Category: Assignments

Purpose:

The purpose of this project is to create a 90 second-4 minute digital video narrative. You will develop skills in gathering and editing original video your story.

The first step in this project will be to gather original video and still footage about your topic. You may find the Skype recording tools useful. You may interview yourself as well. Please post the raw video footage of at least 2 different scenes to your blog by 5pm on Friday, November 18th (15 points).

Next, create a script/storyboard in a word processing program (e.g. MS Word) that outlines how your story will flow. Be sure to include information about the visual shots, the audio that accompanies it, and transitions between different clips. Using Adobe Premiere, edit your video and audio footage to create a digital narrative or story about your topic. You have the creative freedom to develop this story as you would like. You may choose to narrate the story yourself with a written voiceover. Please post a draft of your script/storyboard, edited digital video story, and write-up to your blog by Thursday, December 1st at 5pm (50 points). (See rubric for digital video story and write-up below).

Over the following weekend, please post constructive feedback to your group members’ (20 points). Please have your feedback posted by Monday, December 5th at 5pm.

Using the feedback from your group members, and self-critique, please post your updated video story, script, and write-up by 10am on Wednesday, December 14th (150 points, rubric below).

Final Project Grading Rubric (150 Points):

Multimedia Video Story (90 points):

1. Creativity in Video Composition – 25 points
1-Minimal	2-Emerging	3-Developing	4-Competent	5-Effective	6-Publishable
Primarily remains within conventional or safe parameters of thinking and ideas. Minimal exploration or experimentation.		Explores multiple ideas or approaches, with some flexibility and experimentation / risk taking.		Generates many ideas, exploring inventive & divergent thinking. Demonstrates flexibility and openness, new combinations and experimentation.
Comments:

2. Content – 25 points
1-Minimal	2-Emerging	3-Developing	4-Competent	5-Effective	6-Publishable
Video story identifies and communicates the topic/issue with limited success; some basic aspects may be incomplete or confused.		Video story identifies and focuses on the topic/issue. Communicates narrative about the topic/issue it is designed for.		Video content clearly and effectively communicates a narrative about the topic/issue it is designed for.
Comments:

4. Design principles – 20 points
1-Minimal	2-Emerging	3-Developing	4-Competent	5-Effective	6-Publishable
The video story is difficult to follow. There is little or no evidence of a storyline.		Adequately demonstrates understanding of video story design. Narrative is generally relevant and flows with overall story. Audio and visual storytelling elements are mostly cohesive. May be lacking some depth.		Demonstrates strong understanding of video story design. Narrative is clear and is very easy to follow. Audio and visual elements are very cohesive. Demonstrates strong story planning.
Comments:

5. Technical Proficiency – 20 points
1-Minimal	2-Emerging	3-Developing	4-Competent	5-Effective	6-Publishable
Visual and audio elements do not blend smoothly. Gaps exist in narrative. Transitions awkward or empty.		Visual and audio elements are consistent through most of the narrative. Transitions are mostly smooth with some obvious edits.		Visual and audio elements are consistent throughout the narrative.  Edits are smooth and undetectable. No empty spaces in the story.
Comments:

Script (20 points):

Script – 20 points
1-Minimal	2-Emerging	3-Developing	4-Competent	5-Effective	6-Publishable
Script includes some of the video and audio elements of the project, but final video project is very different from what is outlined here.		Script includes most of the video and audio elements of the story, but the final project contains many elements not present.		Script fully fleshes out video and audio content including transitions.
Comments:

Write-Up (40 points):

Creativity in writing – 10 points
1-Minimal	2-Emerging	3-Developing	4-Competent	5-Effective	6-Publishable
Minimal or absent explanation or exploration in description of the multimedia narrative process.		Explores design process with some flexibility. Length is acceptable and clearly communicates topic.		Generates many ideas in exploring the process of creating the multimedia narrative. Thoughtful and insightful to story creation.
Comments:

Relates to topic/issue – 10 points
1-Minimal	2-Emerging	3-Developing	4-Competent	5-Effective	6-Publishable
Absent or minimal explanation of how multimedia elements in relate to topic/issue narrative. Little explanation of design elements’ meaning.		Adequate explanation of how multimedia elements relate to topic/issue. Some elements inclusion may be unclear, but overall theme is understandable.		Strong explanation of how multimedia elements in relate to topic/issue. All elements in narrative are thoroughly explored and explained.
Comments:

