Schedule

WEEK OF 8/18 (week 1)

Thurs 8/21—Introduction to Documentary Filmmaking

In class

  • Introductions – professor, students, course
  • How to look at the world like a filmmaker
  • Hands on – let’s go out and shoot
  • Show/discuss what we shot
  • Assignment for next week – Your documentary pitch

AFTER Class

  • Read Nancy Kalow, Visual Storytelling: The Digital Video Documentary (2011), “Introduction,” pp. 4-6 – in our Moodle Readings Folder

Class Links

  • We Are People: Black Student Movements and the 1971 Homecoming Boycott, dir. Ruby Summers 2014 – online at Youtube
  • Croquet – and History – at the College of Wooster, dir. Jack Anderson, Daniel Cohen, and Peter Synk’s, 2011 – clip online at Youtube
  • Godzilla’s Atomic History, dir. Ben Fuqua, 2011 – clip online at Youtube
  • The Making of Three Souls in Search of an Embrace (a rough cut), dir. Amelia Mitchell, 2022 – online at Vimeo
  • The Making of Flamenco Dreams, dir. Nurain Amier, 2025 – online at Vimeo
  • Chainsaw Michelangelo, dirs. Greg Shaya and Colin Kelly, 2011 – online at Youtube

Links for Composition – Camera – Lighting

WEEK OF 8/25 (week 2)

Thurs 8/28—Introduction to Camera

PREPARATION

  • Spend the week thinking as a documentary filmmaker. Look (and listen) for
    • subjects, light, composition, etc.
    • story
  • Read Kalow, Visual Storytelling, Chap. 1, “Shooting”, pp. 6-16
  • Read Michael Moore, “Michael Moore’s 13 Rules for Making Documentary Films” (2014) – online at Indiewire and in our Moodle Readings Folder
  • And complete First Assignment – Documentary Pitch – submit on Moodle by noon before class. (Don’t agonize over this assignment – it is not a lifelong commitment, but a first shot at explaining the film you want to make)

In Class

  • What is documentary?
    • Discuss from Kalow and Moore
    • Watch a few minutes from Capturing Reality: The Art of Documentary (Dir. Pepita Ferrari, Canada, 2008)
    • Discuss: What is documentary? What do good documentaries do?
    • Some key terms: the real, intimacy, empathy, etc.
    • Some names…
  • Documentary pitches
    • Let’s share our pitches and plan shooting
    • Practical questions
  • Break
  • Shooting
    • Composition, camera movement, lighting
    • Go through the principles and shots from Kalow
    • Coverage! Kalow, 11
    • Key terms: B-roll, coverage, shoot to edit, rule of thirds… camera shots… camera movement… focus, depth of field, aperture…
  • Watch Faces/Places, dir. Agnes Varda, 2017 – on Kanopy
    • Some examples
  • Shooting practice

SOME RESOURCES

  • “What is OneDrive?” – at Wooster Technology
  • Artis, Shut Up and Shoot, Chap. 6 selections,  pp. 157-180 – in Moodle Readings Folder

WEEK OF 9/1 (week 3)

Thurs 9/4—The Interview

Preparation

  • Read Kalow, Chap. 2, “Listening,” pp. 16-22
  • Complete Shooting Assignment #1: First Video Exercises
    • See full details on assignment page
    • Save file to OneDrive – share with me – upload link to Moodle
  • You will want to have editing software on your computer. I suggest DaVinci Resolve which is free for the basic package

In Class

  • Briefly
    • Documentary Planning
    • Introduction to Creative Work
  • Watch Our B-Roll from last week
  • Intro to Editing
    • Introduction to non-linear editing & iMovie (or Adobe Premiere Pro or DaVinci Resolve)
    • Working with footage – importing & organizing
    • Editing – working with clips & the timeline
    • Exporting your project
  • The Interview
    • Demonstrate: simple interview setup
    • Watch interview examples
  • Practice
    • Editing
    • Interviews
    • interview Lighting
  • Assignment

SOME Examples

  • Three Souls in Search of an Embrace, 2022
  • The Fog of War, dir. Errol Morris, 2003
  • 13th, dir. Ava DuVernay, 2016
  • Man on Wire, dir. James Marsh, 2008

