. The Department of Film follows UWM academic policies which are posted on the departmental bulletin board, or available online at:
http://www.uwm.edu/Dept/SecU/SyllabusLinks.pdf

F Grades:
http://www3.uwm.edu/Dept/Acad_Aff/policy/new_gradepolicy.cfm

Drops: No drops are permitted after the 5th week of the semester.

Use of Copyrighted Material: Use of copyrighted material is strictly prohibited unless the images, sounds, texts, etc. are being significantly altered and it is clear in the opinion of the instructor that the original material is being studied, analyzed, and commented upon by the student. Grades for work failing to satisfy this requirement for copyrighted materials will be significantly lowered. The instructor reserves the right to determine what constitutes fair use of copyrighted material.

For more information on fair use laws, visit the following website:

http://www.utsystem.edu/ogc/intellectualproperty/whowns.htm

Project Storage: Projects from prior semesters not retrieved from the Film Dept. Office, Mitchell Hall rm. B-70, by the 4th week of classes in the Fall semester will be disposed of. The Film Dept. is not responsible for completed projects that have not been retrieved.
______________________________________________________________________________________

Final Video Projects

Excellent or “A” video projects usually have most of these qualities: They are smart---they engage their subject matter with innovative or stimulating ways of thinking. They demonstrate considerable development of the original curiosities, experiences, and concepts through engaging the world with shots and sound. Excellent projects often have striking imagery and soundtracks with good spatial “imagery”, clarity, and variation. Good or “B” final projects have some of these qualities. Average or “C” projects are often predictable with little development of ideas or form.

Qualities of an Excellent or “A” Project:

- Successfully posing a question, perception, or situation to explore, learn about, or account for.
- Images that are unique, unpredictable, detailed, personal.
- A sufficient number/variety of video images and audio recordings with which to fully complete the final project.
- Development of a point of view and/or personal visual style.
- Sound and Image relationships that are imaginative, unpredictable, and unique.
- High quality microphone recording, track building, and mixing techniques for soundtracks.
- Pacing that establishes and develops rhythms.
- Attention to structure, focus, and balance of the original idea

Portfolio Review Projects:

All of the above especially applies to work being considered for Portfolio Review. Suggested running time for final projects is 2.5 - 5 minutes. Creative accomplishment is given much greater weight than technical execution. Here are some qualities that the faculty look for in Portfolio Review:

- Curiosity: Evidence of passion for exploration, increasing one’s experience and knowledge as evident in the conceptual planning for the video or film.

- Perceptual Skills: The ability to find qualities of interest in things, persons, and events immediately around oneself as evident in the video or film and sound materials generated.

- Process and Discovery: Evidence of conceptual and aesthetic development in the video or film and sound materials generated over the period of principle photography. The ability to recognize the inherent strengths of the materials you have generated.

- Creative Voice: The ability to draft an editing plan that combines inherent strengths of the material with goals of personal expression.

- Technical Competency: Self-sufficiency in using the basic tools of video and cinema production.