MEA2000 Scriptwriting for Creative Media

Contents

• Staffing
• Rationale
• Synopsis
• Objectives
• Topics
• Reference materials
• Student workload
• Assessment details
• Graduate qualities and skills
• Important assessment information
• Assessment notes
• Production date
• PDF version

STAFFING

RATIONALE

This course focuses on creative writing and structuring as a means for extending the student's imaginative and conceptual approach to digital media production. On completing this course, students will be able to conceptualise, develop and present multimedia content for a variety of mediums. Topics to be covered include Narrative Navigational Structures, Informational Structures, Interactive Techniques and writing methods.

SYNOPSIS

The core of this course will be the emphasis placed on the student's own writing. Students will generate scripts and diagrammatic outlines to develop a good understanding of the writer's and audience's role in the New Media as it relates to the multimedia industry. The subject enriches the student's comprehension of the creative process necessary to the generation of Multimedia.

OBJECTIVES

On completion of this course students should:

1.

recognise the role of the writer and audience in a creative multimedia team;

2.

appreciate the structural complexities of storytelling;

3.

demonstrate confidence in writing in a variety of styles appropriate to new media;

4.

demonstrate communication skills through the appropriate presentation and formatting of scripts;

5.

demonstrate an awareness of cultural sensitivities in a global media market.

TOPICS

TEXT and MATERIALS required to be PURCHASED or accessed

ALL textbooks and materials are available for purchase from USQ BOOKSHOP (unless otherwise stated). Orders may be placed via secure internet, free fax 1800642453, phone 07 46312742 (within Australia), or mail. Overseas students should fax +61 7 46311743, or phone +61 7 46312742. For costs, further details, and internet ordering, use the 'Textbook Search' facility at http://bookshop.usq.edu.au click 'Semester', then enter your 'Course Code' (no spaces).

REFERENCE MATERIALS

Bonime, A & Pohlmann, C 1998, Writing for new media, John Wiley and Sons, New York.

Brenner, A N D 1992, TV scriptwriter's handbook: dramatic writing for TV and film, Revi edn, Silman-James.

Field, S 2005, Screenplay: the foundations of screenwriting,, Revi edn, Delta Publishers.

Laurel, B 1993, Computers as theatre, Addison-Wesley, Reading, Mass.

McKee, R 1999, Story: substance, structure, style and the principles of screenwriting, Methuen Publishing.

Murray, J H 1998, Hamlet on the holodeck: the future of narrative in cyberspace, MIT Press, Cambridge, MA.

Ryan, M L 2001, Narrative as virtual reality: immersion and interactivity in literature and electronic media, John Hopkins University Press, Baltimore.

Turkle, S 1995, Life on the screen: identity in the age of the internet, Simon & Schuster, New York.

STUDENT WORKLOAD REQUIREMENTS

ASSESSMENT DETAILS

NOTES

1.

Students will be advised of the assessment dates during the first week of classes for this course. This assessment item relates to all of the Objectives.

2.

This assessment item relates to Objectives 1, 2, 3, 4 and 6.

3.

This assessment item relates to all of the Objectives.

GRADUATE QUALITIES AND SKILLS

Elements of the following USQ Graduate Skills are associated with the successful completion of this course.

IMPORTANT ASSESSMENT INFORMATION

1. Attendance requirements:
   It is the student's responsibility to attend and participate appropriately in all activities (such as lectures, tutorials, laboratories and practical work) scheduled for them, and to study all material provided to them or required to be accessed by them to maximise their chance of meeting the objectives of the course and to be informed of course-related activities and administration. For this course, normal class attendance consists of one 2 hour lecture and one 1 hour tutorial per week.
2. Requirements for students to complete each assessment item satisfactorily:
   To successfully complete an individual assessment item, a student must achieve at least 50% of the marks or a grade of at least C-. This statement must be read in conjunction with Statement 4 below.
3. Penalties for late submission of required work:
   If students submit assignments after the due date without extenuating circumstances and without prior approval, then a penalty of a maximum of 5% of the assigned mark may apply for each working day late, up to a maximum of 10 working days, at which time a mark of zero can be recorded for that assignment.
4. Requirements for student to be awarded a passing grade in the course:
   To be assured of receiving a passing grade, a student must achieve at least 50% of the total weighted marks available for the course.
5. Method used to combine assessment results to attain final grade:
   The final grades for students will be assigned on the basis of the aggregate of the weighted marks obtained for each of the summative assessment items in the course.
6. Examination information:
   There is no exam for this course.
7. Examination period when Deferred/Supplementary examinations will be held:
   Given the details under (6) above, there are no deferred exams for this course. However, if any deferred/makeup work is granted, it would have to be submitted by a date set by the examiner.
8. University Regulations:
   Students should read USQ Regulations 5.1 Definitions, 5.6 Assessment, and 5.10 Academic Misconduct for further information and to avoid actions which might contravene University Regulations. These regulations can be found at the URL //www.usq.edu.au/corporateservices/calendar/part5.htm

ASSESSMENT NOTES

This version produced 17 May 2011.