Visual Narratives

ART 2040 Digital Filmmaking: Visual Narratives
04:00 P.M. - 08:30 P.M. Tues,Thurs
Summer Session June 4 - July 9, 2012
meets in Library 118 and Partially Online

ART 4040 Digital Filmmaking: Advanced Projects
04:00 P.M. - 08:30 P.M. Tues,Thues
Summer Session June 4 - July 9, 2012
meets in Library 118 and Partially Online
Meets with: ART 2040 section 001

This summer these two classes are offered, both as hybrid courses... that's partially online.
We are meeting at an odd time, with class starting at 4pm. This is to give us a chance to focus on exterior shooting and the beautiful light at the end of the long summer day.

More info on syllabus
http://www.d.umn.edu/~jrock2/viznar_sum.html

"The Tell-Tale Heart" animation of Poe's classic story

Josh Ritter - Love Is Making Its Way Back Home from Josh Ritter on Vimeo.

https://vimeo.com/awards/

Submissions to the 2012 Vimeo Festival + Awards are now open.

Celebrating the best in online video, the 2012 Vimeo Festival + Awards are jam-packed with new judges, new categories, and new monies -- $5,000 grants for category winners and one $25,000 grand prize.

The Living Room Candidate
http://www.livingroomcandidate.org
The Living Room Candidate contains more than 300 commercials, from every presidential election since 1952, when Madison Avenue advertising executive Rosser Reeves convinced Dwight Eisenhower that short ads played during such popular TV programs as I Love Lucy would reach more voters than any other form of advertising. This innovation had a permanent effect on the way presidential campaigns are run.

Film Studies for Free
http://filmstudiesforfree.blogspot.com/2011/12/fsffs-favourite-online-film-studies.html

A pluralist, pro bono, and purely positive web-archive of examples of, links to, and comment on, online, Open Access, film and moving image studies resources of note. Check out this blog by Catherine Grant

YOUR FINAL EDIT
Title of your movie:
Run Time:
Reflect upon your final edit of the short film project. What aesthetic and technical choices did you make to create a unified story? What issues came up as you worked with the captured video and audio in the Digital Editing Software? How did you create solutions when technical problems came up? How successful is the final product? What might you do differently if you had more time and experience?

Please reflect upon and evaluate your collaborative team project
(If you worked independently, describe your process and credit individuals
who collaborated with you on the set).

Please keep the perspective balanced and fair, but accurate and honest.
You may modify this form to fit the needs of your project.

Digital Filmmaking: Visual Narratives
Short Film / PROJECT REFLECTION
Part 1: On the Set / Shoot Tasks + Collaboration

Red Hot Chili Peppers: Monarchy of Roses video using black and white animation

Depth of Field Explained (by snodart.com) from NT on Vimeo.

this video is reprint at snodart.com(http://snodart.com/tutorials.php)

http://minneapolisundergroundfilmfestival.com/

30x30 Trailer: M.U.F.F. from Tyler Jensen on Vimeo.

Looking for music for your video project? Try this:

http://vimeo.com/musicstore

http://vimeo.com/faq/music_store

http://vimeo.com/blog:457
share your video > 11.11.11
This Friday November 11th, 2011 people from all over the world will capture their experiences to share with the world. Be a part of this amazing project!
http://www.onedayonearth.org/

Together, we are showcasing the amazing diversity, conflict, tragedy, and triumph that occurs in one day. We invite you to join our international community of thousands of filmmakers, hundreds of schools, and dozens of non-profits, and contribute to this unique global mosaic. One Day on Earth is a community that not only watches, but participates.

This was done in Digital Methods in Art Education a few years ago. Whitney wrote and played the song, as well as created the chalk animation in stopmotion.

More links & examples of Chalk Animation on her blog:
http://blog.lib.umn.edu/halqu003/myarted/2009/12/robin-roads-and-chalk-annimation.html

Mound by Allison Schulnik from garaco taco on Vimeo.

Credits:
Film by Allison Schulnik
Cinematography by Helder K. Sun.
"It's Raining Today" written by Noel Scott Engel

4:23 min
Copyright Allison Schulnik 2011
allisonschulnik.com

The Skeleton of Joy (Le Squelette joyeux, 1897)
The Lumiere brothers early animation of stopmotion trick film of a dancing skeleton, mounted on occasionally visible strings.

