ENGLISH 307

Free Tibet (iMovie)

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iMovie Final Cut: Free Tibet

Facebook group: Free Tibet Group

Production Schedule

Working with others on your project team (most likely a subset of the "medium group," if there are several different projects being created in this medium"), you will create a Production Schedule for your project.

Steps:

Find at least one internet source that discusses production in the medium (e.g., "blog production," or "web production"). Post the link iMovie Tutorial 1 This Tutorial is just one of several, which the author provides on Youtube.
Using the information from this source, along with the criteria from your rubric, create a list (on your wiki page) of everything you will have to do in order to achieve an "A" on the project. See "To Do List" below. In order to achieve and "A" on this project I will be required to:
1. Provide information which is consistent, accuarate, and serves to provide an informational and useful statement.
2. Utliize as many of the skills which I will be given from the iMovie seminar to the best of my ability.
3. Utilize music as an element intended to not only capture the viewers attention but to also provide a suitable and appropriate atmosphere for the movie.
4. Employ the aid of effects to make the movie eye catching
5. Present text in an easily readable format which is deliever to the viewer, rather than something which the viewer has to search for to read or understand.
Agree upon what a midterm "draft" of the project will be (ie., what the project will look like when it is halfway finished) and get my approval on this. If you are working with any form of digital storytelling (video production or podcasting), plan to be finished with shooting and/or recording by this date (i.e., by midterm, you should have all the raw footage of your piece completed and have only editing and post-production left to do). For a Midterm draft I would expect to have all of the images, music, and text fairly finalized and would be in the editing and fine tuning process of the project.
Plan to have that "draft" completed by the beginning of class on April 21. This week you will also plan to meet with the technology trainer to follow up on the project, anticipate next steps, and possibly revise your plans. Add this meeting (and scheduling it) to your "To Do" list.
Assign tasks to particular people in the group in order to meet that April 21 deadline, using the "Person Responsible" line, as shown in the Production Schedule below. Make sure that the workload is evenly distributed amongst all group members. Assign these tasks using the "Production Schedule" below.
Using your list from #2, figure out what tasks remain after April 21 to complete the project at the "A" level by May 5. Assign tasks to individuals, using the same principles you used for #5. (If you are doing a video or a podcast, you will publish your piece to the appropriate web community ON MAY 5 -- or as shortly thereafter as possible --, but ALL production will be complete by this date.
Revise your Project Proposal accordingly and plan to submit a final version of it on the wiki, along with your group's Production Schedule (see below for where you should attach the revised proposal -- use the "Attach File" icon on the toolbar above to upload the document).

TO DO LIST (See #2 above)

iMovie workshop scheduled for Friday, April 11th.
Compile data
Narrow information down into a workable volume
Find music for project
Gather Images
Add texts/fact and synch with images and music

[just continue to hit return after each entry above and you will continue to generate more numbers for each new line in your list].

MIDTERM DRAFT

(See #3 above)

PRODUCTION SCHEDULE

M March 31 (PREPRODUCTION)

To do: Schedule group a) training and b) a "midterm"/follow-up meeting with Tera Doty-Blance (type dates of meetings below).

Person responsible: _________________________

M April 7 (PREPRODUCTION/PRODUCTION)

Deadline: Project Proposal, Rubric, Production Schedule, and pre-filled Peer Evaluation forms

M April 14 (PRODUCTION)

Deadline: Have met with trainer

M April 21 (PRODUCTION/POSTPRODUCTION)

Deadline: Draft of Project due

M April 28 (POSTPRODUCTION)

M May 5 (PUBLISH)

Deadline: Final draft due

Revised Project Proposal Attached Here:

Eng 307 Tibet project proposal.doc

This assignment extends the analytic and interpretive skills of the Five Principles to a creative element. As implied in the discussion of participatory media (above), "production" necessarily involves the following steps:

1) Finding something you "really care about" and identifying exactly how you feel about it.

I have decided to cover the recently highlighted issue involving the Chinese government’s historical oppression of the Tibetans. I would like to touch on the fact that China is scheduled to hold the next Olympics while they obviously practice less than Olympic ideals and values.

2) Figuring out what you want done about it.

I think that people need to become more aware of what is happening and subsequently need to start making demands of their governments to take action on those responsible. As a world community collectively involved in the Olympics, we all need to express our disgust over what has been happening. Ultimately, I really want people to form a stance and opinion that surpasses the sensational headlines of news papers. I want to inspire someone to take it one step further than just saying “look how sad that is, someone should do something”…and then move on to the next cause which is conveniently placed on the breakfast table in the morning along with their coffee. I would like people to hear the whole story and realize that this is something that has been going on for a long time and has only recently become popular because of politics involving the Olympics, and to hopefully remain interest and concerned after the Olympics have come and gone and there is a new headline in the paper.

3) Determining which audience is the best to communicate with in order to achieve your goal

OR (there may be several) Which -- of these possible audiences -- do you most want to communicate with?

I feel that targeting my message toward the college community would be most effective, as many people found within this group are very active in social causes and speaking out against injustice. Maybe a clever technique for circulating this video and information would be to publish the iMovie to Youtube and the to form a group on facebook which would address the topic and then provide a link to my iMovie. I could then invite Cortland students via facebook to join the group and become active in one of the many established organizations that are out there.

4) Deciding which medium will best help you achieve your goal? This is where you select the medium.

I think that I would like to use iMovie to convey my message. I feel the emotional impact of pictures and music combined with facts would have a great affect on the audience. I have always personally found movies as such, which integrate carefully photos and facts along with an emotional soundtrack to be effective as a medium.

