TASK 1. SKILLS DEVELOPMENT INCLUDING PITCHING                   

This is a series of tasks,which you submit by posting to your blog in ilearn. They are due at the end of week 1, 3, 4, and 5.  The tasks are:

• Pitch Powerpoint                       due Sunday 02-08
• Script Analysis Task                 due Sunday 16-08
• Tone and Movement Analysis    due Sunday 23-08
• Design Analysis Task                due Sunday 30-08

This series of tasks is designed to develop your skills and knowledge in all areas of filmmaking.  Each of these tasks will have associated readings, online lectures or tutorials, instructions and/or screen media examples in ilearn.  Task details are in ilearn and you must log in to ilearn each week to get the task information and make your submissions.  

These tasks are time sensitive, meaning you must do them in the weeks that have been allocated for them – late submissions will be marked down. Each component of this task will be worth marks, you can lose 25% if you don’t submit at all.    

Submission: via ilearn link to ilearn blog weekly in weeks 1,3,4 and 5

Assessment Criteria:

1. Clear and succinct identification and articulation ideas, themes or issues and how you intend to convey them in screen media (Pitch)
2. Insightful and clear analysis of how ideas, themes or issues are represented through techniques and creative devices in screen media. (Analytic tasks)

CREATIVE COLLABORATION SITE

Individually you will contribute a series of exercises and ideas to a shared a Creative Collaboration Site for your major project.  These contributions are due in weeks 2, 3, 4, 5, 6  and at the end of the break.  They include:

• Online Site with pages for project and crew                    Due: Sunday 09-08-2014 Midnight
• Script draft,  questions and observations      %15            Due: Sunday 16-08-2014 Midnight
• Storyworld relevant sounds                           %15             Due: Sunday 23-08-2014 Midnight
• Storyworld relevant images                           %15            Due: Sunday 30-08-2014 Midnight
• A thematic reference and reflection               %15           Due: Sunday 06-09-2014 Midnight
• A thematically relevant juxtaposition             %15            Due: Sunday 13-09-2014 Midnight
• Illustrated Creative Intentions statement       %25            Due: Friday 02-10-2014

These tasks each require a fast turnaround response.  You may be lateral and creative in your thinking - your responses to the tasks will most likely not be part of the final production, but they may spark ideas, discussion or development.  Process is as important as product here - just doing them will increase your skills in screen production and understanding of the  decisions made in screen creativity.  These tasks are time sensitive, meaning you must do them in the weeks that have been allocated for them – late submissions will be marked down. Your mark for this task will be an individual mark.  You will lose 15% for any task you do not submit, 25% if you do not submit the creative intentions statement.  

Submission:

For submission of these tasks, each group will create a wordpress site for their projects, and producers will email a link to those site to the lecturer (Karen.Pearlman@mq.edu.au) by the end of week 2.  Thereafter, tasks are to be uploaded weekly to that wordpress site, labelled with your name and date of submission.  

Assessment Criteria:

• Clear and succinct identification and articulation ideas, themes or issues and how you intend to convey them in screen media
• Depth and appropriateness of research and planning for the realisation of a short screen production
• Insightful and clear demonstration of how ideas, themes or issues could be represented through your choices of techniques and creative devices for the production
• Thoughtful and sophisticated articulation of how practical, technical, creative and theoretical skills will be applied to convey ideas in screen media
• Relevant and salient synthesis of theoretical concepts in screen media to reflect on your own and others’ screen productions.

Task Details are on ilearn, and you must login to ilearn each week to retrieve the specific requirements for that week's task.   

• Any assignment handed in late will incur a penalty of 5% deduction of marks for every day that it remains not submitted. 

MAJOR SCREEN PRODUCTION

From the 'pitch' presentations completed in Week 2, a number of projects will be selected to go into production. A student whose pitch was selected will be designated as ‘director’. Students will then choose from the following crew roles: Producer, Development Producer/1st AD, Director of Photography, Sound Recordist/Designer, Editor (Continuity/Script Supervisor), and Production Designer. Once teams have been selected, students will collaborate on the development of their screen works during the pre-production phase in readiness for going into production. Through tasks on the Creative Collaboration site, teams will be expected to research their themes, generate a strong script, pre-plan the visual and sound elements of their screen production through story-boarding, shot-listing, casting, rehearsing and other exercises on the Creative Collaborations Site. Teams will also be expected to familiarize themselves with their production equipment, hold regular production meetings, and perform camera and sound tests.

Over the course of the semester you will work collaboratively and individually to research, develop, plan, execute and present to the world a short 4-7 minute film or web-series of, for example 3 x 2 minute episodes.   Your work on this production will be experiential learning, problem solving and application of theory to practice, and you will be individually assessed for your contribution.  Everyone in all roles will be expected to help identify the themes, ideas and perspective on the work and come up with ideas and examples for how these can be communicated in a short media production.  You will use your research and analyses of techniques and devices in screen media to support the process of making decisions about your contribution and executing those decisions effectively.  Your collaboration skills will be developed through this process, in particular your effective communication with others, your reliable, timely and thorough execution of tasks you are allocated, and your creative contribution to enhancing, supporting and realising the intentions of the project originators.  As you work on this project you will be expected to draw on knowledge from MAS212, MAS202 and if you have taken it, MAS205, as well as the research and learning of this semester and to synthesise concepts into your practice, your communications with others, and your reflections on your own work.

Your reflective essay of approx. 500 - 750 words should comment on your specific work or contribution in each of the points above.  Note: things do not always run smoothly in film productions, in fact they rarely do.  You are encouraged to reflect on things that were less than ideal however please note: you will be marked down for blaming outwards.    If someone on the team does not fulfil their agreed responsibilities what action did you do to SOLVE the problem?  If communications were tricky how did you adjust your tone, approach or perspective to make them clearer?    If you meet challenges you were not able to overcome on your own what actions did you take to get help?  These should be noted in your reflective essay. 

Each team will be responsible for providing a full set of production documents including, for example; schedules, call sheets, location agreements, music copyright agreements and performer contracts.

Each student involved in the production group will receive a mark for their work in the role they performed in overall finished production. 

Submission:

Submit your reflective statements via the link on ilearn

Submit your final screen production by working with the technical director, Mr Marcus Eckermann to finalise and output the media

Producers: Submit portfolios of paperwork directly to the lecturer: Karen.Pearlman@mq.edu.au  

Assessment Criteria:

1. Demonstrated skill in effectively conveying ideas, themes and issues through screen production
2. Effective collaboration and on time delivery of in the realisation of short film 
3. Thoughtful and sophisticated applications of practical, technical, creative and theoretical skills in image and sound creation, such as cinematography, lighting, production design, sound design, editing and skills related to working with performers as appropriate to your crew role
4. Synthesis of theoretical concepts in screen media to reflect on your own and others’ screen productions.

Any assignment handed in late will incur a penalty of 5% deduction of marks for every day that it remains not submitted.

Your work-in-progress screen productions will be viewed in workshops in weeks 10 and 11.   Full attendance is expected for feedback and development of the productions.  

The intensive week is designed to emulate the intensity and focus required in professional production processes.  The strength of your own energy, curiosity, commitment, willingness to try new things and support for others who are trying new things will directly contribute to your achievement of the learning outcomes.

Submission:

Your attendance and participation in each day of the Intensive will be noted and you will receive a group mark for the screen exercises your group completes. 

Due at 5pm on Friday, 18-09-2015

Assessment Criteria:

1. Effective collaboration and on time delivery of in the realisation of exercises  with fellow students within MAS 213
2. Creative choices and exploration of techniques and creative devices in exercises 
3. Thoughtful and sophisticated application of practical, technical, creative and theoretical skills