Course Description:
(Grade 5+ )
This Mobile filmmaking Workshop is designed to provide students with a comprehensive learning experience in the fundamentals of documentary filmmaking. The course will focus on critical thinking, creative techniques, and production strategies. Students will learn to use the medium of cinema to observe, interact with, and interpret the environment, and to blend cultural, environmental, and social issues with documentary filmmaking. The course will also cover the basics of clearance and copyright for documentary film.
The program will be structured as a workshop, with a combination of lectures, screenings, discussions, and individual projects. Students will have the opportunity to research, script, and present their projects, as well as to learn documentary production skills through hands-on practice. By the end of the course, each student is expected to produce a 1-3 minute short documentary film, and will have worked through the entire production and post-production process. There will also be small group discussions and presentations, allowing students to collaborate and work together in a cross-cultural enviroment.
Course Organization
Class will consist of lectures, screenings, occasional readings, discussion, equipment and technique demonstration, in-class exercies, field production, and group project critiques.
Class Schedule
Day 1: Introduction, Course overview, Find a subject and good story, Field research and development
Day 2: Pre-production, and shooting script
Day 3: Field production: camera, lighting and sound
Day 4: Field production on campus
Day 5: Post-production: editing, sound and publishing
Schedule:
7/17/23 – 7/21/23, M – F, 1:00PM – 4:00PM
Instructor: Weimin Zhang, Professor, School of Cinema, San Francisco State University
Co-Instructor: Bryan Louie, Junior, Mountain View High School
