Assignments and Projects Spring 2018
RTD 365A: Single Channel Field Production
RTD 365A
Lighting Exercise - writing exercise 2
Use the assignment sheet I handed out in class to help you outline some of the things you will look for. Here are more instructions.
This assignment gives
practice in seeing light as an intentional manipulation of the space inside the
frame. It will give you practice in describing what you see and the
accompanying reading will introduce you to some terms that are used to describe
lighting.
The minimal reading you need for
this is online at http:/carbonfarm.us/365/readings/mill4light1.pdf (Millerson
“Practical Lighting”) I will be linking a couple more readings for you.
Lighting Analysis assignment:
Select two
scenes from a television or cable serial tv/cable drama or sitcom.
Or from a
movie.
The scenes you
select MUST be interiors because I want you to look at how light is
artificially manipulated to create a natural looking space as you will do in
some of your work.
You can use
the same series, but you will need to select two different scenes- in different
locations. You will need to get still
images from this- so it is easier to use online sources of the series. You
don’t need to watch the whole thing though- so even if you find a clip online,
that will work.
While
watching, stop the player and select a still from this scene. Below are instructions for making a
screenshot.
Look carefully
at the lighting in this scene. I want
you to describe what you see.
You do not need to guess at what kind of
lighting instrument they have used.
Describe the
visual components – the way space, shapes, lines, colors, and tone is
constructing the space because of the lighting.
How is depth
constructed or ignored- because of the lighting?
You can use words
to describe lighting characteristics drawn from the Millerson reading. Use as many of these descriptive words to
write about your lighting as possible.
These are intensity, quality, contrast, direction and
temperature.
Examine all
the variables. For example.
Intensity- is about how bring the light is.
Analysis: How bright is the light? Where is the brightest part? What is the focus of that illumination in the
scene? What is the assumed source of that brightness? (light through a window?
A lamp in the scene?) Are there other
parts of the scene that are lit less intensely? Do these lend a meaning? Are there shadows?
Quality-
Means whether the light has hard edges on its shadow or soft edges of its shadoe. Quality in this
case does not mean judgement.
ANALYSIS: Do
the shadows have sharp or soft edges?
What are the different kinds of light quality from different sources?
Does the light fall off quickly or gradually?
Contrast- You have been introduced to contrast as
the opposite of affinity. It means is there a big difference.
ANALYSIS: Is there a big range between light and
dark in the scene? Why - does this add
meaning?
Lighting direction- is about whether you see where the
light is coming from. Light sometimes looks like it is traveling in a line, or
coming from a place like a window.
ANALYSIS;
where are the different lights coming from? Is the light traveling in straights
shapes, lines or blocks or is it diffused and fuzzy? How does this emphasize certain parts of
composition, and de-emphasize others?
Light color- This has to do with tone, contrast and
affinity as well as color when you are looking at light.
ANALYSIS: What
are the colors you see with your eyes? Does the light have a color? Does the
light give a color to the objects in the frame? Is the color natural or
unnatural looking to your eyes in the frame? Are the colors bright and
saturated or dull and washed out? Are
colors used in the scene to emphasize certain parts of the composition? is
there a rhythm with colors? eg- some colors are repeated?
What other kinds of language describes light
beside these words? Use the descriptors
associated with these characteristics as much as possible to convey what you
can about the scene through light: what time of day you think it is; what are
the light sources; what kind of mood is being conveyed and what do you see that tells you this.
Example.
“The light is soft, yellowish and thin. It is diffused, and coming through the
window.
It
makes the window stand out as a shape- as a rectangle, and it casts a glow on
the area in the back wall of the room. It helps us see the back of the room,
even though the front – toward the camera- end of the room is in darkness.
There is a contrast between the back – window- wall of the room and the front
of the room where the camera is looking in.
It looks like early morning, because it
is slightly yellow and not intense. It
seems as if it is a cloudy day or there is a lot of fog, because of the
diffusion. I can tell this because there
are also dark shadows in the corners of the room with soft edges…. And so
forth”
MORE suggestions
to write about:
What kind of scene is
this? What kind of room or space is
being simulated?
What time of day is
simulated?