5) Deciding upon how you will construct your message. < Production

Using the tools available to you in this medium, how will you use it to help achieve your goal?

As mentioned I would like to integrate music, pictures, and text to form the basis of this film. Since this is a large issue I will have to do a lot of research and then narrow the information down to a sufficient, but small enough quantity in order to effectively convey the facts and the message, while making it suitable for the length of the film.

Context:

Tibet’s desire to be recognized as a free and separate entity from China has long been recognized by the world and has drawn massive amounts of media coverage. Presently every news syndicate is covering this story mainly because of the Olympics which are scheduled to take place in China; however this issue stems from a much deeper place. When anyone thinks of Tibet they undoubtedly conjure up a picture in their mind of a Buddhist monk wearing an orange robe. Tibet is exactly in some respects as we see it – it is a place which harbors a unique culture of ancient tradition and this is how its occupants wish to remain. According to a website which is an International Campaign for Tibet, “In 1949, following the foundation of the Chinese Communist state, the People's Liberation Army invaded Tibet and soon overpowered its poorly equipped army and guerilla resistance.”( http://www.savetibet.org/tibet/index.php ) and from this point on the Tibetans have been in a constant struggle for freedom marked by many ups and downs.

Contribution:

From what I have seen in my research so far, the majority of major news sources have strayed in particular from the history which created this conflict. What the most publications focus on is primarily the recent riots, the damage which has resulted, riots and protests in various regions around the world which have passed the Olympic torch, and how the United States and rest of the world is going to respond in turn. Everything out there is based on the present and is more concerned with this struggle which has been going on since 1949 only because it has to do with the Olympics and presents a hot topic amid the presidential debates. I personally find this very wrong and a quote which I found sums this concept up perfectly, “Free Tibet movementeers and gatherings of college kids scattered hither and yon, no one bothers to think about Tibet except when it's fashionable, like now; the oppression it experiences today is substantively no different than it was ten years ago, or twenty years before that. Which in no way excuses the oppression, but does go to show that no one's forced servitude is above exploitation in an election year.” (http://m.nypost.com/ms/p/nyp/nyp/view.m?pid=23772&storyid=106243). This is why I hope to create an iMovie which mostly highlights the historic struggle and injustices and only towards the end makes a connection to the recent media coverage. I want to inform people of the whole story, which they are obviously not getting from the news.

Conversation and Connectivity:

Obviously, with this being an iMovie there will no live interaction with the viewers and me; however I hope that the nature of the film will in and of itself bridge that gap. We have observed in this class how the media uses various techniques to persuade consumers into seeing a particular view point and this is exactly what I want to do. My goal is to use a combination of text(facts), pictures and music to create an iMovie that has an effect on a viewer as a Hollywood movie does. The combination of these three mediums is truly an art form which can be easily seen in any movie theatre as the film maker dictates the emotions of the viewers with strategic placement and combination of these resources. If I am successful I will evoke interest, sympathy, and desire to take action and learn more from my viewers.

Content:

I would like to focus on the history and origins of the conflict as mentioned in the context section. In addition I would like to trace this conflict from its beginnings to the present and aim to bring the civil rights violations which are taking place to light, such as the restriction of speech and oppression of religious rights and lack of freedom of the press. I also want to touch upon the repercussions which this historic situation has had on the people of Tibet, those which most would not immediately attribute to this cause, ranging from destruction and exploitation of the Tibetans resources and environment to the price which these people are paying as a result of being held back from health care and education.

Complexity:

As previously mentioned I am really looking to find a harmony between music, images, and text. The complexity of this project will lie in my attempt to make it as professional as possible, which ultimately equates to making it more believable and powerful within the viewers mind. I would like to include some resources and sites which would provide outlets the viewers can later explore if they would like; however, I really feel the success of this project lies in subtle complexities (aka creating a good flow to the iMovie).

6) Deciding upon where you will broadcast your message and how will you make sure that people concerned

with the issue learn about it?

I plan to initially broadcast my film in our classroom; however if I am completely satisfied with it’s success I would like to submit it to Youtube and any other websites or organizations which might find it useful or interesting. After all, as we can see from multiple instance and occurrences in society, it only takes the right person to see something or to be inspired to take action in order to effectively make a change for the good. As mentioned earlier I think that first introducing the iMovie in the classroom and then possibly on a facebook group would be effective.

Weekly Peer Reflection

Pre-fill "Confidential Peer Evaluation" forms

Once you are finished with the Production Schedule, copy and paste from it in order to pre-fill the weekly "Confidential Peer Evaluation" forms and attach the completed, pre-filled form beneath the appropriate date below.

Pre-fill it by following these directions:

Open this form Eval Form
Type your group's name in "Group" blank on the first line
Type "4/7/08" in the "Date of Meeting/Assessment" blank
Type the names of individual group members and the tasks assigned to them to be completed by April 7 on the appropriate blanks on the form (cut and paste from the Production Schedule)
Save this form and attach it in the blank beneath April 7 below, so that individual group members can individually dowload and complete the form before class on April 7
Repeat steps 1-5 for April 14-May 5

Be sure to divide this inputting among group members so that the work is equitably divided amongst group members. DUE: March 31

WEEKLY: Complete the "Confidential Peer Evaluation" forms

Each week, each group member will download one copy of that week's form, evaluate each group member's performance (including him or herself) BEFORE class begins, and submit the confidential form to me at the beginning of class. Forms not completed before class will not be accepted, and the indivdiual will receive "0" points for that week's assessment.

If individual tasks have changed since the form was first pre-filled, be sure to note these changes on the wiki no later than Monday at 8am for that day's evaluation.