Media Arts

Grades 10, 11, 12

Half Year - Level E                      .5 Credit

Prerequisite: Studio Art I

This course will teach students how to use digital media proficiently in both fine art and commercial art. In addition to production skills, this course builds critical literacy and understanding of the two fields of commercial and fine art. This course uses Adobe Suite software with some traditional art media.

Essential Benchmarks – Students will:

·proficient with using digital media to create artwork

·the role of digital media in our contemporary culture

·conclusions from class critiques to finish up with a small portfolio of both fine art and digital images.

Offered to grades 9, 10, 11 and 12                                            

Prerequisite: Photography I 

This course builds from the skills of Photo 1 by focusing on the potential applications of Digital SLR cameras, flashes and light equipment for studio photography. Students will begin to build a portfolio of prints that demonstrate knowledge of the wide variety of technical and artistic possibilities.  Knowledge of different manual camera settings, and artificial light sources will be covered throughout the semester. Students will also learn advanced processing skills within Photoshop for editing and creating digital art.

Students will:

·   Demonstrate knowledge of basic camera lenses and equipment used with Digital SLR’s

·   Produce a variety of photographs that demonstrate the ability to work with depth-of-field, shutter speeds, visual adjustments, and altering lighting conditions

·   Begin to Learn how to apply photography in authentic situations such as journalism, fine art and commercial use

Offered to grades 9, 10, 11 and 12 (can elect honors credit)

Understanding Film is a course is for students who enjoy watching films, and want to develop skills to further appreciate, understand and enjoy this ever-changing art form. Students will view films through the lens of a director, cinematographer, editor and screenwriter and will understand how each contributes to the final cut of a film. A wide selection of films will be screened in class to enable the student to learn more about film structure and the role of film in our culture. Students will also have the opportunity to choose a film of their own choice, and view and study it in class. 

Students will:  

Develop the vocabulary and critical viewing skills to understand and analyze film texts, audio and images  

Analyze the changing elements of film structure from the early 20th century to the present.  

Utilize the principles of media literacy to analyze, evaluate and create media 

Offered to grades 10, 11 and 12 (can elect honors credit)

Half Year - LE/LH .5 Credit

(This course can be taken for recurring credit)

This advanced acting and video production course introduces students to development of skills in performance, script, and character development for on- camera acting and behind the camera directing techniques. Emphasis is placed on lecture/studio lab course work and project presentations which are designed to give the student actor and director a foundation in skills and techniques employed in film production, acting and auditioning for the camera.

Students will:

·  Demonstrate advanced skills in film acting and directing techniques

·  Demonstrate skill in analysis and interpretation of characters in film scripts

·  Demonstrate advanced skill in implementing previously learned acting and film concepts

Offered to grades 9, 10, 11 and 12 

The object of this program is to introduce the student to video as an art form. It is designed to encourage creative and imaginative use of video through analysis and comprehension of the medium. Aspects of video production that will be covered include the visual image, story structure, camera techniques, and the impact of music. In pre-production students will create treatments, storyboards, and shooting scripts. During production students will use the video camera to demonstrate an understanding of specific techniques used in film. In the last phase of these short projects, students will learn to create a project in Final Cut Pro, and edit a basic sequence. Selected classic and contemporary films will be screened to serve as models for class work. The class is designed to be a hands-on experience. 

Students will: 

Demonstrate knowledge of specific shot types  

Understand and demonstrate composition skills in filming and editing  

Be able to distinguish different genres of media communication  

Plan, create and execute several short videos 

Offered to grades 10, 11 and 12                                             

Prerequisite: Filmmaking I, Broadcast Journalism, or  approval of the instructor

This class is for students who have video experience and want an advanced course in cinematography and editing techniques. Selected classic and contemporary films will be screened to serve as models for class work. Students will study various story structures found in film. Students will also learn how to appropriately use sound recording equipment during filming. This focus on sound will effectively enhance the quality of the film projects produced in the course. The students will script, storyboard, shoot and edit a selection of video projects. In the second semester students will work on an independent project by choosing to do an original short video. Students will leave the course with a firm understanding of why elements of the story are linked with the visuals. 

Students will:  

Develop advanced digital editing and film writing competencies  

Demonstrate knowledge of various story structures  

Analyze film appropriately 

Understand the filmmaker’s motivation and role of audience  

Develop ideas into creative works 

Course offered to grades 9, 10, 11 and 12 (LE and LH options)   

This course can be taken for recurring credit– up to two times.

This course will explore and develop concepts of television production for broadcast while establishing an understanding of media literacy. Designed to be a hands-on experience aspects of the course include: TV studio production and multi-camera live event coverage. As a main component of this course, students produce a morning news announcement show called The Amity Update. This show focuses on Amity news, sports, and weather in a live-to-tape broadcast every other day. During production, students incorporate various broadcast equipment and are tasked with fulfilling the many different jobs in the studio environment. Event coverage and content created by this course is shared with the larger Amity community through local educational access TV stations. Students may repeat this course for credit. These advanced students may act as associate producers – often working independently on video projects throughout the course. 

Students will:  

Develop an understanding of media communications and its many facets.  

Work collaboratively as a team to produce various news programs.  

Enhance field/studio production techniques through immersion within the medium. 

Build a solid understanding of news writing for broadcast. 

Offered to Grades 11 and 12       

Prerequisite: Photography I and II or Instructor Approval 

This course  can be taken a second time for credit

This course teaches students advanced technical and conceptual approaches to visual problems in photography.  There will be an emphasis on independent and collaborative projects both with both an armature and professional themes. Critiques will be on going throughout the class for skill and image success . The course load works up to showing in a professional gallery in the area.

Students will:

This course will offer the advanced student problem-solving opportunities in a range of visual and technical con-cepts

Continue their personal exploration of emotional, social and visually powerful images with the idea of the view in mind

Demonstrate the ability to work in a professional situation with poise and pleasing the client

Create a portfolio that will be able to be used for business and entrance into art school