Drama as Literature period 2
Drama as Literature
Philip Middlemiss
middlemissp@eurekacityschools.org
http://middlemiss-sez.blogspot.com/
Phone: 476-1799 Room IT 105
Course materials, BRING EVERY DAY:
• Writing utensils: blue or black ink pen.
• Textbook (in our case, whatever play/film script we’re reading, unless it’s online).
• Writing journal (required everyday) - I’ll be collecting these periodically, so be sure that it’s a journal solely dedicated to this class.
• Binder with plenty of paper (8.5” x 11” college rule) for notes and pressure compositions - you will need this binder to keep papers and handouts passed out.
Recommended materials - small flash drive for working on documents in the media computer lab.
Course Description and Objectives:
Dramatic literature has existed for thousands of years, and because it is primarily meant for performance it is uniquely two-sided in its form. On the one hand, it is an oral medium intended to be interpreted by actors and its meaning heard by audiences. On the other hand, it has been committed to print so that we as a human race can record the dramatic stories we’ve chosen to tell throughout the years. In this class we will read plays from the classical and modern catalogues and appreciate them during the process of analysis. There will be considerable in-class participation in the form of reading the plays aloud, discussing thematic and dramatic elements in groups and through creative group presentations.
Among the purposes of this course we will look to develop the following skills:
• Deepen an understanding of the genre of dramatic literature: analyze and critically discuss orally and through writing meaning and its portrayal through (written and performed) dramatic structure.
• Respond to dramatic works according to their respective social, economic, political and cultural contexts and synthesize these contexts with student ideas about themes portrayed within.
• Deliver focused, coherent, arguments which convey clear and distinct perspectives and demonstrate solid reasoning.
Course Requirements:
Assignments:
Homework for this class will consist of double-entry journal responses, group or timed writing assignments, two reviews of plays which you’ll see locally, and two multi-draft essays which will demonstrate how well you’ve absorbed what we’ve talked about in class.
Grading Policy:
1. Participation - a significant portion of your grade will be based on participation and attendance. Tardies and absences will count against this grade.
2. Journals - These will be graded on completion (daily) and on quality
3. Essays and Projects - These will be graded both on your progress, as you’ll earn points for having completed drafts and work along the way, and on the final version of either the paper or the essay.
4. Final Exam/Project
No Food near the computers!
• You are responsible for getting missed assignments if you are absent. Work will generally be available online, or you can contact me, or your designated “Talent Agent” - fellow student looking out for your success.
• Unless you are absent for a legitimate reason, late homework (journals) will not be accepted. Part of the purpose of the website is to alert you to all of your obligations prior to getting underway so there are no surprises and you can prepare for assignments.
• Email homework policy. You are welcome to email me documents if you are going to be absent for a due date.
Tentative Course Syllabus:
We’ll be reading between four and six plays/film scripts this semester, all chosen because of their remarkable dramatic structure, social impact and relevance for our modern thinking.
The Play/Screenplay list is still being considered from the following:
Plays:
• Hamlet - Shakespeare
• Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead - Stoppard
• Death of a Salesman - Miller
• Media - Euripides
• Taming of the Shrew - Shakespeare
• I Hate Hamlet - Rudnick
• As You Like It - Shakespeare
• The Importance of Being Earnest - Wilde
Screenplays:
• Duck Soup
• Casablanca
• Citizen Kane
• Chinatown
• Out of Sight
• On the Waterfront
• Miller’s Crossing
Homework:
Crimes A to Z
Welcome to the "Crimes A to Z" section of FindLaw's Criminal Law Center, with definitions for many common crimes. Where available, you will also find a link to your state's online statute for the selected crime. To begin, select a crime from the list below.
• Aiding & Abetting / Accessory
• Arson
• Assault / Battery
• Bribery
• Burglary
• Child Abuse
• Child Pornography
• Computer Crime
• Conspiracy
• Credit / Debit Card Fraud
• Disorderly Conduct
• Domestic Violence
• Drug Cultivation and Manufacturing
• Drug Distribution / Trafficking
• Drug Possession
• DUI / DWI
• Embezzlement
• Extortion
• Forgery
• Hate Crimes
• Indecent Exposure
• Identity Theft
• Insurance Fraud
• Kidnapping
• Manslaughter: Involuntary
• Manslaughter: Voluntary
• Money Laundering
• Murder: First-degree
• Murder: Second-degree
• Perjury
• Prostitution
• Pyramid Schemes
• Racketeering / RICO
• Rape
• Robbery
• Securities Fraud
• Sexual Assault
• Stalking
• Tax Evasion / Fraud
• Telemarketing Fraud
• Theft / Larceny
• Wire Fraud
Hate crimes (also known as bias-motivated crimes) occur when a perpetrator targets a victim because of his or her perceived membership in a certain social group, usually defined by racial group, religion, sexual orientation, disability, class, ethnicity, nationality, age, gender, gender identity, social status or political affiliation.[1]
"Hate crime" generally refers to criminal acts that are seen to have been motivated by bias against one or more of the types above, or of their derivatives. Incidents may involve physical assault, damage to property, bullying, harassment, verbal abuse or insults, or offensive graffiti or letters (hate mail).[2]
Homework: Incorporate 5 crimes into a paragraph of a summarized dramatic play. We will talk about conflict tomorrow.
