Course Overview

Description:

This course is a project-based video course that develops career and communication skills in video production using Adobe tools. This course is aligned to Adobe Premiere certification. English language arts are reinforced.

Certifications:

Adobe Premiere

Basic Expectations:

All students can succeed in my classroom. The teacher holds a very high standard for student ability and behavior. Each student must:

Maintain creative and academic integrity
Respect one another and lab resources
Be active participants in their education
Utilize all available resources
Remain on-task from bell-to-bell

Each assignment is held to a professional quality. “A” level work does not look amateur, or look like “student work”.

Assignments:

This class is rigorous with a steep learning curve. Students are expected to stay on task regularly to keep up with the class. All assignments are posted on Canvas, along with all resources needed to complete the assignments (with the exception of Adobe Software).

Work that is completed in the Adobe Software will also have a rubric posted through Canvas. Please take the time to look at the rubric provided for each assignment prior to submitting your work.

Additionally, there are quizzes that follow each presentation. Each quiz is open book and has the ability to take it no more than (3) times. These quizzes will remain available until final assignment within each module (each Adobe project) is due.

Understanding Film Assignments:

Class time is devoted to learning filmmaking skills from writing the script to exporting a finished video. Students will create several films throughout the year that will test them not only on their technical abilities but their artistic vision. ALL FILMING WILL BE DONE AFTER SCHOOL HOURS. Video assignments have three phases: 1.) Pre-production 2.) production 3.) post-production.

Pre-Production:

The pre-production phase is where students brainstorm and write a script, draw storyboards, and find film locations, costumes and actors.

Production:

The production phase encompasses the filming of each assignment. Film and sound are recorded separately! Students should expect to film, then show their work to the teacher for review. ALL GROUPS WILL NEED AT LEAST ONE RE-SHOOT DATE per assignment.

Post-Production:

The director works with the sound designer and editor to create the final product. We will focus here on Adobe Premiere as a tool to edit both video and sound.

Working in Groups:

Students will create several films throughout the school year. Each film requires students to work in groups. All or most of the filming will take place outside of school time. Each student is expected to make available time on their off hours to film with their group (consider how a band or orchestra has several recitals throughout the year). Students' responsibilities will vary depending on their student’s film production role.

Grading Policy:

Quarterly grades are divided into two categories: 1.) performance 2.) knowledge. Each category is 50% of the quarterly grade.

Performance: These are the Adobe projects. There are typically fewer of these assignments (which makes them worth more). It will require students to work diligently throughout each period for students to earn high marks on this

Knowledge: These are typically the quizzes provided for each section. They require a studying of the digital resources provided. There are usually a lot of these per quarter (so they aren’t worth as much as projects.

Supplies:

Students get the Adobe Creative suite for free! Students are strongly encouraged to download the Adobe Creative Cloud along with Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Illustrator onto their personal computers. There will be online instructions provided for how to download the Adobe programs onto a home device. However, the teacher will provide additional help installing these programs in class during the first week of school.

During the first week of school only:

Please bring in the following devices:

Laptop (Mac or PC)
Tablet
Cellphone

Other supplies:

Earbuds (must be able to plug into a computer (no bluetooth)
Sketchbooks are always recommended but not required
USB to phone (for uploading videos/audio to computer

Cell Phone Policy:

Cell phones or other devices should not be used during class time unless otherwise instructed by the teacher. The teacher may assign additional written assignments if students fail to adhere to this policy (after being reminded by the teacher).

Parents, please do not call or text students during class hours.

Late work:

Within Canvas, each module ends with an Adobe project being due. All quizzes and assignments need to be turned in before this assignment is due. No late work will be accepted after this date.

Filming Schedule Overview

Pre-Production:
1. Write Script
2. Storyboard and/or Shot list
3. Location Scout
4. Cast actors
5. Costumes & Set Dressing
Production:
1. Dress Set
2. Make Up & Costumes
3. Adjust Lighting
4. Director, Camera Operator & Actor(s) scene run through
5. Filming x3
  1. Establishing/ Master Shot (wide)
  2. Medium Shots (mostly for dialogue)
  3. Close Up Shots
6. Pick-Up Shots
  1. Refilming scenes that don’t make sense
7. Sound Recording (on-location and foley)
Post- Production
1. Upload & Organize Footage
2. Meet with teacher to discuss footage
3. Pick Up Shots (see production)
4. Rough Cut (limited audio)
5. Sound Recording (foley)
6. Rough Cut (with Sound)
7. Show teacher for critique
8. Final Cut

Filming Rules

NO WEAPONS- pistols, rifles, knives, clubs, etc.
1. Water guns and nerf guns are allowed
NO DRIVING WHILE FILMING- This also includes having the camera operator elsewhere in the car while it's moving
1. Filming a car drive past is ok
NO DANGEROUS STUNTS- This includes hanging off cars while they move, full contact action sequences, parkour, or other harmful/ dangerous behavior
NO GRATUITOUS VIOLENCE- This includes on-screen murders
1. Fight scenes are allowed after consultation with teacher
PG-13 Rating- no graphically violence or sexual scenes
1. Think to yourselves, would I feel comfortable showing this film to the principal and my parents?

Filming Tips

FILM EARLY & OFTEN- Don’t wait until the last moment to film as a group. Things are likely to happen that create delays.
HAVE A PLAN- Storyboards are meant as blueprints for what to film to eliminate the need to improvise
SET CLEARLY DEFINED ROLES- Decide as a group, who is responsible for what and make sure each member sticks to their role.
COMMUNICATE EFFECTIVELY- Share contact information with all members of your group and communicate often. Effective communication also means that each member shares ideas and communicates issues.
FILM CLOSE UPS- and film a lot of them! Seriously, even if you think you’ll never use it, close-ups are an editors best friend (they help hide mistakes).
FILM REACTION SHOTS- These are the moments in between lines of dialogue. Sometimes how an actor thinks or feels is told best through their body language (rather than what they say).
USE GOOD LIGHTING- Lighting makes a huge difference in the quality of a film. Never use overhead lighting. Add, move, or subtract the light to get more control over the space.
DON”T BREAK CHARACTER- Actors need to stay in character the whole time. Nervous smiling during a take means you need to film again.
NO LOOKING INTO THE CAMERA- It reminds the audience that this story is fake and they are watching a movie [with an unreliable narrator]. It literally is just the worst, unless you're Deadpool, Malcolm [in the middle], or Ferris Bueller
SOUND IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN IMAGE- How many times have you listened to a TV show while you were doing something else? Now how many times have you watched a show on mute? See? People pay more attention to how something sounds than how something looks.