Edusites Film offers a comprehensive collection of outstanding online Film Studies teaching resources to help teachers and students. From Avant Garde Godard to block buster super heroes there is no doubt that we humans love a film. The academic study of film offers students the vision to create their own stories in innovative and novel ways.
Amy contacted me this week to share her sadness and frustration about the poor quality of films her students had made. She had hoped that after three weeks of teaching the first years that they would have gained enough understanding to be able to apply some innovation or creativity when wielding their own lenses.
We had a think. Amy’s students needed more direction than just being let loose with cameras they had plenty of experience using.
When we initially designed the lessons for Language and Representation it was with the intention that with the theoretical lessons ready to go, teachers were freed up to create their own practical lessons to develop and apply techniques and skills from the slides.
So Amy and I thought about how to move forward and came up with…learning chunks, a little at a time.
So one theoretical lesson then students to create a very short opening sequence with elements of a brief storyboard and script using the skills from the theoretical lesson?
Location and Narrative
Use this lesson from the Film Language unit to drive a practical lesson on location and narrative. Students could take photographs for their home learning then use them to illustrate atmosphere
Sound
Use this lesson to initiate some work on soundscapes. What do we know about location and narrative from diegetic and non-diegetic sound. What sort of music would they use to further layer the location and narrative?
Looking for short, student friendly practical guides?