Video/Audio Production period 4
Middlemiss (middlemissp@eurekacityschools.org), IT 105, class phone: 476-1799
Video/Audio Production
Video/Audio production has a tremendous influence on our attitudes and perceptions of the world around us. In fact, the film and video may be the most powerful tools in modern culture for shaping values and conveying information. We depend heavily on video technology for:
• Information - news and educational programming
• Entertainment - movies, cartoons, prime-time television
• Persuasion - advertisements
• Personal - home video
What are the techniques of video/audio, and how are they applied to achieve the end effect? Everything that goes into a production must be carefully planned ahead of time in order to convey a message as effectively as possible. This includes framing, lighting, camera angle, sound, and transitions between scenes.
Current trends and new technology are finding this communication medium in a variety of businesses and industry today. The needs for training and advertising alone are creating many career opportunities for skilled individuals.
This Video/Audio Production course will provide students with a basic understanding of the technology behind digital media as an information medium, and some of the ways in which it is created to achieve its desired effect on an audience. Upon completion, students should be able to demonstrate production skills and techniques as it relates to producing a variety of digital formats.
Example formats include producing a school news program, video supplement to the yearbook, sports highlights, community documentaries, promotional advertising commercials and amazing creative shorts sure to please the film festival audience.
COURSE OBJECTIVES
• Comprehend the need for a mood/atmosphere in video and analyze the
atmosphere created by each, including lighting, special effects, and music/soundtrack.
• Analyze the various steps/sequences of a video production from conceptualization through the final product.
• Discuss the ethical implications of the present and future states of video and electronic communications, including media, social, cultural, economical and political topics.
• Comprehend how video/audio technology operates as a social force changing our everyday lives.
• Demonstrate the ability to work with digital media equipment, including cameras, playback equipment, monitors, and electronic and computer editing software.
• Define those practices and terms used in video production, including basic shooting, editing and dubbing.
• Use video to communicate with superiors, peers, and underlings.
• Demonstrate all safety and proper operating procedures when interacting with video technologies and when using the tools/equipment associated with video technologies.
• Identify the various foundation skills for different career options in video/audio productions.
• Create written scripts and apply the proper format for the written scripts in the pre-production stage.
• Learn to work within a crew and manage talent.
INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS
Instruction and student production will take place in EHS’S Mac Media Lab, Access Humboldt's TV Studio and around the campus.
Most of the video editing will be done in Imovie, with the potential of graduating to Final Cut Pro. Other software we will be using includes iDVD, PhotoShop, Microsoft Explorer, and Word.
TEXT: Video Communication and Production, by Jim Stinson
ASSESSMENT/EVALUATION OF STUDENTS:
• Finished videos demonstrate continuity
• Students effectively used composition and camera angles to convey message
• Editing shows an understanding of the process and purpose
• Finished video meets class deadlines and original objectives
• Students demonstrate an understanding of the importance of audience feedback
• Students solve problems involved in developing creative video effects and projects
• Cooperation among students in developing a finished product
ASSESSING VIDEO/AUDIO 70%
In assessing the actual video/audio, it should be noted that since this is a learning experience, professional quality is not to be expected. Rather, the video/audio should serve as indicators that the students have done their homework in pre-planning, and have made appropriate use of the technology for their purposes. In viewing the video/audio, it should be apparent that the students involved have:
• Identified the audience they wish to reach
• Had a clearly defined message to convey
• Demonstrated familiarity with the equipment (special effects, such as fades, smooth transitions, synch sound, multiple sound tracks, FX).
• Showed a variety of camera angles and attention to lighting and sound.
• Finished product consistent with storyboard
• Showed teamwork and cooperation.
TEXT QUIZZES AND PRE-PRODUCTION WORK 20%
Students will have plotted and planned every aspect of their film before a moment is recorded.
PARTICIPATION 10%
Class time is used effectively in the creative process of developing the film idea and the film project. The videos produced in this course will potentually contribute to a video program called the Humboldt Student Film Festival held in May. The program will also be televised on cable TV.
SUMMARY:
As a communications media, video/audio has a tremendous power to inform, entertain and persuade. An awareness of the techniques used to achieve these goals should make the student a more critical consumer of video. The basic methods of video production are much the same as they were fifty years ago. What have changed are the tools used, and the amount of exposure we have to video in our daily lives. With the basic understanding gained in this course, it is hoped that some students will be motivated to explore other areas of video production, and learn to use new tools as they are developed, either professionally, or for recreation.
Junior English period 5 & 6
Write/respond to the TED videos:
