Producing & Directing

Here is the syllabus for Producing and Directing.

COURSE NUMBER: FV2001
COURSE NAME: Fundamentals of Producing and Directing
COURSE LENGTH: 11 weeks
CONTACT HOURS: 44 hours
CLASSROOM #: ROOM #
STUDENT LOGIN: http://stu.aii.edu


INSTRUCTOR: Tom Hammond
WEB SITE: SHOOTTHEFILM.BLOGSPOT.COM
PHONE: 813.900.4759
EMAIL: thammnd3@tampabay.rr.com
OFFICE HOURS: By appointment
CREDITS: 4
DATE OF SYLLABUS: 7/11/2008


COURSE DESCRIPTION:
The course is an introduction to the jobs of producer and director as they relate to the filmmaking process. The goal is to develop an understanding of these two positions and some fundamental skills involved with their responsibilities. Students will examine the separate and overlapping areas of authority and cooperation a producer and a director share in the making of a film. Students will be presented with the tools, techniques, and understanding of budgeting, scheduling, hiring, casting and shooting the movie. Financing, contracts, unions, guilds and distribution will also be covered. The course will consist of reading, writing, discussion and viewing of documentaries dealing with the production and direction of famous films as well as some of the films themselves.
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PREREQUISITES: None

COURSE TOPICS:
1. The Producer’s Job
2. The Director’s Job
3. The Office & The Set
4. Film Financing
5. Budgeting & Scheduling
6. Crewing & Casting
7. Legal Aspects of Film Production
8. Distribution
9. Business & Creative Decision Making



COURSE COMPETENCIES: The student will be able to:

1. Conceive a plan for financing a film.
2. Be able to chart an organizational structure for a film production.
3. Break down a script.
4. Budget a script.
5. Make a strip board and a shooting schedule.
6. Be familiar with standard contracts and deal memos.
7. Understand the various ways films and filmmakers make money.
8. Structure a production crew.
9. Understand creative aspects of the producer/director relationship.
10. Identify the steps of the production process.
11. Explore the possibilities of independent film production and the Internet.



GRADING OPPORTUNITIES:
A total of seven grading opportunities will be given:
 two (2) examinations (40% of final grade)
 two (2) projects (40% of final grade): selected final paper/presentation projects
 class participation (20% of final grade)

STUDENT LEARNING ASSESSMENT:
Participation (discussion, role playing)
Class projects
Homework (independent reading & viewing)
Final project

GRADING CRITERION:
This general grading criterion might not be applicable to all projects, but can be used as the projects’ guide in relation to the overall student learning objectives for the course:
 concept - 40%
 design & execution - 30%
 presentation - 30%

Concept is based on your ideas leading up to the project. Did you explore all viable options for the project? Did you solve all design problems/issues with the given project? The start of your process is the concept.

Design is based on artistic rendering of the project. Did you aesthetically layout the project in a manner keeping true to what the project called for?

Execution is based on your technical aspects of the project. Do you have any typos? Are there technical issues with your project that take away from its design? The end of your process is the execution.

Presentation is based on your physical presentation of your project and when you are presenting the project for critique.

HANDWRITTEN WORK, no matter how neat you think it is, is not accepted.

GRADING SCALE:

A 4.0 94-100 B- 2.7 80-83 D+ 1.4 67-69
A- 3.7 90-93 C+ 2.4 77-79 D 1.0 60-66
B+ 3.4 87-89 C 2.0 74-76 D- N/A
B 3.0 84-86 C- 1.7 70-73 F 0.0 0-59


CLASSROOM POLICIES:

Holidays: This quarter has ____0___ holidays

Required Text(s): none

Recommended Text(s): “Making Movies”, Sidney Lumet

Required Supplies: Specifics will be outlined in project sheets.

Late Work: Assignments must be in on the date identified in the syllabus (or project sheet) and at the beginning of class. Late projects will not be accepted. Any deviation of this policy will be extremely rare and at the discretion of the instructor.

Sleeping in Class: Sleeping in class is not permitted and will not be tolerated.

Food/Beverages: Food and non-sealed beverage containers are not permitted in any classroom, lab or studio.

Cell Phones and other electronic devices: Cell phone usage is not permitted in any classroom, lab or studio. All cell phones, beepers, games, two-way radios (Nextel), or any other communication device must be turned off before entering the classroom. Leaving the class to take/make a phone call is not permitted unless it is an absolute emergency.

Plagiarism: Plagiarism will not be tolerated and may lead to immediate expulsion from the class and/or college. Plagiarism includes taking words, ideas, or artwork from anyone else and presenting it as your own or not citing properly in accordance with APA Style Guide.

Saving Work: It is the student’s responsibility to save his or her work to disk. Multiple copies should be saved and verified prior to leaving the classroom. The teacher is in no way responsible for the work saved on hard drives, nor is he/she bound to give an extension on work improperly saved. The hard drives will get purged regularly. Students are expected to back up all work. Loss, theft, computer failure, etc. are not acceptable excuses.

CAMPUS POLICIES:

Add/Drop: The first six (6) academic days (not including Saturdays, Sundays and holidays) of each quarter are designated as the schedule adjustment period. During this time, students may make registration adjustments (adding, dropping, or changing days/times of courses) without financial penalty.

Attendance: The Art Institute of Tampa policy requires students to attend a minimum of 82% (36 hours) of scheduled course hours in order to receive a passing grade in a course. Attendance will be taken twice in a class period. Once at the beginning of the 4 hour period and once after returning from the second break. Every student is required to remain for the full class period. If you are not present within 10 minutes of each roll call, you will be marked as half absent. Two half absences will function as the equivalent of 1 absence.