More about these early innovators:
http://www.weirdwildrealm.com/f-lumiere.html

http://inventors.about.com/library/inventors/blmotionpictures.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Auguste_and_Louis_Lumi%C3%A8re

Reading from the Text:
Film Directing Shot by Shot: Visualizing from Concept to Screen

Part 2 : Elements of The Continuity Style (composing shots, editing temporal connections) (pages 121-156)
This section will help you plan the shots you need, anticipating the connections necessary for building a coherent narrative. Use this information as you make shot lists and storyboards and plan where your cameras will need to be to capture these shots.

Pitch Assignment > DUE THURSDAY OCT 20th

Visual Narratives >> Short Film Pitch Assignment >

Each student will have 5 minutes to pitch an idea for a collaborative short film to the class. Prepare an enthusiastic and engaging presentation of an idea for a film you would like to work on. Follow the checklist of points to cover in your pitch. Please keep your pitch under 5 minutes. The selected film projects will be short (10 minutes or less) and your pitch must offer an idea that is realistic within the timeline, technical tools, and financial limitations of our class. Students will vote for the best ideas. The class will break up into teams of 5 or less to work for the remainder of the semester. Identify your skills, strengths, and areas of willingness to learn. Be prepared to step into specific roles on your team (for example: lighting, camera, set decorating, acting, etc). Every team will need to designate a director for the shoots. Teams can also recruit or cast from the larger UMD community. After the project is shot, each student will edit their own final cut version of the film. These variations on the final edit will be an important part of our learning this semester.

Your Pitch Checklist
Teaser Pitch
Story Pitch
Visual Narrative Plan
Outline or Script (optional)

Your Pitch Checklist

Please do this reading by October 6th. Take notes and reflect on the text Film Directing Shot by Shot: Visualizing from Concept to Screen by Steve Katz

Reading >> Part 1 : Visualization : The Process (storyboards, production design, tools + techniques)
This reading will help you become more aware of the pre-production and visualization techniques used to plan a film project. Use the reading to think about how you will concept and plan your own short film. You will be required to do storyboards and sketches for your pitch project. Later you will do more pre-visualizations for the team projects that are selected for class production.

Blog #3 Assignment > Please SAVE your writing and POST to BLOG ON Oct 6

Please view at least 5 Short Films and take notes using the format below. Try to use films that are longer than one minute and shorter than 15 minutes (though the definition of a short film may vary). Please note all of the info for each film.

Title:
Year:
Director:
Run time:
Story Synopsis:
Location:
Characters:
Visual strengths:
Use of Light / Color:
Digital techniques:
Use of Sound / Music:
Viewed on : (link to website, name of dvd collection)

TIPS for FINDING GOOD SHORTS>>>
At the library front desk you can ask for these dvd collections of short films on RESERVE:
Wholphin number 3
Wholphin number 6
Other sets of SHORT FILMS on DVD in UMD Library include:
Shorts! vol 1
Shorts! vol 2

Also see links to Short films on this blog.
http://blog.lib.umn.edu/jrock2/viznar/2009/02/short_films_links.html#more
Try creating a Vimeo Page of your favorite Shorts.
Search for the best quality short films on the web.

FRIDAY SEPT 16
PLEASE ATTEND Screening : Naked Vision
WHERE: Weber Music Hall, UMD Campus
WHEN: 7:30 pm - 8:00 pm:  film screening
8:00 pm - 8:30 pm:  Question & Answer
FREE Admission
for EXTRA CREDIT post reflection to blog here

soem dates to note...

TH SEPT 15
Post to BLog > FILMS WE LOVE
watch clips + discuss
SCREEN > DVD : film history Documentary
DISCUSS: Scheduling Interviews
Pitching short film (Art4040)

TUES SEPT 20
Art4040 will present their short film pitches to class
Discuss PROJECT 1: "How did you come to be here" project plan
CHECK OUT CAMERAS to each Interview Team
SCREEN > DVD : beginning of Cutting Edge / film editing

THURS SEPT 22
No regular class
Interview and shoot video for project this week
ART2040 Teams have cameras from SEPT 20 - SEPT 27

TUES SEPT 27
Rob Wittig guest professor
SCREEN > DVD : Cutting Edge / film editing
WATCH TUTORIALS on Edit Software (bring headphones!)
Art2040 > RETURN CAMERAS
Art4040 > CHECK OUT cameras
check in/check out by Jarid W.

