Module Information

Module Identifier
FM10420
Module Title
Making Short Films 1
Academic Year
2020/2021
Co-ordinator
Dr Thomas Alcott
Semester
Semester 1
Mutually Exclusive
FM10520
Other Staff
 

Course Delivery

 

Assessment

Due to Covid-19 students should refer to the module Blackboard pages for assessment details

Assessment Type Assessment length / details Proportion
Semester Assessment Camera Test - Theory and Practice. 1 hour (in total)  10%
Semester Assessment Group Video Project (4-5 minutes)  50%
Semester Assessment Reflective Essay (1,500 words)  (critical reflection on production work). 1,500 words.  40%
Supplementary Assessment Camera Test - Theory and Practice. 1 hour (in total)  10%
Supplementary Assessment Video Production: an essay of 2,500 words  50%
Supplementary Assessment Reflective Essay (1,500 words)  40%

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this module students should be able to:

1. Demonstrate an understanding of how directorial choices affect the visual expressivity and clarity of storytelling in images in fiction film production.

2. Demonstrate an understanding of the process of editing, the relationship between shooting and editing, and the techniques that can create transparent or disjunctive editing.

3. Demonstrate dexterity and technical understanding in the use of video cameras and editing software.

4. Demonstrate ability to precisely articulate their own creative intentions, and to make the creative decisions that are most appropriate to realising them.

5. Demonstrate the ability to assess, with subtlety and sophistication, how far they have achieved their creative intentions.

6. Demonstrate an understanding of professional practice and the logistical pressures of film production, in terms of time management, organisation, resources and so on.

Aims

This course is intended to introduce key concepts and skills in media production, and to establish a sense of the thought process that lies behind practical work.

Brief description

This class introduces the key concepts and techniques of media production with an emphasis on directing, cinematography and editing.

The lectures clarify concepts and provide examples from scenes, while the workshops allow students to put concepts into action.

Content

Course delivery:

10 x 2 hour Lectures
10 x 2 hour Workshops



Course content focuses on the following:

  • The stages of a media production. Who does what and when.
  • Screenwriting: the stages of writing a script; shaping a structure; and techniques for creating a narrative point-of-view.
  • Procedures for filming: shooting methodologies and their artistic implications.
  • The creation of different portrayals of 'space' onscreen and their expressive potential.
  • Camera angles and shot sizes.
  • Focus in the image.
  • Lens Language.
  • Further aspects of digital cinematography.
  • Key camera concepts in directing for continuity filmmaking: principles, rules and when you can break them.
  • Introduction to editing; shooting for editing.
  • The elements of post-production from digital editing to the digital intermediate.
The above sessions will be covered through lectures and workshops for the first eight weeks of the semester. The remaining two weeks of semester will be used to shoot the video project and apply the theory and practice acquired.

Module Skills

Skills Type Skills details
Application of Number Use of editing package and camera involves application of number skills.
Communication Short production exercises involve communication between director, cinematographer and actors. The video project involves communication between director, cinematographer, tutor and actors.
Improving own Learning and Performance During weekly camera exercises, the tutor asks students to evaluate their creative decisions. In the critical essay, students evaluate how far they have realised their creative aims for the video production.
Information Technology Professional software is used to edit the work.
Personal Development and Career planning The module emphasises production work in professionally defined roles such as director, cinematographer and writer. It also establishes on a basic level the professional procedures in production. The video projects may be added to students' production portfolio as proof of ability.
Problem solving The weekly exercises consist of an aesthetic problem to be solved through decision making. Production of short video assessment requires problem solving in creative, intellectual, logistical and technical areas.
Research skills Pre-production for video project and written assignment both involve research into film sequences that will inform the creative work.
Subject Specific Skills
Team work Camera exercises take place in small groups. The video productions are realised in small groups.

Notes

This module is at CQFW Level 4