Intro to Video

Instructor:
Trey Wodele
twodele@emailmtcs.org
Office Hours: 8:00 am - 4:00 pm, Monday - Friday
Phone: 612-728-8915 ext 2005
Fax: 612-729-0536

Course Objectives:
Introduce students to video production. Give students a intermediate level knowledge in construction of a commercial, camera Basics, composition, sound basics, Final Cut Pro video editing, narrative and documentary shorts, lighting, chroma keying, marketing, and networking.

Grading:
This course is a differentiated, Universally Designed course. It was written to accommodate students of all ability levels.

The course is a 3 quarter course and is worth .75 credits per quarter. You are expected to cover 6 units each quarter or 2 units every 3 weeks.

If you work at a faster pace, you may still receive .25 credits for every 2 units completed.

Different arrangements may be required of gifted students and modifications may be made for special education students.

You must complete and master each unit and each skill before you receive credit and are allowed to go on to the next unit.

Printed Materials:
Certain materials used in this online course are included under the fair use exemption of the U.S. Copyright Law and have been prepared according to the educational multimedia fair use guidelines and are restricted from further use. No materials beyond those contained or linked to this class are necessary.

Software:
This course is taught assuming that you have Final Cut Pro editing software, but does offer some references to other editing programs. None of the assignments require that you have a particular editing program, but you must have access to some sort of digital editing software to complete the major assignments. If you are uncertain about this aspect please contact me and we can work something out.

Organization: This course will be divided into 18 units, to be completed in 2 semesters or less.

Grading: Your grade will be based on quizzes, exams, participation in threaded discussions, peer evaluations, and your three video assignments.

Participation: All students will be required to participate in online discussions and peer evaluations. This is the only way we can get to know one another, become familiar with each other's work, and benefit from the help of others.

Plagiarism: I once had a student try to hand in a script that was not his. What he didn't know was that I have seen and read a lot of films. I noticed that the script was VERY good while I read the first page. I noticed the script was VERY familiar while I read the second. So, I went online and Googled the first piece of action from the script. In seconds, I knew that it was a script from a fairly obscure film released only in L.A. and New York. I happened to have read the script in a trade journal.

This guy was very unlucky, but the point is, these days it is way too easy discover plagiarism. If you are caught using someone else's work, you will fail this course. You will also be subject to any discipline detailed in MTS's discipline policies.

Technical help: I will always be happy to help you with any technical problems. Please email me anytime or contact me via telephone or webcam chat during my office hours.

Help with Classwork: If you need help with the classwork in this course, the first step is to post your question in the class lounge. There is a strong possibility that one of your peers can help and will do so before I see your email. You may also contact me by phone or webchat during office hours, or by email any other time.

Assignments: You can keep track of all assignments by accessing your grade book.

Lexile Measures:
According to the Lexile Framework for Reading, most readings in this class fall within the 11-12 grade levels with some categorized below and a few placed in the college levels. Success in this class is not based entirely on the ability to read at these levels. For anyone who like their operating system to speak along as they read, directions are available at the following sites:
Windows Vista
Mac Leopard
In addition, all concepts are presented in a variety of ways, through readings, podcasts, videos, and hands-on activities. Below is a list of the readings for this classs and the lexile measure for each.



'Film vs. Videotape' 1340L
'Screenwriting is a Collaborative Art" 960L
'Selling Laughs: How to Create Your Own Commercial Parody" 1060L
"Cameras: The Basics, Part I" 1380L
"Cameras: The Basics, Part II" 1380L
'Study Notes" 1350L
'Wikipedia - Storyboard Entry 1470L
'Acting with a Pencil: Storyboarding Your Movie" (download) 1130L
'Storyboarding Activity, The Multimedia Project: Project based Learning with 'Multimedia" 910L
'Composition: Setting the Scene" 1290L
'Elements of Composition, Part 1" 1180L
'TV and Film Violence" 1250L
'Composition, Part III" 1280L
"Crossing the LIne" 1260L
"Television Sound: The Basics" 1430L
"Microphones: Major Microphone Designs" 1360L
"Microphones: Part II" 1360L
"Video Editing, Part I: Coninuity Editing" 1230L
"Video Editing, Part II: Continuity Techniques" 1230L
"Video Editing, Part III: Solving Continuity Problems" 1230L
"Video Editing, Part IV: Technical Continuity" 1270L
"Video Editing, Part V: Editing Guidelines" 1270L
"Video Editing, Part VI: Editing Guidelines" 1270L
The Importance of Opening Film Titles 1040L
The Dark Genius of Kyle Cooper 1250L
News and Documentary Production, Part I 1260L
News and Documentary Production, Part II 1260L
Making News instead of Covering it 1130L
News and Documentary Production. Part III 1260L
Legal and Ethical Issues: Part I 1230L
Legal and Ethical Issues: Part II 1230L
Making Documentaries and Reality Videos, Chapter 4 930L
Digital Audio 1460L
Audio Recording, Editing, and Playback 1320L
Final Cut Pro 4 Audio Essentials Optimizing Sound For Beginners 1440L
Lighting: Hard and Soft Light 1010L
"The Key Light 1320L
"Chroma Key Basics for DV Guerrillas - Part 1 or "So You Can't Afford a Betacam...1080L
Chroma Keying in Final Cut Pro HD 1190L
Chroma Key Basics for Guerrillas - Part 2, or Why is There a Force Field Around my Head 1060L
Penn State Tutorial: Lighting and Shooting Using a Green Screen 1020L
Penn State Tutorial: Keying Green Screen Footage in Final Cut Pro 1490L
Chroma Keying DV in Sony's Vegas 920L
The Way We Live Now: The Screening of America 1400L
YouTube Videos Pull in Real Money 1420L
Film Festival Wiki 1590L
NFFTY: Film Festival for Those too Young for Sundance 1730L