This course presents the basic concepts, techniques, and processes of filmmaking, including story boarding, shooting, and computer editing. Narrative/dramatic, documentary, and experimental genres will be discussed and the students will participate in directing and producing a short film. Final Cut Pro and Adobe CS 4 software will be used on a Macintosh OSX operating system. Knowledge of the operation of your camera is required.
Digital filmmaking students should bring the following to class the first day:
• Digital video camera with a fire wire port (consumer grade camera is acceptable)
• 4Pin-6Pin Fire wire cable required for computer connection (sold separately)
• Tripod
* No consumer hard drive or DVDRam camcorders may be used. (Final Cut Pro does not recognize most hard drive formats.) Bring MiniDV/HDV Tape camcorders only.
In addition, bring with you:
• 5 blank MiniDV tapes
• 10 blank DVD-R discs
• Headphones
• Notebook, binder, and pen
• Optional: USB 2.0 or Firewire portable hard drive 100GB or more storage space
Before attending the first class please read the following books:
• Ascher & Pincus. The Filmmaker's Handbook: A Comprehensive Guide for the Digital Age. ISBN-10: 0452286786
• Mamet, David. On Directing Film. ISBN10: 0140127224
Instructor Bio: Jacob A. Dodd
Jacob A. Dodd is an award-winning independent filmmaker who specializes in the blending of narrative, documentary, and experimental approaches. Dodd is originally from Kittanning, Pennsylvania. He graduated from Ithaca College earning a B.F.A. in Film, Photography, and Visual Arts and a minor in Art History. Dodd received his M.F.A. in Photography and Film from Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Virginia.
Dodd’s work has been exhibited by several film festivals including the Athens International Film and Video Festival, Big Muddy Film Festival, and the James River Film Festival. He has been the recipient of several grants and awards including the James B. Pendleton Production Grant and the VCU Graduate Thesis Assistantship. His motion pictures explore the subtleties of family history and oral storytelling tradition through personal narrative, often incorporating his own family into his work.
Dodd recently completed a short 35mm narrative film titled Darkness There, which was inspired by the life and work of Edgar Allan Poe. Darkness There explores Poe's dark romanticism through the fictional blending of his life and stories with authentic historical artifacts. The film was shot on location in Richmond, Virginia at the Edgar Allan Poe Museum and Maymont Italian and Japanese Gardens. “Darkness There” is currently in festival submission.