What colors do you see? Does the light look as if it is an unnatural
or natural source? Where IS the light
in the scene? Why do you think that is so?
Where is there reflection?
What objects in the scene reflect or absorb light?
What is the mood they are creating? How does it contribute to the story?
What is the mood they are creating? How does it contribute to the story?
TRY to use fundamental words
that describe light –
and the visual components of the frame- and depth.
and the visual components of the frame- and depth.
You do not need
to guess at what kind of lighting instrument they used.
Turning in your assignment:
- Write first on a document so you can check the word count. Please aim to write AT LEAST 200 words for each image. Then copy and paste into your blog
- Make a blog entry- first post the image, then paste in your writing.
- Do it two times-- one for each image- a few paragraphs! 200 words MINIMUM and I will grade down if you do not do 200 words for each-- you should be able to do at least 300 easily.
- Otherwise, take time to really look at and describe that frame.
- Both onto your blog
- Use the assignment sheet I handed out in class to help you outline some of the things you will look for.
Getting still images on a MAC:
1. Pause the show.
2. (with a mac), select apple, shift, 4.
3. your mouse has a target now:
4. click in the corner and drag to frame the
image. Let go.
5. you will hear a click. Your image will be on
the desktop.
6. rename the image and insert it into your
text document
OTHER WAYS TO GET THE IMAGE:
you can photograph off the
TV screen with your camera or phone
you can save a still from tv
promotion, and scan it into computer
Getting still images on a PC:
Use Screen print button to capture the whole screen. Find an expert with PC’s
to find out if you can target only a portion of the screen.
PROJECT #1: Fake Self
Portrait
3-5 minutes
DUE: September 26
In this
“mock-umentary” assignment, you may utilize any or all of the conventions of
autobiography or personal video – mobile phone video clips, interviews with
people who know you, fictional re-creations of past events, archival photographs
with voice-over narration, daily video-diary entries, staged performances in
the real world, etc. - in order to
create a fake self-portrait.
Your fictional self-portrait
video project should either (a) convey a sense of reality and believability
through the use of familiar documentary-style conventions or (b) create an
intervention into reality through the clash of real people and situations with
made-up characters.
You must create the
majority of the audio and video used in the project. Some found media elements
(images, sounds, text) can be included in addition to the material you create
yourself. The final video must be edited, and should include multiple layers of
sound information (e.g., interviews, voice-over narration, sound effects, music,
background ambient noises).
PROJECT #3: Narrative
Homage (Influences)
3-5 minutes
FINAL FILM DUE:
Oct 31
PRESENTATION DUE about the director's work: October
3
HOMAGE: special honor or
respect shown publicly.
In this assignment, you
will work in small groups or individually to create a video project inspired by
a particular director’s work that you will study and imitate.
Select a director, filmmaker or cinematographer
whose work inspires you. Identify some of this person’s filmmaking
strategies by doing research about their work and about them. Artists can work
in television or cinema, even music videos or advertising. Many directors
overlap in projects. You will boil down some characteristics of their work and
produce a short work that imitates or quotes this director or artist.
Research: Research the work of the director/creative. You
don’t have to watch whole films but you must also read about him or her in
serious journals or blogs (there are many online).
Presentation: Write a short research paper about the artist’s
work and prepare a presentation that includes 1 or 2 short clips (under 2
minutes). Write about the director’s work and the approach you are interested
in. Please use serious sources for your information.
Include a short
description (treatment-pitch) of the work you will create.
Paper should be 1 to 2
pages and include references. Due March 23
.
Plan your production: Using what you have learned from looking at
this director's work, plan, light and shoot a scene = that copies something
they do. This can be a whole scene or a fragment - eg. a small element of what
could be a larger project. Create a storyboard and shot list before you
produce. I will set meetings with you to go over your production plans.
Collaborations can do longer pieces- but everyone must do some filming.
Collaborations can do longer pieces- but everyone must do some filming.
2-5 minutes is
acceptable, according to how elaborate your project is
Your project will involve scripting, lighting, staging.
Your project will involve scripting, lighting, staging.
You must have excellent
lighting.
