Film Colloquium is a gathering of all students and faculty in the Digital Filmmaking Program. This weekly meeting usually presents a guest speaker from the film industry. These speakers are questioned by a student group and by the class at-large. Guests discuss diverse topics covering all aspects of the film industry.
This course provides students with an overview of the film industry from a business perspective. Students will prepare business plans, select content, secure funding and intellectual property rights, hire talent, market, and plan core phases of production from conception to completion.
FILM M115 Intro to Digital Filmmaking 3 crs.
An introduction to the practical aspects of developing the three basic types of films: documentaries, performance, and feature films. This includes basic lighting techniques, camera operation and an introduction to non-linear editing.
There is a lab fee of $75 for this course for minors & non-majors.
FILM M120 Development & Distribution 3 crs.
This course introduces students to the core stages necessary to begin a marketable film, TV or web based production. Students will work in teams to research content, create budgets, solicit funding, select locations, plot schedules, develop marketing strategies, and target viable distribution markets. Several different genres will be examined in this collaborative process.
Prerequisites: FILM M110 Intro to the Business of Film
FILM M125 Script to Screen 3 crs.
An intensive practical experience in writing & directing in digital filmmaking, video & other new media. Students will complete a professional quality short film, writing, producing, casting and directing their own work.
Prerequisites: FILM M115 Intro to Dig. Filmmaking
FILM M150 Film Theory & Process 3 crs.
This course analyses some of the great films of the modern era by choices the directors made and studying the use of camera, lighting, sound, actors/acting, production design, music and the many creative choices that make a film great. This course examines why these choices were made and how they affect the result.
FILM M200 Post Production Supervision 3 crs.
A practical survey of the role of the post production supervisor as it relates to film, television and other forms of media production. This multifaceted position incorporates technical, managerial and supervisory skills while guiding a project into post and through delivery. Attention is paid to VFx, scoring, sound mixing and color grading.
FILM M210 Practical Film Lighting 3 crs.
This course will introduce you to lighting design theory and practice. There will be discussions of aesthetics, techniques, and principles. You will be required to draft by hand and computer, sketch your ideas, and formulate lighting design approaches for film and television.
Prerequisites: FILM M115 Intro to Dig. Filmmaking
There is a lab fee of $75 for this course for minors & non-majors.
FILM M215 Cinematography 3 crs.
A hands-on introduction to the art and practice of cinematography. Students will learn the principles, elements, techniques, procedures and equipment that go into shooting digital video and film. Emphasis will be on how to achieve control of lighting, framing, movement, and image manipulation in order to shape mood, convey emotion, and tell story.
Prerequisites: FILM M115 Intro to Dig. Filmmaking
There is a lab fee of $75 for this course for minors & non-majors.
FILM M220 Audio for Film and Television 3 crs.
A practical survey of audio recording, editing and mixing for film, television and other distribution mediums. Topics include project supervision and coordination, recording techniques, sound editing and mixing, room acoustics, media management, and post production workflows.
Prerequisites: FILM M115 Intro to Dig. Filmmaking
There is a lab fee of $75 for this course for minors & non-majors.
FILM M230 Digital Editing 3 crs.
A basic introduction into the theoretical and practical aspects of video editing, including the use of Final Cut Pro, Avid, and other editing platforms.
Prerequisite: FILM M115 Intro to Dig. Filmmaking
There is a lab fee of $75 for this course for minors & non-majors.
FILM M310 Visual Effects for Film 3 crs.
Visual Effects for Film is a wide-ranging topic and could be an entire course of study. Here, we will focus on several core CGI techniques that are commonly used in the film and television industry. This course will present the concepts of digital compositing, matte painting, rotoscoping, digital erasing and creation, and motion tracking. Students will gain hands-on experience manipulating foreground and background images.
Prerequisites: FILM M115 Intro to Dig. Filmmaking
There is a lab fee of $75 for this course for minors & non-majors.
FILM M315 Directing for Camera 3 crs.
Focusing more on nuts and bolts than theory and with emphasis on dramatic, narrative filmmaking, classes will typically introduce the various challenges of that week’s subject in the first hour, go into detail on technique in the second, and spend the third dealing with exceptions and special problems. Extensive use of case studies and role-playing will teach students the on-the-fly problem solving that is the lifeblood of film directing.
Prerequisites: MUGN M225 Digital Audio Production
FILM M320 Digital Pre-Visualization 3 crs.
This course presents the evolution, practice and techniques used in pre-visualization: the process of rehearsing complex set designs, lighting and actions within a virtual domain prior to the filming on a production set. Creative, practical and economic advantages are discussed through lectures; Current techniques including computerized storyboarding are taught and practiced through the planning, designing and creating of pre-visualized effect sequences.
Prerequisites: FILM M310 Visual Effects for Film
There is a lab fee of $75 for this course for minors & non-majors.
FILM M340 Documentary Filmmaking 3 crs.
This course introduces students to the art of documentary filmmaking and the professional skills used in the field. The course practices non-fiction filmmaking from the conceptualization of an idea through post-production. Students will learn visual storytelling and interview techniques and the different documentary traditions, genres, and styles.
Prerequisites: A grade of C or higher in FILM M115
FILM M420 Post-Production Workshop 3 crs.
Providing extensive hands-on training in sound, editing, graphics, and other post-production topics in filmmaking. Currently used practices found in today’s film and television industry will provide experience directly related to working in this field. Also, the class will collaborate with other courses in related topic areas.
Prerequisites: FILM M220 Audio for Film & TV
FILM M450 Senior Film Project 3 crs.
Capstone class of advanced study in the production of a single professional-quality film or video or other new media. This project is directly aimed at career development and creating a significant resume item to enhance employment and/or graduate school opportunities for each student. May be spread over both semesters of senior year.
Prerequisites: SR status, FILM M315 and MUIN M310