Filmmaking for Actors

FTV 135 Filmmaking I 3 Credits

Filmmaking I introduces students to basic film and television production theories, techniques, and applications. Students will gain competency in a number of production areas including composition, lighting, filmic storytelling, sound, production planning and editing. As well as gaining practical production experience, students will also be introduced to basic art theory in relation to composition and visual storytelling.

FTV 230 Foundations of Film, Television and Radio 3 Credits

Examines film, television and radio industries, the programs they create and the powerful role they play in society. This course will examine the history, technology, structure, programming and regulation of these industries including issues, trends, and the impact of new and evolving technologies.

FTV 235 Filmmaking II 3 Credits

This course will build on the basic technical proficiency gained in COM 135 as applied to narrative filmmaking. Working as individuals and in groups, students will develop skills in narrative cinematic storytelling, and gain a basic proficiency in filmmaking theory, techniques and applications. Students will gain competency in a number of production areas including idea generation and scripting, production planning, cinematography, lighting, sound and editing.

Prerequisite(s): COM 131.

FTV 238 Screenplay Fundamentals 3 Credits

Screenplay Fundamentals will instruct students in how to write for the screen. Students will learn how to convey story and character through the medium of film and television, how to write effective dialogue, and understand the basics of dramatic writing and scene structure.

Prerequisite: COM 131.

FTV 239 YouTube: Content and Culture 3 Credits

YouTube, one of the most well-known and widely discussed examples of participatory media in the social media environment, is the first generally popular platform for user-created video. Blending theory and practice, this course examines the social, cultural, economic, and political implications of YouTube; the empowerment and pitfalls of the user-generated content it relies on; and the implication of the participatory media which has transformed passive viewers into active producers. Students will learn the historical roots of YouTube, become familiar with modes of media production, and study legal, ethical, and social justice issues related to the creation of channels and videos for YouTube. While the course has a significant theoretical component, students will engage directly in participatory practices by designing and creating course related content for YouTube. Through this course, students will gain a critical understanding of and a greater appreciation for the impacts of user generated video content on social and political participation locally and globally.

FTV 243 The Actor and Filmmaker 3 Credits

A practicum course that instructs the student on how actors and directors work together to build a performance. The course will provide on-hands experience in technical aspects of behind and in front of camera processes in capturing an actor’s performance, exploring the demands and particularities of acting for the camera. This course will also serve as an introduction to basic acting theories and practices as they relate to how actors work to express a character onscreen. Elements of this course include monologue and scene rehearsal and performance (both multi-camera and single camera), audition techniques (for both actors and directors), and how film directors block and cover a scene. Students will gain experience both behind and in front of the camera,

Prerequisite(s): COM 131 or FTV 135 for Film/TV majors or THE 110 for Theater majors.

FTV 295 Cinematography I 3 Credits

This course introduces the art of cinematography from historical, aesthetic and practical perspectives. Students will learn the principles of cinematic composition, lenses, lighting, and camera operation while studying the work of great cinematographers in film history.

Prerequisite(s): COM 131.

FTV 343 Actor and Filmmaker Practicum 1 Credits

A workshop class designed to give acting and filmmaking students an opportunity to collaborate on narrative film and television projects. During this class students will work closely with the directors on building compelling performances for the screen. Students will gain practical experience with auditioning, blocking of scenes, developing their characters and techniques for working effectively and efficiently with a director and crew.

Prerequisite(s): FTV 135 or THE 110.

FMS 260 Great Performances in Film 3 Credits

Examines major accomplishments in film acting from the silent era to the present day. Students will acquire knowledge of the historical and critical contexts and the artistic vocabulary necessary to understanding, appreciating and assessing screen performances in a range of genres—from comedy and the musical, to the melodrama, psychological thriller, and “hard-boiled” film noir. Students will be asked to read, evaluate, and analyze film performance texts, as well as to research and write about performances in numerous films.

FMS 284 Language of Film Analysis 3 Credits

Provides students with the fundamentals necessary for achieving beginning proficiency in methods of cinema studies scholarship. The course provides an in-depth introduction to concepts of film analysis, theory, and history, as well as to the field of cinema studies as an academic discipline. Through close analysis of selected films and readings, students will examine the various and complex ways in which formal elements shape meaning. Students also will study key concepts in film theory, applying these concepts as a further means of understanding the ways in which film positions viewers and mediates ideology. Required of all Film and Media Studies minors. FMS 284 is cross-listed with ENG 284.

FMS 286 Writing Short Screenplays for Digital Cinema 3 Credits

Writing Short Screenplays for Digital Cinema will focus solely on the creation of a short screenplay for digital film. The course will ask that students conceive of and execute a viably producible screenplay, shooting script, and industry pitch for the modern market.

THE 300 Acting for the Camera 3 Credits

Focuses on the craft and artistry of acting in television and film. Examination of TV production and the styles needed for work in various media will be discussed. Physicalization, simplicity, listening, marking and other technical requirements will be explored. Staging involving different camera angles will be rehearsed. The emphasis of this class is on adapting the performance to the special needs of the camera.

Prerequisite(s): THE 107.