Prepping for this Project: Readings and Films
Sometime between March 3 and classtime on March 23/24, do the following:
- For the subject of your paper, watch at the Fargo Film Festival: 5 "shorts" OR 1 feature-length film. The festival runs day and night from Tues., March 1 to Sat. March 5. www.fargofilmfestival.org/documents/FFF2011web.pdf
If you are/were unable to attend the festival, then you should watch 5 shorts or 1 feature-length film via IndiePix. (Instructions for this were sent out over email).
Please watch these 2 films by class time, March 23/24, after Spring Break.
- For class discussion and background, watch 2 films on your own. Via rental, Amazon.com, Netflix, purchase, or other, watch Miss Congeniality and True Stories. MC is readily available at most rental shops, and I can also loan you a copy. TS may be a little harder to find; I can also loan out copies of this film. (Take care to find the right True Stories; I believe there are movies out there with similar titles. You want the one directed by and starring David Bryne.) Note: I DO NOT recommend watching these movies on YouTube.
- Also for background, read/view our Power Point presentations on Scott McCloud's triangle, as well as one called Working with Project #3: Reading Film .
- Read two .pdf essays located in Bb "Project Assignments and Resources/Project #3 Folder":
- “Bill Nichols’ Discussion of Art Cinema vs. Classical Hollywood etc.”
- “Blake Snyder’s Discussion of Film Formulas.”
- Read/skim:
- “Some Basic Formalist Film Terminology”:
www.ndsu.edu/pubweb/~cinichol/357/Film Terminology Basic.htm
Paper Instructions
Now write a short, 3-4 page article for The High Plains Reader or the Fargo Forum in which you help the Fargo-Moorhead community better understand and appreciate one of the films featured in this year's festival--and to better appreciate the Fargo Theater generally. (Your essay will be about the Festival movie you saw or the IndiePix pieces you alternately viewed—NOT Miss Congeniality and True Stories. Those two are for CLASS DISCUSSION purposes only; they aren't the subject of your essay.) Using the McCloud triangle as your framework, you will
- briefly explain the McCloud triangle;
- explain where on the triangle your film(s) is best located, citing at least some specific examples of formal techniques or thematic strategies which supoort your claim;
- explain how this information gives us insight into both the film and the culture which produced it;
- develop a comprehensive thesis, and support it throughout with plenty of specific examples and details;
- integrate into your essay at least two meaningful connections to the readings assigned for this project.
Draft due: March 30/31. Bring 2 hardcopies to class.
Final version due: April 13/14.
Note: this is not a visual assignment, strictly speaking, but all essays have a visual component. Pay special heed to formatting, and feel free to use images, which of course are appropriate for newspaper articles.
Purpose and Audience
This assignment prompts you to be a more informed viewer of visual media generally and film in particular. You'll learn about film festivals and gain a heightened awareness of narrative conventions in different film categories. The assignment also gives you practice with the good old-fashioned printed word, in this case the classification essay.
Your audience will depend on which newspaper you are writing for, and the particular needs of that audience. If you're not familiar with the Forum and/or HPR, you'll need to acquaint yourself by reading a number of issues.
No matter which paper you ultimately choose, you will of course need to pay careful attention to sentence style and mechanics. It would look very bad to submit an article for publication that is full of basic errors!
Evaluation Criteria
Your essay has a clear introduction, body, and conclusion.
Your introduction presents a clear thesis regarding where, on the McCloud triangle, the film you viewed is best located.
Your introduction makes clear why your subject and thesis matter to a reader of either the Fargo Forum or the High Plains Reader.
Your thesis is reaffirmed throughout the body, and then amplified at the end.
Your essay supports its thesis with specific facts, information, reasons, examples, and analysis drawn from class readings, web links, and Power Point presentations.
Your essay uses specific vocabulary drawn from course materials.
Your paragraphs are well-developed and focused, with one claim per paragraph and plenty of specific details to support that claim.
Your paragraphs included helpful transitions (implicit or explicit).
Your sentences are edited for clarity, concision, and elegance.
Your sentences are proofread for mechanical errors such as run-ons, comma splices, typos, spell-check bloopers, etc. This is especially important given that you audience, in part, are editors of newspapers who have a sharp eye for such lapses.
Your essay is formatted for visual consistentency and appeal. Use MLA manuscript format: click here for instructions.
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