This is a group project, 2 students will work together.

Create a portrait video (not longer than 60 seconds) of the student who is working with you. The video should show the personality and creativity of the protagonist and the director.

SCHEDULE

  1. by the end of the class Wednesday February 2nd, send the pitch explaining your story angle, how you decided to tell the story (about half page).
  2. by Sunday February 6th, 1pm, send the screenplay (about a page).
  3. by Sunday February 13th, 1pm, upload your YouTube video on your ePortfolio.
  4. by Sunday February 20th, 1pm, Read all the screenplays, watch the uploaded videos on OpenLab and comment on at least 2 projects at the bottom of the students posts.

Watch the video “The Art of Storytelling” it will help you through the process.

1. The pitch: written concept

Write one paragraph pitch to present what you intend to do in your video project. In a few words mention your ideas for the videos: who you are going to film, where you are going to film, how you want to show their word.

Look for example of videos you like and that inspire you for the way you will create yours, like Billy Eilish in the commercial.

Think about original and fun locations, outfits that defines who you are, your favorite colors or hat for example.

Post the text of the pitch in your ePortfolio with a title and the name of the person you are filming.

2. The screenplay: written story

Write a page describing in detail the structure of your video.

You can use, for example the questionnaire game. You can interview the protagonist and be creative with the filming.

Here is a list of topics you can mention in your screenplay:

  • The title in an intro with the name of the person you interview.
  • The location, where do you plan to film it.
  • The style, how you want to film, color or B&W for example. You can even mention what the actors are going to wear if it makes sense in the story.
  • Write each scene with a description of the actions and the text the actors are saying.

Check out the post How to write a screenplay with my example.

Post the text of the screenplay in your ePortfolio with a title and the name of the person you are filming.

3. The storyboard: your video in a form of sketches

Drawing sketches can be helpful for during the filming of your story. You can simply draw in as many rectangles as you need the important frames and scenes.

Check out the post Story of a storyboard and watch the video.

Post the storyboard in your ePortfolio with the screenplay.

4. The video 

Create a video with your device.

Film a bunch of short films, like 5 or 10 seconds each. You will edit them together.

Use any software you like, like TikTok.

I edit my videos with Adobe Premiere Pro. Here is the link to a tutorial on Editing your Video Project given by Michael Cannetti, a COMD Computer Lab Technicians and teaching an Intro to Film & Video class. You also can find many tutorials in the Adobe platform or on youTube.

Post your video on YouTube and upload it on your ePortfolio.

Here is a list of what your video should be and have:

  • Time: 60 seconds or shorter.
  • Title: the video is a portrait of a student, have a title with the name and your name as director.
  • The ending credits with the list of everyone who worked on the video, including the music if you have any in the movie.

If you need some inspiration check out previous students videos.

A Few Things To Follow

  • DEADLINES: Please respect them. Delayed handed work will affect the time I spend on it and if necessary, the time that we can work together to make sure it is really good. Therefor late homework will affect your grade.
  • HANDING CONVENTION: Homework will ultimately be uploaded to your OpenLab portfolio. The work in progress can be emailed to me.
  • NAMING CONVENTION: title all your files with your first and last name. I need to see to whom the file belongs to without opening it. Write something like your first and last name + project name.
    Example: valeriatrucchia-searchpaper
  • BACKUPS: Be sure to backup all your work on a drive or a cloud such as Dropbox or Google Drive.
  • GRADE COMMUNICATION: Grades will be communicated on the OpenLab. You can find them on the sidebar on the right. You should check them regularly. This semester, per the college’s academic calendar, midterm grades must be posted by October 29th. Don’t hesitate to contact me if you have questions about them.
  • FEEDBACK: every time I receive your work at all stages, I will give you a personal feedback by email. At the more final stage of your visual work I will create slideshows with all the stages and do a group comment for everyone to watch. We all learn from each other.