Required Texts (available at the bookstore):Grades1. Writeups (40%)2. Links to Blackboard (15%):3. Midterm project (15%) – Due October 9, 2008 (Please choose ONE of the following):4. Final Paper (20%) – Due December 11, 2008Professor's AvailabilityOther Rules and PoliciesCheating and Academic DishonestyStudents with DisabilitiesTentative Schedule of TopicsFMS 481- Entertainment TechnologiesFall '08Tues, Thurs 4:30PM - 5:45PM, Durham Lang & Lit 648C Professor: Carol VernallisEmail: [email protected] hours: Tuesdays: 3:00 – 4:00 p.m.Thursdays: 3:00 – 4:00 p.mOther times by appointmentOffice: Language and Literatures Bldg – Rm 645CPhone: (480) 965-6748Course Overview: Have the techniques and technologies of the digital era so transformed cinema that they’ve changed the nature of viewers' experiences? This course addresses this question through examining contemporary cinema from a variety of angles: new technologies such as pre-visualization, CGI, Avid editing and Pro-Tools; recent changes in cinematic practices like acting, music composition and lighting; shifting forms of industry organization and production culture; varied modes of distribution and reception; and many styles shared globally and across genres. We’ll pay special attention to the relations between image and sound. Contemporary cinema suggests that new sound-image relations have emerged within three main stylistic configurations: (1) "Intensified continuity," a term coined by David Bordwell to describe a cluster of framing and editing techniques); (2) new CGI, digital intermediary, and other post-production techniques; (3) "self referential," "neo-baroque,” or "meta-cinematic" styles (prismatic story-lines, arch or auteurist work, often structured around music). Because these new configurations are currently unfolding, not much scholarship exists: as we study these phenomena we might want to think of ourselves more as field investigators and future media-makers than as passive consumers of information. We'll read from a wide range of sources, and we’ll watch and listen to many examples, always asking what they show us: can we take what we've noticed and apply it to other materials and domains?Course GoalsThis course aims to help you to develop critical thinking analytic and research skills reading and writing skills visual and aural literacy an engagement with aesthetic forms an awareness of the interplay of technology, aesthetics, economics, social organizations and culture historically and at this moment.Note: This syllabus is dynamic and subject to change. I will announce all changes; it is your responsibility to stay informed, even if you are absent or out of town. Due dates are absolute. 1Late writing assignments will be penalized. No exceptions. Required Texts (available at the bookstore): David Bordwell's The Way Hollywood Tells It: Story and Style in Modern Movies (University of California Press, 2006) ISBN: 978-0520246225 Michel Chion’s Audio-Vision (Columbia University Press, 1994) ISBN: 0231078994 Joshua Clover's The Matrix (British Film Institute, 2007) ISBN-10: 1844570452, ISBN-13: 978-1844570454 Laura U. Marks's Touch: Sensuous Theory and Multisensory Media (University of Minnesota Press, 2002) ISBN-10: 0816638896, ISBN-13: 978-0816638895 Carol Vernallis’s Experiencing Music Video (Columbia University Press, 2003) ISBN: 023111799xIn addition to the assigned texts, I will also distribute individual photocopied articles. The readingforms a core component of the class — you cannot pass this course without doing the reading. Ihave assigned a range of materials which vary in difficulty. Some will be discussed extensively, some not.GradesHere's the breakdown of grades: Writeups (11 total) Media Links posted to Blackboard (14 total)40%15% Midterm project (paper or video project with presentation)15% Final Paper 20% Attendance and participation 10%Each item is described in detail below:1. Writeups (40%)The best way to ensure that the class stays current on the readings is to have plenty of writeups. (I've found that students feel more comfortable with writeups than quizzes.) In order to earn the following grades for this portion of the course, you must submit a certain number of thoughtful writeups. Writeups can be submitted on Tuesday or Thursday. In eithercase, they must describe both Tuesday's and Thursday's readings. (In other words, you should discuss the complete set of assigned weekly readings.) If you submit on Thursday, be sure to include material not discussed in class so I can be sure you've done Tuesday's readings.  A = 11 thoughtful write-ups B = 9 thoughtful write-ups2 C = 8 thoughtful write-ups D = 7 thoughtful write-ups F = 6 thoughtful write-upsIt will be useful for you to produce different kinds of writeups. The bulk of your writeups can take any form you desire as long as you convey that you have read and responded to the texts. But you must do at least one of each of the forms below:1. An outline.2. A summary of the assigned text.3. A writing that focuses on your response to the reading and communicates that you have done the reading.4. Notes.For these four writeups, note boldly on the top of your submission which type of writing you’re submitting (outline, summary, response paper, notes). Writeups may be typed or handwritten.Writeups must be completed and submitted at the beginning of class. I will not accept papers submitted any other way (so no email attachments or submissions in my box). (I’ve factored in for forgotten papers, printer problems and so on.) Writeups submitted one week late at the beginning of the class will be given half credit. Late writeups may not receive written comments. 2. Links to Blackboard (15%):Each week contribute one or more media examples that relate in some way to the assigned reading. Post links of your example to Blackboard under group discussion a day ahead of time so we can view them before class. Be sure to put the topic and video's name in the subject header. Provide also a few thoughtful sentences about the ways your example extends, qualifies or underscores the reading. Feel free to also bring additional clips to class.3. Midterm project (15%) – Due October 9, 2008(Please choose ONE of the following):- Option 1: PaperWrite a 5-7 page paper. It can be either a close reading of a contemporary film (please link your analysis to the reading), a