ARTS-UG 1611 | FALL 2018 CLASS : TUESDAYS + THURSDAYS, 6:20 PM - 9:00 PM 194 MERCER STREET, ROOM 208 instructor Pedro Cristiani 1 Washington Pl, Room 431 (212) 992.7772 office hours : Wednesdays, 3:00 - 4:30 PM [email protected] “Horror is a reaction— it’s not a genre.” — John Carpenter course description From Murnau’s Nosferatu to Bryan Fuller’s Hannibal, horror has proven to spawn its own storytelling archetypes, serving as strong subtext for race, faith, politics and sexuality. This seven week arts workshop gives the participants the screenwriter’s tools and weapons to research, develop and execute an original genre feature outline. We will explore how different horror auteurs deliver a unique vision from the same source material, as well as how this particular genre has transcended and influenced even the most “respected” mainstream directors. The sessions will not only cover the question of subverting narrative components and theme, but also creating “mood” and the “sense of the ominous”. Students will research and settle on an original horror source [literary, folkloric or real-life], and will be guided throughout the stages of creating their own unique mythology, as part of the fully- developed feature outline— which will then generate a short film script in proper industry- standard format. In-class screening excerpts will include Dracula [Todd Browning and F. F. Coppola], The Thing [John Carpenter], Ringu [Hideo Nakata], Get Out [Jordan Peele], Let The Right One In [Tomas Alfredson], Rosemary’s Baby [Roman Polanski], The Fly [David Cronenberg], American Psycho [Mary Harron], Ju-On [Takashi Shimizu], The Shining [Stanley Kubrick], The Autopsy of Jane Doe [André Øvredal]. visit the course website: https://wp.nyu.edu/darknessspeaks/ learning goals Participants will be exposed to the primal sources of the horror film genre, following their transmutation into the narrative screenplay form and final evolution into a self-contained, multi- layered cinematic experience— making emphasis on structure, character and mythology. They will experience their own writing journey, as they learn and articulate the tools of the working screenwriter in order to create a horror outline and short film script that are consistent with a grounded production framework. Students will become familiar with the archetypes of genre, in order to challenge and subvert the audience’s preconceptions of how a story should be delivered. required texts suggested texts Robert McKee, Story Bram Stoker, Dracula Christopher Vogler, The Writer’s Journey Ira Levin, Rosemary’s Baby Hand-outs will include adapted feature and television screenplays, as well as selected readings from global authors and filmmakers. course requirements + assessment attendance and active class participation [25%] : students are expected to attend all classes and be on time. Active participation involves working out ideas through discussion and creative reasoning. Students are encouraged to expose their insight and perspective on the readings and screenings, as well as on each other’s work— but in return must propose their personal take on the issue they are addressing. proposal and evolution of the feature outline [30%] : the feature outline is composed of a first phase that covers the horror source proposal, pitch and one-page synopsis. The second part focuses on the narrative paradigm construct— the complete four act structure, main and secondary storylines, character arc and a fully-fleshed horror mythos. visual assignment [20%] : throughout the third phase of the course, students will develop a two-minute concept trailer, or a lookbook that will serve as a presentation to the story and visual treatment of their individual projects. final presentation [25%] : the concluding individual project is a revised [two drafts] short film in proper screenplay format, which originates from the feature film outline. The approach, tone, goals and execution of the script will be the subject of in-class discussions. visit the course website: https://wp.nyu.edu/darknessspeaks/ technology As the sessions progress, the use of cellphones, portable computers and tablet devices will be endorsed as digital tools for the research and assembling of the cinematic assignments. Use of such devices outside the given parameters will result in the lowering of grading. On the last week of class, students must bring an online device to complete the new two-part course evaluation process. expectation of academic integrity As a Gallatin student you belong to an interdisciplinary community of artists and scholars who value honest and open intellectual inquiry. This relationship depends on mutual respect, responsibility, and integrity. Failure to uphold these values will be subject to severe sanction, which may include dismissal from the University. Examples of behaviors that compromise the academic integrity of the Gallatin School include plagiarism, illicit collaboration, doubling or recycling coursework, and cheating. Please consult the Gallatin Bulletin or Gallatin website for a full description of the academic integrity policy: http://gallatin.nyu.edu/about/bulletin/undergrad/policies/ integrity.html list of screenings the following is a list of suggested genre films and television shows— selected excerpts will be screened during the sessions, nevertheless it is advised that the students integrate the viewing of this material to the weekly hours assigned to the course. American Psycho [2000, Mary Harron] Ju-On [2000, Takashi Shimizu] The Silence of the Lambs [1991, Jonathan Demme] Candyman [1992, Bernard Rose] Hannibal [2013 - 2015, Bryan Fuller] The Conjuring [2013, James Wan] Rosemary’s Baby [1968, Roman Polanski] it follows [2015, David Robert Mitchell] The Exorcist [1973, William Friedkin] The Babadook [2014, Jennifer Kent] The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari [1920, Robert Weine] The Witch [2016, Robert Eggers] Nosferatu [1922, F.W. Murnau] A Nightmare on Elm Street [1984, Wes Craven] Dracula [1931, Tod Browning] The Descent [2006, Neil Marshall] The Thing [1982, John Carpenter] The Host [2006, Bong Joon-ho] The Shining [1980, Stanley Kubrick] In the Mouth of Madness [1994, John Carpenter] Ringu [1998, Hideo Nakata] The Hunger [1983, Tony Scott] Let The Right One In [2008, Tomas Alfredson] The Fly [1986, David Cronenberg] The Mist [2007, Frank Darabont] visit the course website: https://wp.nyu.edu/darknessspeaks/ SYLLABUS Keep in mind that the current Syllabus is a proposed road map. And that even though we may know our destination, the mystery of the Journey is what makes the trip worth taking. W E E K O N E “Be afraid… Be very afraid.” The Fly [1986] CLASS #1 introduction, overview and goal of the course. 1816: The Year Without A Summer— Byron, Polidori, Shelley and Godwin. 1911 - 2016: nightmares captured on film— the horror genre in the history of world cinema. tools and weapons of the screenwriter. pitch, synopsis, treatment and script. the purpose of fear: what makes horror work. CLASS #2 the [re]search for an original source. analyzing the translation from the literary and folkloric forms to the dynamic cinematic structure. the four-act paradigm: breaking down the contemporary storytelling template for film and television. the first storytelling layer: structure, part one. reading, The Mist, by Stephen King assignment: story proposals— sources and picthes. visit the course website: https://wp.nyu.edu/darknessspeaks/ W E E K T W O “We all go a little mad sometimes.” Psycho [1960] CLASS #3 the first storytelling layer: structure, part two. story beats, narrative tempo, crescendo, execution, consequences and closure. complementary and contrasting plotlines. character and setting, narrative tone. the roads not taken: designing points of no return. the Archetypes of Horror. reading, Story, pp. 3 - 99 assignment: story proposals— synopsis. CLASS #4 the second storytelling layer: character. core, design and evolution. bounding the story to a point of view. conflict and change, expectation and consequences. female and male archetypes in horror: origins and purposes— moral, social, sexual and religious values. re-defining the story beats, points and acts through each character’s descent. reading, Who Goes There, by John Campbell Story, pp. 100 - 131 assignment: final story proposal— revised pitch and one-page synopsis. W E E K T H R E E “What an excellent day for an exorcism.” “But wouldn’t that drive you out of Regan?” “It would bring us together.” “You and Regan?” “You and us.” The Exorcist [1973] CLASS #5 the third storytelling layer: the monster. creating an original mythology: the unnatural force as an unpredictable source of antagonism and exposition. mythology as the trigger behind every story beat. the creature and its hidden kinship with the point of view. boogeymen, locations and deviations— manifestations of the unknown. reading, Writer’s Journey, pp. 1 - 80 assignment: scriptment— inciting incidents, story beats and plot points. visit the course website: https://wp.nyu.edu/darknessspeaks/ CLASS #6 the search for tone: comparing and analyzing contrasting adaptations from the same source material. integrating the cinematic resources into the written word— the visual writing. text and subtext. story and theme. sex and horror. deconstructing the genre and sub-genre rules to subvert the audience’s expectations. reading, Dracula, chapters 2 - 5 Story, pp. 135 - 154 assignment: scriptment— acts one and two, outline. W E E K F O U R “Sometimes there is no right thing— you just have to pick the sin you can live with.” Horns [2013] CLASS #7 merging the storytelling components into a multi-layered narrative form— character, plot, setting and mythology. in-class discussion and revision: the evolution of each individual screenplay. reading, There Are More Things, by Jorge Luis Borges The Rats in the Walls, by H. P. Lovecraft assignment: scriptment— acts three and four, outline. CLASS #8 the sacrificial choices: what to loose and what to keep from a first draft. act structure and reformulation. intertwining storylines. the end of the line: exploring the narrative trails and their consequences. leaving room for the unexpected. the power of the unseen: the construction of the ominous.