2019 Scriptwriting:All Media Schedule

Tentative Schedule will changed based on individual student interests

Week 1 Tues Jan 29
Introductions, Student, Syllabus

Analysis: The Gathering Cloud by J. R. Carpenter – write a short description, form/content/visuals; then write a short analysis/interpretation focusing on one element

Writing at Home: self portrait 250 words

Extra Question: McGuffin – what is it, where does the term come from, describe one of Hitchcock’s McGuffins

Week 2 Tues Feb 5
HW:  
WRITE: analysis (see above) and self-portrait
READ: Roland Barthes, S/Z extract provided, + FYI Project Gutenberg Sarrasine pdf
Anstey, Josephine, Dave Pape, “The Provoking Thing: A VR Relationship” in the Technical Report of Emotional and Intelligent II: The Tangled Knot of Social Cognition, Papers from the 2001 AAAI Fall Symposium, North Falmouth, MA, 2-4 Nov 2001

Discussion: How meaning is made [words, authors’ intentions, interpretation] for a particular (human) cognition. Reference, connotation, signifying strings

Media: analysis – advertising (TBA)

Assignment 1 : write or script every day for 10 days on beans or electrons – make a contract with yourself – (each day a different emotion to be evoked in reader/player)

Week 3 Tues Feb 12

HW:
Read: A Preliminary Poetics for Interactive Drama and Games, Michael Mateas AND Brecht’s ‘Epic Theater’ and ‘Verfremdungseffekt’ AND Rethinking Agency and Immersion: videogames as a means of consciousness-raising, Gonzalo Frasca
View: Introduction to Brechtian Theater National Theater UK

Discussion: Meaning and politics of form
Media:

Week 4 Tues Feb 19
HW: Script Concept

Discuss  Criticism/Critiquing
Present Script Concept

Script Concept Workshop – growing the idea

Week 5 Tues Feb 2
HW: Write up: Treatment or Design Document
Read: –The Cut-Up Method of Brion Gysin by William S. Burroughs 

Class discussion and exercises on randomness

Class workshop – using cards

Week 6 Tues March
HW – Watch: Sita Sings the Blues

What is structure?

  • Useful structures given your own project.
  • Useful organization strategies.

Structural Analysis of Sita
meaning generated by structure V.
meaning generated by semantic reference/connotation

Week 7: Tues Mar 12
HW: WATCH The Lizzie Bennet Diaries or explore Blast Theory Projects

View: Shape of Stories 4 mins – Kurt Vonnegut – 17 min video
Read: Syd Fields The Paradigm Worksheet
Optional: Under Story Structures Heading View the McKee videos and/or Interactive Story Structures by Ira Nayma

RECESS

 Week 8 Tues Mar 26 Dialog, sub text
HW: Watch Adaptation directed by Spike Jonze and written by Charlie Kaufman on (Amazon, Youtube etc)

Andrew Stanton: Ted Talk “The clues to a great story”
Shekhar Kapur: Ted Talk “We are the stories we tell ourselves”

Not I – Samuel Becket

Top Dog Under Dog Suzan Lori Parks

Week 9 Tues April 2
Panel One: Inspirational Material – prepare presentation – powerpoint or similar presentation – 15 mins

  • Description – at most 2 mins of video
  • Three Arguments/Points about the structure : how it works
  • Close analysis of 10-30 second clip of the material
  • Brian, Jonathan S, Jonathan D, Stephen

Week 10 Tues  Apr 9

DUE: Assignment: First Draft
11-12:30 Read/Present First Draft – peer groups  (30 mins per person)

  • Group A : (room 278)
  • Group B: (room 278)
  • Group C: (room 278)
  • Group D: (room 232)

12:30- 1:00 Short Lunch Presentation – Investment, Fictionalizing and What’s the Point?

1:00 – 2:40 Panel Two: Inspirational Material – Adam, Luis, Jenna

Week 11 Tues Apr 16
Panel 3 2 of Inspirational Material – Cynthia, Josh, Kyle, Jenna, Luis

Reading in Progress

Week 12 Tues Apr 23

Individual Assignments

Week 13 Tues Apr 30
Script Readings & Presentations/Critiques

Adam, Jon S., Kyle, Jenna, Steven

Week 14 Tues May 7
Script Readings & Presentations/Critiques

Brian, Cynthia, Jon D., Luis, Joshua

FINAL SCRIPT DUE: FRIDAY MAY 18


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