THURS SEPT 29
Optional Class > Work on Edit
Use class time to EDIT / Watch SOFTWARE tutorials (use headphones!)
Come to lab with INTERVIEW VIDEO + other MEDIA for your project
PLEASE bring external harddrive, memory cards, and headphones
Help each other / problem solve
Please ACCESS Multimedia HUB for more help

TUES OCT 4
No regular class > Assignments on BLOG
Reading in text : Shot by Shot : Part 1
VIEW short films and write reflection / save for blog #3

THURS OCT 6
Joellyn Back, Report on Progress with PROJECT 1
SCREEN ROUGH EDITs in Progress for feedback
POST TO BLOG about SHORT FILMs on THURS OCT 6

Watch demos and read up on the camera you will be using:

http://youtu.be/Jc3521yHq9A

Vimeo GH2 Group:
http://vimeo.com/groups/gh2/forumthread:242058

http://webvideouniversity.com/podcast/video/2011/05/13/video-review-of-the-panasonic-lumix-gh2/

http://notesonvideo.blogspot.com/2011/03/documentary-shooting-with-panasonic-gh2.html

http://www.luminous-landscape.com/reviews/cameras/gh2_discoveries.shtml

http://youtu.be/aBMR68p6uAI

http://youtu.be/FpEX_Q9wEBA

http://youtu.be/nVnUeEdYQrI

http://www.callboxlive.com/products/panasonic-gh2-guidebook

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/panasonicDMCGH2/

http://youtu.be/kAmBpttlrn4

BLOG # 2

FILMS WE LOVE
Make a short list (5 to 10) of some of your favorite films.
If possible, please bring ONE of your favorites to class on DVD

For each film, be sure to list:
Title:
Year:
Director:
Actor/Star:
Genre:
LINK to a trailer of film/ film website:
What You Love about it:

If this was a story about my life, it would be a ___________________ (genre / style), created by _________________________________ (artist/ director).
The story about my life would be ____________________ ________________________________________ (describe visual qualities and emotional tone). It would be set in _______________ (era) in ___________________ (location). The pace of the story would be _________________, the camera work would be ______________________.
It would be the story of _______________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________
(short synopsis). In the project, my ________________ (family member) would be played by _____________________ (actor) and __________________ (actor) would play the love interest.
In the climax of the story, _________________________ would happen. This scene would feel very ______________(emotion) and be visually _________________ (look). The audience would be most surprised by the ending, when I _________________________________________________________.

The UMD Diversity Commission invites your participation in the fall 2011 project "How did you come to be here?" The question is at once simple and profound. How did YOU come to be here? Are you indigenous to this land? Were your ancestors forced here in slavery? Did your ancestors emigrate? What was the interaction between these different racial, cultural, religious groups? And WHO ARE WE NOW, as community?
Students, staff, faculty and administrators alike are encouraged to deeply consider these questions and your own unique story of coming to this place: whether yours is a history of sovereignty, emigration, forced relocation or some unique combination, it is important that we journey towards cultural self awareness in preparation for acceptance and celebration of our rich diversity.

This fall, digital filmmaking students will contribute to the campus diversity project by creating one minute films on the theme. Film students will focus on telling the story of one student or faculty member and their answer to the question: "How did you come to be here?". Projects may include onscreen interviews, audio voiceovers, video vignettes, family photos, maps, drawings or other visual media combined to create short visual narratives of personal identity.

For inspiration, there are many really good films about Immigrant Experience:
here's one I like:
Golden Door (2006)
Nuovomondo (original title)
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0465188/
It's a carefully detailed view of the experience of one family trying to move from Italy to America about 100 years ago, gorgeous cinematography and elegant storytelling.
see trailer http://youtu.be/-NkoJXHiQTc

Select and view a film from one of these lists:

http://www.murthy.com/films.html
http://www.takepart.com/news/2008/04/09/top-10-immigration-films/
http://ysn.com/top-7-movies-about-immigration/
http://libwww.freelibrary.org/explore/movielist.cfm?topicTitle=immigration

http://vimeo.com/help/basics

Great tips and tutorials here:

http://vimeo.com/videoschool

Vimeo Video School is a fun place for anyone to learn how to make better videos. It's a one-stop-shop for Vimeo Lessons and user-made video tutorials about a variety of video-making topics.

