Narrative Production RTF 366K ­ 08730 Spring Semester 2016 Class: Thursdays 9:30­12:30 CMB 4.122 Lab: Mondays 6­9pm CMB 4.118 Instructor: Deborah Eve Lewis Office hours ­ Wednesdays 1­4pm, CMA TA: Mitchell O’Hearn Independent Inquiry This course carries the Independent Inquiry flag. Independent Inquiry courses are designed to engage you in the process of inquiry over the course of a semester, providing you with the opportunity for independent investigation of a question, problem, or project related to your major. You should therefore expect a substantial portion of your grade to come from the independent investigation and presentation of your own work. Course Description This course is an intensive workshop in visual storytelling and non­dialogue filmmaking designed to build upon the fundamental production concepts and techniques first introduced in RTF 318 – Intro to Image & Sound. This class explores the expressive potential of image & sound through the production of 16mm film and digital video exercises and short films, ultimately preparing students for advanced narrative classes. Non­dialog filmmaking is the root of all filmmaking. It asks you to understand the basic principles of storytelling through images and sound and the relationship between the two. One simply cannot rely on expositional dialog, or worse, poorly written dialog. One must truly communicate solely through visual and aural storytelling. With technology moving so quickly these days, the ease of digital filmmaking has become our enemy. "The enemy of art is the absence of limitations" ­ Orson Welles Black & white reversal film, however, is completely unforgiving. Therefore, each shot and edit must be thought out creatively and technically – you must be confident in your creative decisions. This class is designed to help you find your own voice and to widen your grasp of the cinematic landscape. Make no content distinction between “class” and “lab”. Each meeting maximizes opportunities for learning, whether it be lecture, equipment demonstration, workshop, visiting professional or screening. COURSE GRADE RTF 366K Deborah Lewis 08730 Spring 2016 Exercise #1 10% Exercise #2 10% Final Project 40% Class and Shoot Participation: 10% Quizzes and/or Short Write­Ups (4) ­ 5% each = 20% Keeping a notebook ­ 10% (Each unexcused absence subtract 3 points from the final term grade. Every tardy after 5 minutes takes one percentage point off final grade. You will be marked absent after 20 minutes.) Exercise and Final Project Grade Breakdown: 1. By deadline 25% 2. Technical Proficiency 25% 3. According to requirements 25% 4. Quality: creativity, aesthetics and execution 25% Course Requirements Readings, participation, exercises, screenings, quizzes and other assignments are designed to develop technical skills as well as sharpen the filmmaker’s visual awareness and appreciation for sound and image. In order to make artistic work one needs to understand their tools – in this class technical knowledge will be equally important as creative ideas. Participation: Students must arrive on time at all classes and labs and keep up with all assignments.Your presence and active participation are critical elements of a successful workshop environment. We can learn so much from comments and thoughts by others, so I expect you to participate in discussions. Participation includes working as hard on your classmate’s projects as you’d expect them to work on yours. Exercises: ● Each student will individually shoot one B&W reversal non­sync 16mm exercise, and each student will shoot up to 2 rolls of B&W negative film for the second film exercise. ● Each group of two will produce one film running no longer than 5 minutes (titles not included), and no less than 2 ½ minutes. Notes: Keep a notebook for recording all raw ideas, thoughts, doodles, drawings, schematics, overheads, etc. It’s important that you value and archive your creative process – especially if you’re planning to invest a lifetime into your work. A notebook is not a personal diary, unless it directly relates to your creative projects. It is a RTF 366K Deborah Lewis 08730 Spring 2016 workbook and should be used for project related entries, during class, technical labs and for notes during screening discussions as well as crucial note taking during production. It does not have to be lined or neat, but it needs to be legible. If you also use a laptop for project related entries, you can archive and maintain an electronic file as well. Crew Participation In addition to participating in class discussions you will be required to crew on various film shoots besides your own. That participation includes working on your classmate’s films as well as films outside this class. Attendance Policy If you miss class you will fall behind. It’s incumbent on you 100% to find out what you missed. You are allowed one