Think about any of the below filmic elements when developing your ideas.
You will need to talk and write about the elements you decide to work with.
Think about any of the below filmic elements when developing your ideas.
You will need to talk and write about the elements you decide to work with.
mis-en-scene:
Character, staging, Shadow, form, light, color, style
a lighting style, use of shadow and light
a particular use of focus or lens effects
a particular kind of movement, space, representation of time or temporality
the use of color, scenery
a particular way of staging a shot, framing or directing a conversation
ways of using sound, soundtrack, rhythm, sound effects and/or silence
a style of editing, the use of simple effects (accessible to our class)
use of transitions, cuts, repetition and visual rhythm
a lighting style, use of shadow and light
a particular use of focus or lens effects
a particular kind of movement, space, representation of time or temporality
the use of color, scenery
a particular way of staging a shot, framing or directing a conversation
ways of using sound, soundtrack, rhythm, sound effects and/or silence
a style of editing, the use of simple effects (accessible to our class)
use of transitions, cuts, repetition and visual rhythm
storytelling, plot, character choice- how is the character directed??
DUE:
Sept 26 In Class; Introduce
us to director you will reference
Read
a serious article. Push yourself beyond your comfort zone in terms of research-
use the library! An online publication about contemporary directors is called “Senses of Cinema” or any link from this site. Search for your director.
DUE: October 3- PRESENTATION, short paper and production concept
Presentation:
- Show no more than 2
minutes of footage x number of collaborators
- what elements of the
artist’s work are valuable? Make this clear
- Don’t select a
director whose work consists of effects you can’t do- no fight scenes,
explosions or aerial or crane work
- TALK about any or
all of these elements: Framing, use of color, acting, direction of
characters and staging (where they are placed in relation to scene and
camera lens), development of character, use or dialogue or silence,
location, sets, effects, story.
Short paper:
- write about I page
about your director's style and turn this in with references (at least 2
other articles) at the end.
- Add a short pitch
and descriptive treatment for your project
Productions begin after your presentation/pitch
DUE: Oct 8: this information should be ready and you are in production
Production
plan
shot list and script if pertinent
storyboard
crew list
location
lighting and camera rental order
October 24: rough cuts
October 29: final
cuts
TIPS
don’t choose a complex project with complex scenery or a large cast
No MICHAEL BEY.
Remember
a good scene does not always need dialogue
OLD already done assignments
OLD already done assignments
EXERCISE: The performance of the world (1 minute)
DUE: Sept 5
Make a 60 second video that observes the world in performance.
This assignment is based on the understanding that there is a fundamental relationship between performance and life. We try to appear to others in particular ways that will cultivate particular kinds of impressions. A direct example might be the way we act differently when we are at work or with friends; the attention of the other to how we are acting matters, it has palpable meaning to them. (Goffman, The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life, 1956). In a similar way, animals, things and elements of nature could be seen as a performing in the sense that they are lively themselves, and they offer meaning to the viewer.
Recording an image with a camera is a way of communicating that meaning and fostering that kind of imagination, through the control of your own mind and eyes. Likewise, imagining the world as a performance is a way to wake up your eyes for what you see through the lens.
For this assignment, you’ll make a 60 second video interpreting a place, objects, nature or an event as performance.
An event can be something like a rainstorm, or a mouse avoiding a trap.
A human or animal in front of the camera can be a performance.
You can use multiple shots and edit them together, or you can use one long shot.
If you use multiple shots, select the best angle and size shot to bring wonder to the eye of the viewer.
You have two options for going forward as your inspiration
Early cinema 1800s: The earliest films made were simply performance in front of the camera. They revealed the world as it happened. This kind of film was not edited.
The earliest documentaries compiled series of shots of the world in performance as te earliest films were simply observations of life in front of the lens- not so dissimilar to the way people might use a camera phone today. The ‘story’ if there was one, was simply the staging or performance of life before the camera. (Lumiere Brothers films)
Early documentary- late 1920s to the ‘40s. These films use many shots to build a picture of something- a place or a process. Each of the shots is highly descriptive. Each of them matters. The story is usually about a process of change- technological or natural.
Films to look at: Joris Ivens
