FILM AND VISUAL STORYTELLING

The course provides a basic introduction to the world of film, including a brief history and the technology and tools that have made film possible. The course though is focused primarily on film as the arrangement of images into something we call a story. Together we examine the process of telling stories with moving images – that is how to craft a story in relation to composition, color, sound, and editing. We explore two main film genres, narrative and documentary, and discuss how storytelling is fundamental to them. For narrative film we examine dramatic storytelling aspects such as mise-en-scène, concept, character, theme, plot, and dialog. In documentary film we explore how filmmakers can incorporate strong, often character-driven stories that also have a beginning, middle and end. We look at how they can raise issues with much at stake, offer rising tensions, and still utilize a narrative arc that keeps viewers actively engaged. We look also at experimental/avant-garde films, that is non-narrative forms of filmmaking, which focus on movement, rhythm, and composition, because ideas and techniques from this genre have and continue to influence story-based filmmaking.