unexcused absence, and one excused absence (you must inform Mitch about this ahead of time to decide if it will be considered an excused absence. If you are seriously ill, course recovery measures must be arranged with faculty and teaching assistant.) Each additional unexcused absence will reduce your grade by 1/2 of a letter grade from your final grade. We expect to see you in class, on time, fully ready to work, participate and collaborate. Classroom Etiquette Consider the classroom a “cell phone free” zone. No texting, emailing or taking calls. If you need to “check the time” ­ get a watch. Laptops and computer tablets will be allowed for note taking, but no web surfing, posting status updates, tweeting, etc. Class time is not the opportunity to catch up on emails or do homework while we are critiquing a film. Focus on what’s in front of you. Required Texts ­Voice and Vision: A Creative Approach to Narrative Film and DV Production, by Mick ​ ​ Hurbis­Cherrier. (You should have this book from your 318 class.) ­Making Movies, by Sidney Lumet, hardcover 1995, softcover 1996 (on sale at University ​ ​ Co­op and elsewhere) RTF 366K Deborah Lewis 08730 Spring 2016 Equipment Allocation 366K Narrative Production D. Lewis section 08730 (4) Canon 70D (6) Bolex cameras (4) Zoom H6 Recorders Appropriate tripods* Any available Microphones* (EXCEPT ADR) Any available boom pole or mic stand* Any available audio accessory such as pop filters, sound blankets, cables, headphones, or outdoor kits* Any available light kit or light up to 1K* (EXCEPT HMIs) Any available Sekonic L­398 light meter* Any available Grip equipment* (EXCEPT jib or vector dolly) This is your crash­course in administrative procedures and charges associated with RTF 366K ­ from your helpful departmental account. While I am happy to visit your class if your instructor deems it helpful, I realize that time is precious to all of you. This email should provide you with the information you need for this semester's 366K administrative procedures and charges. Welcome to RTF366K and the real world of film school! This Narrative Production class uses raw film stock for lab exercises and academic assignments. Raw Kodak film stock is provided to the Instructor or TA for each section’s lab exercises only. Each section's T.A. should see Linda Cavage in RTF Equipment Check­Out for your section's allocation. When you begin to do academic assignments for this class, it is each student’s responsibility to buy their own film stock and make arrangements for processing the film after shooting. RTF366K is on a rigid schedule, the film stock and costs are uniform, shipping can be consolidated, and the process is consistent. For these reasons, the RTF Department is able to help you offset costs, shipping, and RTF 366K Deborah Lewis 08730 Spring 2016 processing time. This is the only RTF class where the Department is able to do this. Prices are subject to increase should the labs increase their prices. You will have three types of routine charges for this class ­ all to be charged to students' What I Owe: Raw film stock: Price varies, depending on the film stock used. Ask Equipment Checkout for current pricing. Processing of exposed film: Price varies, depending on services requested and lab that processes the film. Additional cost for Push or Pull requests:. Additional cost to Transfer(telecine) the footage to hard drive: and is based on time spent to oversee the transfer; this is a significant reason to bundle film for shipping to the lab for processing. if youu send one roll late and require transfer, your cost will be for half an hour of telecine; if sent with at least four other rolls, your cost is reduced significantly. Cost to student is based on charges by the processing lab. Each invoice is calculated to reflect cost per roll, increased by 2.3% (credit card processing fee), and charged to each student's What I Owe. ● Push ­ give film more development time to compensate for underexposure ­ film did not enough light ● Pull ­ give film less development time to compensate for overexposure ­ film has too much light Shipping involved in getting film to/from the processing lab: $25*** (one­time semester charge for RTF366K students) All prices are subject to change and are based on the department’s out­of­pocket costs. We must include the 2.3% credit card processing fee (imposed by the bank) to the charges so we can recoup our cost. Where do you get film? ∙ *RTF Equipment Check­Out – Kodak film offers “pass­thru” usage charge for raw film stock. This includes Kodak's cost plus 2.3% credit card processing fee. ∙ University Co­Op carries the same film stock but it is not discounted. ∙ In future classes, you should consider purchasing directly from Kodak as you qualify for their academic discount (currently 30% off the list price), plus tax, and modest shipping charges.