KPB217 Screen Crafts: Experiments

Unit Outline: Semester 1 2024, Kelvin Grove, Internal

Overview

This unit examines various forms of experimentation in relation to creative works, challenging you to think beyond mainstream cinema. Filmmakers must push the aesthetic and narrative boundaries of cinema in order to find their own distinctive voice and style. In this unit, you will have the chance to do so, testing your imaginative limits and creative abilities through vision and sound. Evolution in all fields of screen production results from creativity. Successful practitioners of screen content require the opportunity to develop their creative potential through experimentation. Building on prior knowledge acquired in earlier units, you will be encouraged to become wilfully nonconformist in approach, drawing on a wide range of traditions from within the genre of Experimental or Avant-Garde filmmaking.

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit you will be able to:

1. Interpret and apply industry standards with regard to experimental productions.
2. Experiment in specialist areas within the major fields of production in order to realise creative works.
3. Apply practical skills in specialist areas within the fields of production.

Content

Learning Approaches

The unit will consist of lectures, workshops and tutorials. The lectures include some formal instruction, illustrated by video clips and short film screenings. You are expected to participate in discussions, tutorial & workshop exercises, and production activities in a positive spirit of learning. You will be required to undertake work outside set class times on your own and on other collaborative experimental productions, working both individually and in groups. While specific group process skills will be taught, it is the responsibility of individual students to work on development of constructive attitudes to your group and its members. This calls for self-discipline and self-awareness.

Feedback on Learning and Assessment

During the tutorial and workshop sessions you will receive formative assessment in the form of:

• discussion and feedback on concepts and design of your screen content assignments
• solving any problems experienced during practice and production
• feedback on any exercises during practice and production.

In addition you will be encouraged to learn how to give constructive feedback to your peers over the course of the unit, and in turn receive peer feedback.

Assessment

Overview

There are two assessments for this unit where you will apply your specialist skills, experiment with the creative screen forms, ensuring you apply industry standards throughout the process. The first assessment is an individual assignment where you create a short-form experimental film and the second is a collaborative project where you are assessed as a group and individually as a specialist crew member on a longer-form experimental production.

Faculty Assessment Information
To access the Creative Industries Faculty Assessment Information see the Canvas site for this unit. This includes information about late assignments and assignment extensions.

Unit Grading Scheme

7- point scale

Assessment Tasks

Assessment: Short-form Experimental Film

A short-form experimental project on which you have been the primary creative force. You will be encouraged to be wilfully non-conformist in order to generate an intellectual or emotional response in your audience.

This is an assignment for the purposes of an extension.

Assessment: Specialist Crew Demonstration

Demonstration of proficiency and effectiveness in one or more specialist crew roles on a short-form, group experimental project. You are required to demonstrate your individual technical and professional skills in production management, writing, directing, camera and lighting, sound recording, vision and post sound editing on a nominated production / creative work.

Academic Integrity

Students are expected to engage in learning and assessment at QUT with honesty, transparency and fairness. Maintaining academic integrity means upholding these principles and demonstrating valuable professional capabilities based on ethical foundations.

Failure to maintain academic integrity can take many forms. It includes cheating in examinations, plagiarism, self-plagiarism, collusion, and submitting an assessment item completed by another person (e.g. contract cheating). It can also include providing your assessment to another entity, such as to a person or website.

You are encouraged to make use of QUT’s learning support services, resources and tools to assure the academic integrity of your assessment. This includes the use of text matching software that may be available to assist with self-assessing your academic integrity as part of the assessment submission process.

Further details of QUT’s approach to academic integrity are outlined in the Academic integrity policy and the Student Code of Conduct. Breaching QUT’s Academic integrity policy is regarded as student misconduct and can lead to the imposition of penalties ranging from a grade reduction to exclusion from QUT.

Resources

Resource Materials

Recommended text(s)

Bordwell, D. and Thompson, K. (2010) (10th Ed) Film Art, An Introduction. New York: McGraw-Hill.

Mollison, M. (2010) (3rd ed) Producing Videos: A Complete Guide. Sydney: Allen and Unwin.

Risk Assessment Statement

All students and staff are required to complete the Tier 1 CIF General Health and Safety Induction for access to campus buildings and facilities. This must be completed online.

This unit also requires a Tier 2 CIF Health and Safety Induction for any student undertaking learning  or production activities in the Z6 TV Studio. This induction will be provided by teaching staff on-site in the TV studio in week 1. All students enrolled in an internal mode are required to complete this Tier 2 induction.

Every project is different and the risks are unique to that project. Students working on film and television productions are required to provide an appropriate risk plan for their projects prior to receiving equipment.

The risk plan should look at the scope of the project and document responses to possible scenarios that might be encountered. The prevention and avoidance of risk should be addressed by: ELIMINATION of the risk, SUBSTITUTION of the risk, ISOLATION of the risk, ENGINEERING to remove the risk, ADMINISTRATION of the risk and the use of PERSONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT.

Note that if, in your considered opinion, there is a potential for an accident to occur, the activity should be abandoned and advice sought from specialists, supervisors or lecturers. It should be noted that even if this risk plan has been done and/or advice and consultation has been sought from lecturers or other consultants, the liability for risk management still rests, in the final instance, with the students responsible for the project.

A QUT Risk Plan Form for Student Productions and an accompanying Risk Plan Guidelines should be accessed and downloaded from the unit's Canvas site.

Course Learning Outcomes

KK34 Bachelor of Fine Arts

1. Identify and demonstrate knowledge of the techniques and concepts underpinning your field of creative practice.
   Relates to: ULO1
2. Demonstrate complex problem solving through iterative experimentation and the creative and critical development of ideas and outcomes.
   Relates to: ULO2
3. Demonstrate technical proficiency in at least one area of your field of creative practice.
   Relates to: ULO3
4. Discern, critically analyse and synthesise knowledge in complex creative practice settings.
   Relates to: ULO1, ULO2
5. Work productively as a leader and collaborator in disciplinary and interdisciplinary creative practice.
   Relates to: ULO3