Diverse Perspectives – 10 points
1-Minimal	2-Emerging	3-Developing	4-Competent	5-Effective	6-Publishable
Multimedia narrative explanation is largely discussed with little consideration or inappropriate for Internet audience.		Multimedia narrative explanation includes some original thinking and acknowledges or relates to multiple viewpoints. Adequately written for wide Internet audience.		Multimedia narrative explanation includes accurate, nuanced, and respectful thinking. Acknowledges and relates to multiple viewpoints. Easily accessible for wide Internet audience.
Comments:

Technical Detail – 10 points
1-Minimal	2-Emerging	3-Developing	4-Competent	5-Effective	6-Publishable
Absent or incoherent explanation of how multimedia editing was executed using software tools.		Adequate explanation of how multimedia editing was executed using software tools. Some elements may be missing or unclear, but gives an overall understanding of software tools utilized to create narrative.		Strong explanation of how multimedia editing was executed using software tools. It is very clear how the narrative was created and how multimedia elements were manipulated to create the final narrative.
Comments:

 

Purpose:

The purpose of this project is to turn in an 4-7 minute audio narrative or audio collage about your topic. You will develop skills in gathering original audio through interviews and ambient sound recording to use in your story.

The first step in this project will be to gather original interviews and other footage about your topic. You may find the Skype recording tools useful. You may interview yourself as well. Please post the raw audio of at least 2 interviews to your blog by 5pm on Tuesday, October 18th (15 points).

Next, using Adobe Audition, edit together clips of your audio interviews and footage to create an audio narrative or story about your topic. You have the creative freedom to develop this story as a narrative or collage. You may choose to narrate the story yourself with a written voiceover. Please post a draft of your edited audio story and write-up to your blog by Monday, October 24th at 5pm (50 points). (See rubric for audio story and write-up below).

Over the weekend, please post constructive feedback to your group members’ (20 points). Please have your feedback posted by Wednesday, October 26th at 5pm.

Using the feedback from your group members, and self-critique, please post your updated audio story and write-up by 5pm on Tuesday, November 1st (125 points, rubric below).

Useful links:

Transom.org (audio recording and editing tips)
Ira Glass on Transom (another interview about creating audio stories)

This American Life (Great audio stories on a variety of topics using narrative, collage, and journalistic approaches. A couple of my early favorites include Episodes 58 [we listened in class] & 80. You can view a list of other favorites here.)

This I Believe (excellent archive of audio essays)

Final Project Grading Rubric: 

Audio Story (75 points):

1. Creativity in Audio Composition – 25 points
1-Minimal	2-Emerging	3-Developing	4-Competent	5-Effective	6-Publishable
Primarily remains within conventional or safe parameters of thinking and ideas. Minimal exploration or experimentation.		Explores multiple ideas or approaches, with some flexibility and experimentation / risk taking.		Generates many ideas, exploring inventive & divergent thinking. Demonstrates flexibility and openness, new combinations and experimentation.
Comments:

2. Content – 20 points
1-Minimal	2-Emerging	3-Developing	4-Competent	5-Effective	6-Publishable
Audio story identifies and communicates the topic/issue with limited success; some basic aspects may be incomplete or confused.		Audio story identifies and focuses on the topic/issue. Communicates narrative about the topic/issue it is designed for.		Audio content clearly and effectively communicates a narrative about the topic/issue it is designed for.
Comments:

3. Design principles – 15 points
1-Minimal	2-Emerging	3-Developing	4-Competent	5-Effective	6-Publishable
The audio story is difficult to follow. There is little or no evidence of a storyline.		Adequately demonstrates understanding of audio story design. Narrative is generally relevant and flows with overall story. May be lacking some depth.		Demonstrates strong understanding of audio story design. Narrative is clear and is very easy to follow. Demonstrates strong story planning.
Comments:

4. Technical Proficiency – 15 points
1-Minimal	2-Emerging	3-Developing	4-Competent	5-Effective	6-Publishable
Audio does not blend smoothly. Gaps exist in narrative and other audio elements. Transitions awkward or empty.		Audio is consistent through most of the narrative. Transitions are mostly smooth with some obvious edits.		Audio is consistent throughout the narrative.  Edits are smooth and undetectable. No empty spaces in the story.
Comments:

Write-Up (50 points):

1. Creativity in writing – 10 points
1-Minimal	2-Emerging	3-Developing	4-Competent	5-Effective	6-Publishable
Minimal or absent explanation or exploration in description of the audio narrative process.		Explores design process with some flexibility. Length is acceptable and clearly communicates topic.		Generates many ideas in exploring the process of creating the audio narrative. Thoughtful and insightful to story creation.
Comments:

2. Relates to topic/issue – 15 points
1-Minimal	2-Emerging	3-Developing	4-Competent	5-Effective	6-Publishable
Absent or minimal explanation of how audio elements in relate to topic/issue narrative. Little explanation of design elements’ meaning.		Adequate explanation of how audio elements relate to topic/issue. Some elements inclusion may be unclear, but overall theme is understandable.		Strong explanation of how audio elements in relate to topic/issue. All elements in narrative are thoroughly explored and explained.
Comments:

3. Diverse Perspectives – 10 points
1-Minimal	2-Emerging	3-Developing	4-Competent	5-Effective	6-Publishable
Audio narrative explanation is largely discussed with little consideration or inappropriate for Internet audience.		Audio narrative explanation includes some original thinking and acknowledges or relates to multiple viewpoints. Adequately written for wide Internet audience.		Audio narrative explanation includes accurate, nuanced, and respectful thinking. Acknowledges and relates to multiple viewpoints. Easily accessible for wide Internet audience.
Comments:

4. Technical Detail – 15 points
1-Minimal	2-Emerging	3-Developing	4-Competent	5-Effective	6-Publishable
Absent or incoherent explanation of how audio editing was executed using software tools.		Adequate explanation of how audio editing was executed using software tools. Some elements may be missing or unclear, but gives an overall understanding of software tools utilized to create narrative.		Strong explanation of how audio editing was executed using software tools. It is very clear how the narrative was created and how audio elements were manipulated to create the final narrative.
Comments:

As a reminder, your second round of group feedback should be posted before our next class meeting. Please leave constructive feedback about your group members’ draft logo designs.

COM499: Content Creation for Media
Draft Logo (50 pts)
Due Date: 9/29, 5pm

Purpose

The purpose of this project is to develop a logo that illustrates and brands your topic. This logo should be accompanied by a written description of how your design communicates your topic.

Think about your topic and how it can be summed up in a simple illustration. You might find it useful to sketch out your logo ideas before you start working in your design software.

Using the Illustrator tools you learned in the tutorials, create a new logo that is at least 400 x 400 pixels. You can choose your aspect ratio.

Write a 250 to 500word abstract about your your design choices and story. Post it in your blog along with your draft logo. I recommend writing and saving this description in Word then copying and pasting the text into the blog post when you are ready to post.

Reading

There are several online resources that will help you in thinking about logo design.

Required Reading:

30 Brilliant Vector Logo Designs, Deconstructed: http://vector.tutsplus.com/articles/web-roundups/30-brilliant-vector-logo-designs-deconstructed/

Logo Design Tips: http://www.thelogofactory.com/logo-design-tips/

5 Branding Basics Every Logo Designer Should Know: http://sixrevisions.com/graphics-design/5-branding-basics-every-logo-designer-should-know/

What Makes a Great Logo: http://www.code-interactive.com/thinker/a112.html

Step-by-Step Logo: http://www.ideabook.com/tutorials/logo_design/stepbystep_logo.html

Additional Resources:

Logo Design History: http://www.logoorange.com/logodesign-A.php

70 Excellent Logo Design Tutorials: http://sixrevisions.com/graphics-design/70-excellent-logo-design-tutorials-and-resources/

Grading
Your grade for the draft logo will be determined using the following criteria:

• Creativity in visual composition
• Creativity in writing
• Demonstration of the use of the tools learned in this unit’s tutorials

The draft graphic logo should be posted to your blog accompanied with the written description by Thursday, September 29 at 5pm.

 

COM499
Final Graphic Collage (100pts)
Due Date: Friday, September 16, 5pm 

Purpose

The purpose of this project is to develop a graphic collage that describes your topic. This collage should be accompanied by a written description of your topic (you can use a revised version of your first blog post) and a description of how your collage illustrates your topic.

Think about your topic and what you want to say about it. Next, think about how you can use photos and effects to illustrate these ideas.