I just noticed this:
Making Test Movies at Amazon Studios
Test movies are inexpensive, full-length movies that tell the whole story of the script in a compelling way. They should have good acting and sound, but polished visuals are not required. Even primitive visuals will help people imagine what a script would be like as a finished film. A table read, with people saying lines and describing action, qualifies as a test movie.

http://studios.amazon.com/help/filmmakers/?ref=stu_qp_filmmakers

David Bordwell's blog
http://davidbordwell.net/

Doing Film History:
http://davidbordwell.net/essays/doing.php

Search for OpenSource, Creative Commons and Copyright Free music online:

Stonewashed has an index of the various sites sharing Creative Commons free to use music sources (check which licence applies to your piece of music)...

CCmixter has an excellent indexed method of finding music by genre and style.....

Jamendo Discover the 40992 albums available for free and legal download on jamendo....

Incompetech.com by Kevin MacLeod

The Internet Archive
note: you must select music which is specifically licensed under the Creative Commons as in The Public Domain

Jim Jarmusch's Golden Rules
| Published January 22, 2004
http://www.moviemaker.com/directing/article/jim_jarmusch_2972/

Call for entries
Deadline: 1 March 2011
http://www.nmartproject.net/netex/?p=2729

CologneOFF 2011 - videoart in a global context
festival project - simultaneously in physical & virtual space
1 January - 31 December 2011.

CologneOFF 2011 - videoart in a global context
is a world wide unique festival project, starting on 1 January 2011 and lasting until 31 December 2011.

Its goal is to show during one year in many venues around the globe the diversity of the creative potential of "art and moving images" transported via the global medium of "video".
The videos can be submitted only online. Selected works will be featured on CologneOFF individually online and will become later in 2011 the 7th edition of CologneOFF - Cologne International Videoart Festival.

More info about CologneOFF 2011
http://downloads.nmartproject.net/cologneOFF2011_eng.pdf

A Painful Glimpse Into My Writing Process [In Less Than 60 Seconds] from chel white on Vimeo.

http://www.sounddogs.com

Import music from GarageBand and combine it with sound effects and voiceover to craft a complete multitrack audio mix.

Search your computer for Apple Loops ...
See HARD DRIVE > Library > Audio > Apple Loops> iLife Sound Effects

http://www.netsoc.tcd.ie/~mscidm/eisenstein/themes.html
From the pioneering Soviet Russian film director and film theorist, often considered to be the "Father of Montage."

Please use this format to reflect upon and evaluate your collaborative team project:
You may modify this form to fit the needs of your project.

Creating Visual Narratives
COLLABORATIVE TEAM PROJECT REFLECTION

Your Name:

Team Project Title:

List Team members and their roles:

PRE-PRODUCTION
Describe your own pre-production activities and tasks:

Describe the roles your teammates played in pre-production:

ON THE SET
Briefly describe each day of shooting.
What jobs did you do, what went well.
What challenges came up and how did you meet them?
How did your team respond to unforeseen variables?

Day 1:

Day 2:

Day 3:

Day 4:

POST-PRODUCTION
Describe additional tasks and roles you took on to wrap up your team project

COLLABORATION
Reflect upon your overall collaborative experience and what you discovered about yourself as a team player?

SHOOTING / RESHOOTING FOR THE EDIT
Reflect upon your success in getting the shots you need for your final edit. Did you need to reshoot anything?
Would you have made any changes in how you shot, now that you are viewing the rough clips?

YOUR FINAL EDIT
Title of your movie:
Run Time:
Reflect upon your final edit of the short film project. What aesthetic and technical choices did you make to create a unified story? What issues came up as you worked with the captured video and audio in the Final Cut Software? How did you create solutions when technical problems came up? How successful is the final product? What might you do differently if you had more time and experience?

Extra Credit Op:
Chris Paine Director of WHO KILLED THE ELECTRIC CAR? will present:

Mon. Nov. 29 7 pm, Weber Music Hall
"How many lightbulbs does it take to plug in an electric car?"

Tues. Nov. 30 11 am UMD Ballroom
"Science, change and the art of storytelling."

http://www.d.umn.edu/unirel/homepage/10/sustain.html

Chris is a working film-maker, in the midst of post production on "Revenge of the Electric Car" in Hollywood. This is an excellent opportunity for students to learn about the art of filmmaking.

A trailer for a non-existent Jan Svankmajer Collection consisting of many short clips from five of his full-length films. Jan Svankmajer is a Czech surrealist artist and filmmaker. His work spans several media. He is known for his surreal animations and features, which have greatly influenced other artists such as Tim Burton, Terry Gilliam, the Brothers Quay, Shane Acker, and many others.

Fascinating and disturbing!

I love stop motion from chloe fleury on Vimeo.