DIRECTOR'S CRAFT
Director’s Craft serves as the spine of the workshop, introducing students to the language and practice of filmmaking. Through a combination of hands-on exercises, screenings, and demonstrations, students learn the fundamental directing skills needed to create a succinct and moving film. This class prepares students for each of their film projects and is the venue for screening and critiquing their work throughout the course.
- The Five C's of Cinematography: Motion Picture Filming Techniques - Joseph V. Mascelli.
- The Film Director Prepares: A Practical Guide to Directing for Film and TV - Myrl A. Schreibman
- Notes on Directing: 130 Lessons in Leadership from the Director's Chair - Frank Hauser and Russell Reich
- Directing Actors: Creating Memorable Performances for Film & Television - Judith Weston
WRITING
The writing course adheres to the philosophy that -good directing cannot occur without a well-written script. The course is designed to build a fundamental understanding of dramatic structure which is essential to writing an engaging film. Arc, theme, character, tension, and conflict are thoroughly explored.
I won't need to read more books on this subject, so I would recommend my favourites:
- The Writers Journey: Mythic Structure for Writers - Christopher E. Vogler
- Writing Short Films: Structure and Content for Screenwriters - Linda J. Cowgill
- Crafting Short Screenplays That Connect - Claudia Johnson
- Gardner's Guide to Animation Scriptwriting: The Writer's Road Map - Marilyn Webber, Bonney Ford, and Nic Banks
EDITING
This class teaches the language of editing and the organization of film and sound material. Films are shot on 16mm film and edited digitally with Final Cut Pro on Apple computers. While students learn how to use the nonlinear editing software, the emphasis is on the craft of editing, which challenges students to create cogent sequences that best serve the story.
- On Film Editing - Edward Dmytryk.
HANDS-ON CAMERA/LIGHTING
Beginning on day one, this no-nonsense camera class allows students to learn the fundamental skills of the art of cinematography with the Arriflex 16-S, the Lowel VIP Lighting Kit and its accessories. In the first week, students shoot and screen tests for focus, exposure, lens perspective, film latitude, slow/fast motion, contrast, and lighting. Six and eight week students are also introduced to the fundamentals of digital cinematography using 24p digital cameras.
- Motion Picture and Video Lighting - Blain Brown
PRODUCTION WORKSHOP
This class is designed to demystify the craft of filmmaking through in-class exercises shot on film under the supervision of the instructor.Through this in-class practice, students learn to articulate the objective of a given scene, which allows the necessary craft and techniques to follow. Production Workshop gives students the opportunity to learn which techniques will help them express their ideas most effectively.
The following subjects will be covered and practiced in the Hands-On Camera, Lighting, and Production Workshop:
- Film Stocks - Properties of black and white, color reversal, and negative emulsions.
- Exposure Meters - Practical and creative ways of measuring and evaluating light through incident light readings.
- Basic Lighting - Three point lighting, hard and soft light, bounced light and available light, and lighting continuity.
- Lenses - Practical tests on how different focal lengths and f-stops affect the mood of the scene and the attention of the viewer.
- Coverage - The long shot, establishing shot, matching shot, sight lines and screen direction.
- Filters - Students learn to use black and white contrast filters and red, green, and yellow filters to get the effects they desire for their films.
BUDGETING AND SCHEDULING
Students learn to organize production schedules to maximize the creative time spent on their films, while minimizing the size of the production budget. They learn the preproduction process, including casting, finding locations, obtaining shooting permits, costuming, and all other production elements that apply to the successful completion of their films.
SOUND DESIGN
In this class, students learn to incorporate voice-over, sound effects, and music into their final film projects. Students have access to our extensive library of sound effects and sound recording equipment. Final films may have multiple tracks of non-synchronous sound.