Using the Photoshop tools you learned in the tutorials, create a new image that is at least 580 x 400 pixels. Within this space create your graphic collage. Your final graphic collage should be an update of your draft collage. Based on the feedback you received from your peers and your own critique of your design, how can you more clearly communicate your visual story to your viewers?

Write a 300 to 500 word abstract about your topic and your collage choices and post it in your blog along with your draft collage. Your post should be creative and engaging and supplement your visual design. In your write-up, include a description of your revision process, including why you decided to make design changes. Also, please include some language describing your design choices (e.g., repetition, continuity).

I recommend writing and saving this description in Word then copying and pasting the text into the blog post when you are ready to post.

Any graphics that you did not personally create must be credited and linked as a reference in your post.

Grading

Your grade for the final draft collage will be determined using the following criteria:

Design

Creativity in Visual Composition                                           ______ / 30
Clear Visual Depiction of Your Topic                                    ______ / 10
Follows Design Principles                                                       ______ / 5
Demonstrates proficiency of design tools                             ______ / 10
SubTotal                                                                                       ______ / 55

Write-Up

Creativity in writing                                                                      ______ / 20
Relates image to topic                                                                  ______ / 5
Reasoning/Meaning (why you made the design that way)     ______ / 5
Design choices                                                                                ______ / 5
Technical Details                                                                           ______ / 5
Grammar                                                                                         ______ / 5

SubTotal                                                                                       ______ / 45

Total:              ______ / 100

The draft graphic collage should be posted to your blog accompanied with the written description by Friday, September 16 at 5pm.

COM499: Content Creation for Media
Group Feedback (20 pts each)
Due Dates: 9/7, 10/3, 10/24, 11/28 

Overview & Background

You will be working on strengthening each other’s designs throughout the semester in groups of 3 or 4 by providing feedback on each others’ designs. As we discussed, good critiques will describe, analyze, and interpret your group partners’ designs.

After you have received feedback from your group members, you should reconsider your design. Think of ways to improve the visual story you are telling and revise your design.

Instructions

1. Log on to your group members’ blogs, linked from http://com499.mabeam.net/
2. Find their draft collages and consider the visual stories they are telling.
3. Write 50-200 word critiques of their design. In your critique be sure to describe, analyze and interpret the design elements. Provide constructive feedback about which design choices seem to work, and which could be improved.
4. Post the critiques as “comments” in their blogs.
5. Be sure to log in to your administrative panel at http://YOURURL.wordpress.com/wp-admin/ . Click on “posts.” Click on the blue “chat box”:
   
6. Approve any critique comments you may have held in your queue.

Groups

1. Calvin Grover, Kelsie Duncan, Eric Francavilla
2. Josh Moran, Brian Grove, Liz Nugent
3. Nero Threet, Jeff Fairbanks, Kelleen Curtis
4. Sierra Haight, Ryan Myers, Tyler Brazas, Patrick Winter

COM499
Draft Graphic Collage

Purpose

The purpose of this project is to develop a graphic collage that describes your topic. This collage should be accompanied by a written description of your topic (you can use a revised version of your first blog post) and a description of how your collage illustrates your topic.

Think about your topic and what you want to say about it. Next, think about how you can use photos and effects to illustrate these ideas. Before you create your collage, you will post the individual photos/graphics you will use in your collage, 3 elements at a minimum. You might find it useful to sketch out how you want your collage to look before you start working in your design software.

Using the Photoshop tools you learned in the tutorials, create a new image that is at least 580 x 400 pixels. Within this space create your graphic collage.

Write a 300 to 500 word abstract about your topic and your collage choices and post it in your blog along with your draft collage. I recommend writing and saving this description in Word then copying and pasting the text into the blog post when you are ready to post.

Grading

Your grade for the draft collage will be determined using the following criteria:

• Creativity in visual composition (30 pts)
• Creativity in writing (10 pts)
• Demonstration of the use of the tools learned in this unit’s tutorials (10 pts)

The photo collection elements should be posted by Friday, September 2 at 5pm. These elements can be posted without any written description and will be graded for completion, 20 points.

The draft graphic collage should be posted to your blog accompanied with the written description by Thursday, September 8 at 5pm. The draft collage is worth 50 points.

NOTE: All photos that were not taken by you must be attributed and linked to the original location.

