Students are expected to attend all lectures and tutorials. Attendance at tutorials is compulsory and any missed tutorial must be accompanied by appropriate documentation (attendance waiver submitted online). In order to fulfil the participation component, you must engage actively in the discussions and activities. 

This assessment has three (3) components: a creative group project (20%), an individual reflection (10%) and an individual report (compulsory, but not marked). 

Part 1: Soundtrack (15%)

Working in groups of 3–4, students will produce a soundtrack to a film clip provided by the unit convenor. Tutorials in week 4 and 5 will be dedicated to working on the soundtrack, and tutorials in those weeks will take place at computer lab 223 in Y3A. Technical staff will be there to assist you.

Submission of the soundtrack is via iLearn. Further instructions will be provided at the tutorials. 

Each soundtrack must include the names and student IDs of the group members. This may be in the form of a title sequence or by including the information in the file name.

Due to copyright reasons, students are not allowed to distribute their work beyond the setting of the unit.

The clip the students will be working on is from the Australian silent film classic The Cheaters (Paulette McDonagh, 1929). The focus areas of the assessment task are the genre of the film, the construction of cinematic space and the communication of feeling. These are the elements students should be thinking about when choosing sounds to the clip.

Assessment criteria:

Sound and feeling: assessment will focus on how the chosen sounds and/or music as well as their placement on the timeline convey feeling. 

Sound and space: assessment will focus on the construction of space with sound and/or music.

Identifying and working with silent film: assessment will be based on the appropriateness of the sound choices to the genre of the film. 

Part 2: Reflection (15%)

Students will write a 500-word individual reflection (excluding references and bibliography) on the soundtrack they have produced in groups. The essay reflects critically on the choices made and it relates them to the lecture topics, readings and tutorial discussions from weeks 1–5. The reflection should not summarize and list all the sound choices made by the group; instead, it should selectively identify key aims and reflect on them in relation to the unit materials.

Submission is via Turnitin.

Assessment criteria:

Reflection: ability to identify key tendencies in making a soundtrack and commenting on the use of sound critically. 

Reading and research: ability to relate the soundtrack to unit topics and readings and to use appropriate vocabulary for identifying screen sound.   

Part 3: Report 

In order to get their marks for this assessment task, each student must also submit an individual report where they document the working process of the group. A template is provided in iLearn.  

Submission is via Turnitin. 

All three parts of the assessment are due on Monday, April 3, at 9am.  

Late submissions: Students who submit late work without an extension will receive a penalty of 10% per day. This penalty does not apply for cases in which an application for Disruption to Studies is made and approved. 

Students will write a 1500-word essay (excluding notes and bibliography) on musical moments in film. To complete the assessment, choose two 'musical moments' (as defined by Amy Herzog) from films that abide to different genre conventions. Analyse the impact of the musical moments on the films' narratives and reflect on your findings in relation to their genre specificity. The films you choose CANNOT be any of the examples that have been discussed at the lectures and tutorials. 

This is a formal essay which will require clear referencing and appropriate research. The weekly readings and other recommended texts are an important place to start for this assessment task. You can choose which ever referencing system you prefer, as long as you use it consistently.

Submission is via Turnitin. 

Late submissions: Students who submit late work without an extension will receive a penalty of 10% per day. This penalty does not apply for cases in which an application for Disruption to Studies is made and approved. 

Assessment criteria:

Reading and research: evidence of critical engagement with set course materials (unit readings and film examples; evidence of independent reading of appropriate academic material; evidence of thorough research (relating to the genre, style and era of your chose examples)

Argument and analysis: well-articulated and well-supported argument; evidence of critical thinking (through taking a position in relation to the definition of a ‘musical moment’, and supporting this position); evidence of relational thinking (through making connections between key ideas from the course and other cinematic examples, and supporting this position).

Writing and structure: clear, logical and coherent structure; clarity of expression; appropriate referencing; sticking to the word limit.  

In week 13, students will take a multiple choice quiz in iLearn. The questions are based on unit readings and lectures from weeks 1–12. The quiz will be open all day on Thursday the 8th of June, and students are welcome to take it anywhere they like. Students have one (1) hour to complete the quiz and they are welcome to consult supporting materials. Only one attempt is allowed.