MODULE DESCRIPTION: Accessible Filmmaking: Theory and Practice SECTION A Programme Title:
Module Title: Module Code: Tutor: Level of module: Credit rating: Compulsory or optional: Pre-requisites/co-requisites: Excluded combinations or modules: Mode of attendance: Projected all years target (actual numbers):
MA / POSTGRADUATE DIPLOMA /CERTIFICATE IN AUDIOVISUAL / SPECIALISED TRANSLATION / ACCESSIBILITY AND FILMMAKING ACCESSIBLE FILMMAKING: THEORY AND PRACTICE AST040L745A Pablo Romero-Fresco M 40 credits Compulsory None None Full-time / Part-time on campus
SECTION B Module Rationale Having made great progress in terms of quantity and even quality over the past decade, the fields of audiovisual translation and media accessibility and its main services, dubbing, voice-over, subtitling and audiodescription, are still an afterthought in the filmmaking process. This results in a lack of consideration and investment in this area and ultimately in a significant decrease in the visibility and quality of these services. The present module aims to contextualise audiovisual translation and media accessibility as part of the filmmaking process and to explore the elements from filmmaking and particularly from editing that can help students to become better translators. The module will first of all enable students to look beyond “story� when watching films and preparing for the translation process, considering how meaning is created through film language and visual aesthetics. Students will then be introduced to the different stages involved in the filmmaking process, both from a theoretical and a practical point of view. Special emphasis will be made on the post-production stage and particularly on editing with a view to making films accessible to foreign viewers (dubbing, subtitling, voice-over) and viewers with hearing or visual loss (SDH, AD). At the end of the module, students will have acquired the necessary skills to read films and understand the basics of film language, to organise themselves in groups and produce a short documentary or fiction film and especially to edit audiovisual
material with a view to making it accessible to foreign viewers and hearing/ visually impaired audiences. Learning outcomes Students who successfully complete this module will be able to: • • • •
• • • •
look beyond “story” when watching films and understand the basics of film language; consider how meaning is created through film language and visual aesthetics; identify the different stages in the filmmaking process; contextualise audiovisual translation and media accessibility as part of the filmmaking process and recognise the elements from filmmaking and particularly from editing that can help students to become better translators; have knowledge of different approaches to documentary and fiction filmmaking; use a range of digital video camcorders and digital sound recording equipment to produce a short documentary or fiction film; produce work which demonstrates the effective manipulation of sound, image and/or the written word; use non-linear editing software to edit their films; plan, produce and post-produce their films with a view to making them accessible to foreign viewers (dubbing, subtitling, voice-over) and viewers with hearing or visual loss (SDH, AD).
Syllabus The module will first of all introduce students to the different stages involved in the filmmaking process. It will encourage them to reflect on the traditional position of translation and accessibility in this process as well as its potential integration in the pre-production, production and post-production stages of filmmaking. Students will get acquainted with the language of film and will acquire an understanding of the audiovisual and verbal conventions through which sounds, images and words make meaning. They will be introduced to the basic principles of continuity editing in filmmaking and will obtain broad-based knowledge and understanding of the historical development of documentary and fiction film, which will cover modern styles such as the intensified continuity found in contemporary cinema. As part of the pre-production phase, the students will be introduced to the basic principles of scriptwriting and its impact on translation and accessibility. They will also be introduced to the different approaches available in documentary filmmaking and to how documentaries have traditionally been made accessible to different types of audiences. The production phase will cover the basic use of camera and sound recording equipment. Finally, special emphasis will be placed on the post-production stage, where students will learn how to edit image and sound in order to make audiovisual products accessible in other languages and for viewers with hearing and visual
disabilities. Weekly contents: 1.1 - The filmmaking process and the language of film 1.2 – The principles of classic continuity and intensified continuity 1.3 - Pre-production 1: Scriptwriting 1.4 - Pre-production 2: Short fiction filmmaking 1.5 - Pre-production 3: Documentary filmmaking 1.6 - Production 1: Camera workshop 1.7 - Production 2: Sound workshop 1.8 - Production 3: Revision workshop 1.9 - Post-production 1: Editing image 1.10 - Post-production 2: Editing sound 1.11 - Post-production 3: Editing for accessibility 1.12 - Present and future of accessible filmmaking Teaching and Learning Methods This module will be delivered through lectures, workshops, screenings and independent work from the students (projects and research). Assessment Coursework of 3,500 words (min) and a practical exercise: 100% The assessment might include one or more tasks among the following: • A written essay on a particular theoretical/practical issue relating to filmmaking and accessibility. • An oral presentation on a particular theoretical/practical issue relating to filmmaking and accessibility. • A comparative analysis of films/translations and relevant theories. • A practical assignment to plan and produce a short fiction film/documentary in order to make it accessible for foreign viewers or viewers with hearing and/or visual loss. • A practical assignment to edit a short fiction film/documentary in order to make it accessible for foreign viewers or viewers with hearing and/or visual loss. A typical assessment may be distributed as follows: 1. Scene analysis and reflective essay (50%): 2,500 words. 2. Short fiction film or short documentary (25%, group mark) and reflective essay (25%, individual mark): 1-15 minutes for the films, 1,000 words for the essay. In order to complete this module successfully students must reach an overall final mark of 50% or above.