Resources

Digital Photography Tips:

Chapter 8 of Journalism 2.0: How to Survive and Thrive

Free image collections:

• stock.xchng – More than 350,000 free photo images, searchable.
• dreamstime – Free section of a very large photo images archive. Excellent quality images.
• morgueFile – More than 200,000 free photo images, searchable in several ways, including by color and topic.
• WorldImages – About 75,000 international images, well-organized by content areas and searchable.
• Flickr – Must check box for “Find Content to Modify, Adapt, and Build Upon”

 PDF of assignment

COM499: Content Creation for Media
“About Me” and Blog Topic Introduction
Due Date: Aug. 29, 5pm

Overview & Background

You will be using WordPress to display your media designs throughout the quarter. WordPress is a highly customizable content management system allowing you to frame your design assets online. This week you will set up your blog and begin to post content online. First, you will setup an “About” page introducing yourself to readers. Nearly all blogs have an “About” page that describes the author or organization that manages the blog. Here are some examples from popular blogs:

Doc Searls: http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/doc/about/ (technology & communication)
Talking Points Memo: http://talkingpointsmemo.com/about.php (Liberal News Blog)
Michelle Malkin: http://michellemalkin.com/about/ (Conservative Pundit)
Bleacher Report: http://bleacherreport.com/about (Sports blog)
this isn’t happiness: http://thisisnthappiness.com/#topofthepage (graphic design blog)

Next, you will post about the topic you will cover this semester. You should think carefully about this topic because you will cover it across all the assignments: graphic collage, logo design, audio slideshow, & video project. You are encouraged to choose “About Me” as your topic. You can use the semester to build a baseline portfolio describing yourself.

Tips:

Good blog posts share a number of attributes:

• Short in length (300 to 500 words)
• Short, direct, complete, and easy-to-read sentences
• Short paragraphs (don’t have more than 4 or 5 sentences in one paragraph)
• Written in the first-person (i.e., “I think”)
• Express personal opinions
• Link to other websites
• Include photos and images

Instructions

1. Create a free blog account at WordPress.com. You are welcome to upgrade to a paid account of you’d prefer to have your own domain name. WordPress is also available as a free package if you have your own web hosting space already. The free account will be sufficient for what we are doing in COM499.

2. Log in to the administrative panel (usually at http://domain.wordpress.com/wp-admin/) and choose “Appearance.” Here, you will be able to select a template and customize the look of your blog.

3. Edit the “About” page (located in the administrative panel under “Pages”). Include:

• Your name. You are not required to use your real name if you have privacy concerns, but please e-mail me so I can attach your real name to your blog.
•  Some demographic and background information about yourself
• The purpose of the blog (e.g., to post the media content you have created about your topic for COM499)
• Some interests and/or hobbies
• Your career goals
• A picture of yourself (optional)

3. Lastly, create a post about the topic you will be covering in class (under “Posts->Add New” in the administrative panel). Think very carefully about this topic because you will be spending 3 months with it! You should describe why you’ve chosen this topic and give some background on your topic. Your post should be between 300-500 words.

4. E-mail me (michael.beam@wsu.edu) the URL so I can link it to the course blog.

 

Grading Rubric 

Grade	Characteristics
A	Post is between 300-500 words. Provides thorough background about you and your topic. Post thoroughly describes why you have chosen your topic. Follows all tips listed above (including the tips about having links and photos/images in your post). Well-written, interesting, and engaging to read. No spelling and grammar errors. Displays excellent organization of ideas and opinions.
B	Post is between 300-500 words. Provides some background about you and your topic. Post at least touches on why you have chosen your topic. Follows most tips listed above. Well-written, interesting, and engaging to read. One to three spelling and grammar errors. Displays good organization of ideas and opinions.
C	Post is not between 300 and 500 words. Does not give much detail about you and your topic. Justification for why you have chosen your topic is unclear. Does an inadequate job at following tips listed above. More than four spelling and grammar errors. Displays inadequate organization of ideas and opinions.
D	Post is not between 300 and 500 words. Does not cover background about you or your topic. Does a poor job at following tips listed above. More than seven spelling and grammar errors. Displays poor organization of ideas and opinions.
F	Incomplete work that is missing nearly all of the required information. More than ten spelling and grammar errors. Displays no organization of ideas and opinions.