Media: Hollywood and its Others 1: VIDEO ESSAYProcessing

Java Python Media: Hollywood and its Others

Assignment1:

VIDEO ESSAY

Make a comparative video essay (4-5 mins) that addresses ONE of these topics in TWO films from Weeks 1-4:

1.  Entertainment and Ideology

2.  Suburban Fantastic Cinema and Socialization

3.  German Expressionism and Classical Hollywood

4.  Spectacle and Power

5.  Genre and Production Context

6.  Gender

Film options: Back to the Future, Jumanji, Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans, King Kong, Cat People, Detour, I Married a Witch, Some Like It Hot.

A video essay uses audiovisual media to present a cohesive argument. It can feature a combination of video and still images and is usually paired with voice-over or written commentary. You can concentrate your analysis on a specific scene or sequence or explore broader themes and patterns that span each of your films.

MARKING CRITERIA

Your project will be marked according to the following criteria:

●   Engagement with key concepts

●   Clarity of argument

●   Structure and flow of work

●   Engaging presentation

●   Creative use of media

●   Synthesis of creative + critical elements

Please note that this assignment does NOT require extensive technical ability or elaborate presentation. You still can use relatively simple means to engage with the key concepts.

We expect to see evidence of substantial engagement with the course content (including ideas covered in the lectures, seminars and readings), with at least ONE academic reference. References to the readings should be included as 'credits'at the end of your video essay (Option 1), or in a 'works cited' section at the end of your critical reflection (Option 2).

SUBMITTING YOUR WORK

Depending on the kind of project you have created, there are different options for submitting your work:

1.  Video essay: simply upload the media file (.mp4).

2.  Multimedia narrative: if your project has generated a standalone media file (.mp4, .html, .jpg, .pdf, etc), then upload this, followed by your critical reflection as a separate file (.docx, .pdf, etc); if you have posted your project online, then upload the critical reflection as a single file (.docx, .pdf, etc), including the URL for your creative project within the critical reflection.

If you are uncertain about any aspect of this submission process, please let us know.

VIDEO ESSAYS: ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Getting started:

●   See How-To Video EssaysLinks to an external site., a helpful guide by Greer Fyfe and Miriam Ross, which includes advice on planning your video, gathering and editing footage, and recording voiceover.

●   In particular, Fyfe and Ross emphasize the importance of having a clear argument (as you would in a written essay) and keeping your approach simple and direct, at least to begin with.

Copyright:

●   It is understood that any copying undertaken in the creation of your video

essay is for purposes of criticism, that your video essay is intended primarily for viewing within the context of the course, and that you will acknowledge the creator/ director of any film works you copy.

●   As such, your video essay falls within New Zealand copyright law’s provisions for fair dealing. See the Copyright Act 1994, Section 42: Criticism, review, and news reporting Links to an external site. – ‘Fair dealing with a work for    the purposes of criticism or review, of that or another work or of a performance of a work, does not infringe copyright in the work if such fair dealing is accompanied by a sufficient acknowledgement’ .

Gathering material:

●   In many cases, you may be able to find sections of your chosen film on

YouTubeLinks to an external site.. You can then use online video extractors (such as onlinevideoconverter.com, clipconverter.io or keepvid.ch) to download these sections in common file formats.

●   If you have access to a DVD drive, the open-source software

HandbrakeLinks to an external site. can be used to extract video clips.

●   You may also choose to build your video using selected still images, in which   case you could use your computer’s ‘screen grab’ function or seek out images online and right-click/control-click to add them to your downloads folder.

Editing material:

●   You are likely to have access to free video editing software on your computer,

such as Video Editor (Windows 10) or iMovie (Apple). Alternatively, you may wish to use commercially available products like Adobe Premiere, or free/cheap applications available online.

●   Focus on learning the basic editing functions within your available software, but don’t worry about complicated techniques and transitions. The main point of the exercise is for you to build a clear and cohesive argument through the  medium of video.

Adding commentary, titles and music:

●   Audio commentary – you could use a microphone to capture this, or simply use the onboard microphone on your phone or computer

●   Titles – your video editing software will allow you to create intertitles/ subtitles

●   Music – royalty-free music is available online in various places, including

SoundcloudLinks to an external site. (in the search menu, select ‘Tracks’, then click the option that reads ‘To listen to’ and change it to ‘To modify commercially’). Please do not overdo the use of music: the primary purpose of the exercise is to critically examine your film text, not to create a music video

On the video essay as scholarly practice:

●   Catherine Grant, The Audiovisual Essay as Performative ResearchLinks to an external site.

●   Peter Monaghan,  Has the Video Essay Arrived?Links to an external site.

●   Kevin B. Lee, What Makes a Video Essay Great?Links to an external site. Video essays on film:

●   One Hundred Years of Cinema- 1933: King Kong-How Early Special Effects Created the 8th Wonder of the World

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K4ViuqIdsJg&t=5s

●   Anton Vayedjian- Brick-The Visual Elements of a Modern

Noir:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=99zdLCDaYigLinks to an external site.

●   Leigh Singer,The First-Person POV in Horror CinemaLinks to an external site.

●   David F. Sandberg, The Troubles with Darkness in HorrorLinks to an external site.

●   Link to [in]Transition: Journal of Videographic Film and Moving Studies-

https://intransition.openlibhums