ADA Statement: To meet the needs of our students with disabilities, The Art Institute offers reasonable accommodations for qualified students with disabilities. Students or applicants who would like to request reasonable accommodations should contact the Student Services Coordinator for the school. Students with disabilities are encouraged to contact your instructor and the Dean of Student Affairs in advance of the quarter of study when accommodations are needed.

PARTICIPATION CRITERIA:
Excellent
A (93-100)
A- (90-92)
Outstanding participation. The student is actively engaged in every facet of the class. He/She comes to every class session ready to engage in informed discussion bases on a thorough and critical reading of their homework assigned material (if applicable), and he/she maintains complete critical reading notes and brings it to every class session and keeps copies of everything in their journal. The student makes extraordinary contribution to the class through consistently thoughtful, well focused, and original examples. The student works collaboratively with his/her classmates and instructor and the student seeks assistance should he/she need it. The student misses no classes.

Very Good/Good
B+ (87-89)
B (83-86)
B- (80-82)
Good participation. The student is actively engaged in most facets of the class. He/She comes to every class session ready to engage in informed discussion based on a careful reading of the assigned material, and he/she maintains substantial number of critical reading notes and brings it to most class sessions. The student makes a solid contribution to the class through regular relevant and thoughtful comments, questions and examples. The student works collaboratively with his/her classmates and instructor and the student is likely to seek assistance should he/she need it. The student misses the maximum of one class.

Satisfactory
C+ (77-79)
C (73-76)
C- (70-72)
Average participation. The student is actively engaged in some facet of the class. He/She comes to many class sessions ready to engage in informed discussion based on a general reading of the assigned material, including few critical reading notes and brings it to many class sessions. The student makes a contribution to the class through general, incomplete and/or tangential comments. The student, for the most part, works collaboratively with his/her classmates and instructor and is not likely to seek assistance on his/her own. The student misses two class sessions.

Below Average
D (60-64)
Poor participation. The student rarely demonstrated an active engagement in some facets of the class. He/She comes to many class sessions unprepared for informed discussion, and his/her critical reading notes are substantially incomplete and rarely bring it to the class sessions. The student does not collaborate with his/her classmates and instructor and the student is not likely to seek assistance on his/her own or even with direction. The student misses two-three class sessions.

Failure
F (0-59)
Unacceptable participation. The student is not an active member of the class.

SYLLABUS CHANGES:
Syllabus is subject to change at the instructor’s discretion. Awareness of these changes is the student’s responsibility

CLASS SCHEDULE:

MON TUE WED THU FRI
Week01
______ Meet with instructor
Week02
______ Production structure
Week03
______ Film financing
Week04
______ Budgeting & Scheduling
Week05
______ EXAM
Week06
______ Casting & Crewing
Week07
______ Contracts & Legal
Week08
______ Permits & Unions
Week09
______ Distribution
Week10
______ EXAM
Week11
______ Presentations
FV2001: Producing & Directing
This class is setup to have something due every week. There will be at least one workday or makeup each quarter that will allow for cancelled classes or holidays that run into scheduled classes.
All projects, unless specified, will involve an idea week and a presentation week.
On idea week you will present your idea for the project. We will have a critique that will aid you in avoiding unreasonable projects for the allotted time frame and making your project stronger.
On presentation week you will bring in your completed project for an in class critique along with delivering all of your deliverables due for the specified project.
11 Week Course Breakdown
Week 1
Discussion: Introduction, Syllabus, Instructor, Creativity, Critical Thinking.
The Jobs of Producing and Directing.
Film: None
Assignment: Journal Entry, Research Project
Reading: “Making Movies”, Sidney Lumet

Week 2
Due Today: Journal Entry
Discussion: Business Structure of Film Production
Film: TBA
Assignment: Journal Entry
Reading: Ongoing

Week 3
Due Today: Journal Entry
Discussion: Film Financing
Film: TBA
Assignment: Journal Entry,
Reading: Ongoing

Week 4
Due Today: Journal Entry
Discussion: Film Budgeting and Scheduling
Film: TBA
Assignment: Journal Entry
Reading: Ongoing

Week 5 - - - MID TERM - - -
Due Today: Journal Entry
Discussion: Project Presentation & Assessment
Film: TBA
Assignment: Journal Entry
Reading: Ongoing

Week 6
Due Today: Journal Entry
Discussion: Casting and Crewing
Film: TBA
Assignment: Journal Entry
Reading: Ongoing



Week 7
Due Today: Journal Entry
Discussion: Contracts and Legal
Film: TBA
Assignment: Journal Entry
Reading: Ongoing

Week 8
Due Today: Journal Entry
Discussion: Permits and Unions
Film: TBA
Assignment: Journal Entry
Reading: Ongoing

Week 9
Due Today: Journal Entry
Discussion: Film Distribution
Film: TBA
Assignment: Journal Entry
Reading: Ongoing

Week 10
EXAM: FINAL EXAMINATION
Due Today: Journal Entry, Project Presentation & Assessment
Discussion: None
Film: TBA
Assignment: None
Reading: None

Week 11
CRITIQUE: Project Presentation & Assessment

COURSE NUMBER: FV2001
COURSE NAME: Fundamentals of Producing & Directing
INSTRUCTOR: Tom Hammond








 I have completely read and fully understand the contents of this syllabus
 I take full responsibility for living up to these obligations including, but not limited to attendance, participation, notes, quizzes, projects, etc.
 I will ask for help/assistance (both in and out of class) if needed



Student Signature: ______________________ Instructor Signature: __________________________

Print Name: ___________________________ Print Name: ________________________________

Date: ________________________________ Date: _____________________________________