SECTION C – INDICATIVE BIBLIOGRAPHY Essential Texts Bordwell, David (2006) The Way Hollywood Tells It: Story and Style in Modern Movies, California: University of California Press. Díaz Cintas, Jorge, Pilar Orero and Aline Remael (eds.) Media for All. Subtitling for the Deaf, Audio Description, and Sign Language, Amsterdam/NY: Rodopi. Díaz Cintas, Jorge, Anna Matamala and Joselia Neves (eds.) New Insights into Audiovisual Translation and Media Accessibility, Media for All 2, Amsterdam/NY: Rodopi. Figgis, Mike (2007) Digital Film-Making, Faber & Faber. Lumet Sidney (1995) Making Movies, UK: Vintage. MacKendrick Alexander (2004) On Film Making, London: Faber. McKee, Robert (1998) Story, London: Methuen Murch, Walter (1995) In the Blink of an Eye, Los Angeles: Silman-James Press. Rabiger, Michael (2004) Directing the Documentary, Focal Press: UK. Remael, Aline, Pilar Orero and Mary Carroll (2012) Audiovisual Translation and Media Accessibility at the Crossroads: Media for All 3, Amsterdam/NY: Rodopi. Recommended texts Brophy, Philip (2006) 100 Modern Soundtracks, UK: BFI Screen Guide. Bruzzi, Stella (2000) New Documentary: A Critical Introduction, London, Routledge. Hamlett, Christina (2005) Could it be a Movie?, USA: Focal Press. Mascelli Joseph (1998) Five C’s of Cinematography, USA: Silman James Press. Mamet, David (1992) On Directing Film, London: Penguin. Matamala, Anna (2008). "Teaching voice-over translation: a practical approach" in Díaz Cintas, J. (ed.) (2008), The Didactics of Audiovisual Translation. Amsterdam: Benjamins, 115-127. Neves, Joselia (2005). Subtitling for the deaf and hard of hearing, PhD Thesis, Neves, Joselia (2007). “There is research and research: Subtitling for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (SDH), En: Jiménez, C. (Ed.) (2007), Traducción y accesibilidad. Subtitulación para sordos y audiodescripción para ciegos: nuevas modalidades de Traducción Audiovisual. Frankfurt: Peter-Lang, 27-40. Roehampton University. http://roehampton.openrepository.com/roehampton/handle/10142/12580 (1812-2009). Newman, Jenny, Edmund Cusick and Aileen La Tourette (2004) The Writer’s Workbook, London: Arnold. Nichols, Bill (1992) Representing Reality: Issues and Concepts in Documentary, USA: Indiana University Press. Ondaatje, Michael (2002) The Conversations – Walter Murch and the Art of Editing Film, Knopf. Perkins, Roy and Mary Stollery (2004) British Film Editors: The Heart of the Movie, UK: BFI Publishing. Proferes Nicholas (2004) Film Directing Fundamentals, UK: Focal Press. Rabiger Michael (2003) Directing: Film Techniques and Aesthetics, USA: Focal Press.
Rahmel Dan (2004) Nuts and Bolts Film making, UK: Focal Press. Renov, Michael (2004) The Subject of Documentary, USA: University of Minnesota Press. Roberts Charles (2004) Editing with Final Cut Pro, USA: Focal Press. Rosenthal, Alan (1988) New Challenges for Documentary, USA: University of California Press. Schaefer, Denis and Larry Salvato (1984) Masters of Light: Conversation with Contemporary Cinematographers, USA: U. of Cal. Press. Snyder Blake (2005) Save the Cat, USA: Focal Press. Van Sijl (2005) Setting up your story cinematographically, USA: Focal Press. Winston, Brian (1995) Claiming the Real: Documentary Film Revisited, London: BFI. Winston, Brian (2002) Lies, Damn Lies and Documentaries, London: BFI. Suggested Websites http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/ Roger Ebert’s website http://blogs.suntimes.com/scanners/ Jim Emerson’s blog http://www.davidbordwell.net/ http://www.davidbordwell.net/blog/ David Bordwell’s website and blog http://www.skillset.org/ Skillset’s Website http://filmsound.org/new.htm Filmsound.org, everything. . . . . . .need I say more? http://www.bbctraining.com/modules/5915/index.htm BBC Good Shooting Guide http://resonancefm.com/ Resonance FM, the Daddy of all strange sound, great radio station & orchestrator of sonic change http://www.ubu.com/film/index.html Art/Film/Video website, great for finding all manner of strange artists sound & film work