Smart Phone Short Films

Pre-requisites for enrolment

Some basic computer skills are essential.

Special Information

Essential materials you will need to bring to the first class:

• Students must provide their own smart phone and ways in which they can connect these to a computer and access files.
• USB stick (minimum of 8GB in size)
• Sketchbook and basic writing/drawing materials.
• Smart phone tripod or mount for filming.

Materials and equipment provided for students as part of the course and included in course fee:

• Access to digital editing software (iMovie, Final Cut Pro)
• PC laptop on hand should students’ phones be incompatible with Apple Mac platform.

Content of Course

The course teaching is delivered over an intensive period of three consecutive day sessions, each with six hours class contact time.

Over the class sessions the course will cover the following:

Day 1: We will look at video as an artistic practice and how advancements in technology allow it to expand, looking at artists that use live video streaming, gifs, uploading to sites and smart phones to create immediate artworks. We will also look at the language associated with filming and students will begin to experiment with filming ideas.

Day 2: Students start to form ideas of topics. Combining research and a theme of inquiry that they want to work with, we will also look at ways in which digital artworks can be published, shared and distributed.

Day 3: Students will work towards completing a final work which they will then distribute in the appropriate manner culminating with a screening of the finished works.

Teaching method(s)

The course will be based in a studio setting with access to basic editing facilities, as this is about the immediate ways in which we can create film, simple editing software will be sufficient such as iMovie, if deemed necessary, students may require access to Final Cut Pro.

Students’ progress will be monitored and supported by the tutor who will suggest follow up reading, research and practice in support of their studies. Teaching will include practical demonstrations, one-to-one tuition, group discussions and critiques.

Learning outcomes

By the end of this course, students should be able to:

• demonstrate background knowledge of contemporary developments of video practice;
• develop, shoot and edit their own work;
• distribute their work on multiple platforms.

Sources

Core Readings

• Rush, Matthew, 2007. Video Art.  London: Thames & Hudson
• Murch, Walter, 2001. In the Blink of an Eye.  A Perspective on Film Editing. Los Angeles, CA: Silman-James Press 
• Tillander, Michelle, 2011. Creativity, Technology, Art, and Pedagogical Practices.  Art Education, 64 (1)

Class Handouts

Course information will be provided on enrolment and handouts provided during the course.

Queries

If you have questions regarding the course or enrolment, please contact COL Reception at Paterson's Land by email COL@ed.ac.uk or by phone 0131 650 4400.

Student support

If you have a disability, learning difficulty or health condition which may affect your studies, please let us know by ticking the 'specific support needs' box on your course application form. This will allow us to make appropriate adjustments in advance and in accordance with your rights under the Equality Act 2010. For more information please visit the Student Support section of our website.