SOME LINKS ON INTERVIEWS

  • “How to Conduct a Documentary Interview” – at Masterclass
  • “How to Conduct a Documentary Interview” – at InFocusFilmSchool
  • “Every Interview Style Explained” – Mark Bone at Youtube

WEEK OF 9/8 (week 4)

Thurs 9/11—Soundscapes, Music, Still Images

Preparation

  • Complete Shooting Assignment #2: Interview
    • See full details on assignment page
    • Save file to OneDrive – share with me – upload link to Moodle
  • Read Kalow, Visual Storytelling, Chap. 3, “Finding the Story”, pp. 22-26

In class

  • Watch student exercises on interview – talk through takeaways
  • Discuss sound, music, still images
  • Watch examples
  • Practice – editing with sound
  • Handout assignment for next week: Assignment #3 Montage w/ Music

WEEK OF 9/15 (week 5)

Thurs 9/18—Editing and Projects

Preparation.

  • Complete Editing Assignment #3: Montage With Music
    • See full details on assignment page
    • Save file to OneDrive – share with me – upload link to Moodle
  • Read Kalow, Visual Storytelling, Chap. 5, “Finishing and Sharing The Story”, pp. 35-41

In class

  • Watch our montage assignments
  • Talk story part 2
  • Editing – processes
  • Final projects – one-on-one meetings
  • Assignment for next week – a sequence of your film

WEEK OF 9/22 (week 6)

Thurs 9/25—History of Documentary – and More

Preparation

  • Complete Editing Assignment #4: Documentary Sequence
    • See full details on assignment page
    • Save file to OneDrive – share with me – upload link to Moodle
  • Read Kalow, Visual Storytelling, Chap. 4, “Telling Someone Else’s Story”, pp. 26-34
  • Prepare brief presentation of a film or filmmaker as assigned last week
    • Watch (at least some of) a film, read encyclopedia entry on film and filmmaker
    • Prepare to share a brief presentation to class

In class

  • Watch documentary sequences
  • Talk legal and ethical issues
  • History of documentary
  • Review final exam study guide

WEEK OF 9/29 (week 7)

Thurs 10/2—Final Exam & Guest Visit

Preparation

  • Study for Final Exam – see Final Exam Study Guide on our Moodle page
  • Catch up on any assignments you’ve missed
  • Bring a pen for exam

In class

  • Take Final Exam (I’ve written it as a thirty minute exam but you can have up to 45 minutes to finish)
  • We’ll meet again at 2:15pm – Visit from Richard Storck, Storck Film Design, Wooster, OH
  • We’ll restart about 3:15pm – after visit – questions about final projects

FALL BREAK – Week of 10/6

No classes – enjoy!

WEEK OF 10/13 (week 8)

Thursday 10/16—Workshop

Preparation

  • No regular class, but I’ll meet you one on one as scheduled below in our regular classroom to watch your projects
  • Bring rough cut of your film ready for critique
    • You might review the requirements for the final film to be sure you are on track
    • Your rough cut should have opening titles, music, narration if necessary, closing credits
    • Bring your questions
  • We will watch rough cuts and talk about final steps
  • Schedule for one-on-one meetings
    • 1:45pm – Essilfua
    • 2:00pm – Janine
    • 2:15pm – Kaila
    • 2:30pm – Zoe
    • 2:45pm – Will
    • 3:00pm – Amy
    • 3:15pm – Liam
    • 3:30pm – Kiera
    • 3:45pm – Max

WEEK OF 10/20 (week 9)

Wed 10/22—Upload Film

DUE

  • Complete Mini-Documentary Assignment by Wednesday!
  • Due Wednesday 10/22 by noon
  • Save file to OneDrive – share with me – upload link to Moodle

Thurs 10/23—Documentary Film Student Film Festival at 2:30pm—Lean Lecture Room

FILM FESTIVAL

  • We’ll meet in Lean Lecture Room of Wishart Hall to watch our films on the big screen
  • Invite friends and classmates – I’ll invite colleagues
  • Films begin at 2:30pm
  • Please arrive at 2:15pm to set up
  • Prepare a ten second introduction – you don’t need to summarized the film or to apologize for the quality of sound or video (I’ll explain to all that these are rough cuts – but you should say a few words to introduce yourself and what you are trying to do in your film