Criteria:
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3-5 Minutes in length
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documentation required (use MLA style; credits format is acceptable)
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work needs to make a claim and support it (in other words, this work should
have a thesis and support that thesis)
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research (at the very least, for images, video, and audio) required
Grade will be determined by how well video essay meets criteria and how the
essay is suited/developed for the video format.
Nickleback's
"If Everyone Cared" is, in essence, a video essay that makes a claim and
supports it. Ask yourself:
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what is the claim being made?
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how is it being supported?
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how do the images/ included video support the claim?
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how does the musical "bed" (soundtrack) aid in the development and support?
Preparation:
You will need to script your work. Beyond the obvious (you need to determine
what claim you will make and how you will support it), you should storyboard
your work. An easy way to do this is by creating a table using Front Page (why
FrontPage? this way, you can keep it as a resource for your final portfolio).
To create a storyboard, simply create a two column table in a document. In the
left hand side you may put an image or a description of an image. In the right
hand side, place any notes or voice overs that you may include.
I'd suggest you list your purpose in a brief heading/ abstract.
So, here's my sample situation. I'm arguing that creating video essays helps to
build and reinforces the skills required to compose "traditional" essays. So,
how am I going to prove that?
Sample:
Abstract:
What Is Composition? argues that creating
video essays strengthens students' abilities to compose traditional essays by
allowing writers to visualize the structure of the essay as well as to clarify
the role of the independent writer who, though making use of others' sources,
still creates an original work.
(footage) development of writing... cuneiform to word processing
(perhaps video footage or slideshow)
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question: include cave drawings (form of communication/ writing?)
what is writing?
what constitutes composition?
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show student at computer typing in "typical" comp mode
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what does this have to do
|
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video capture dragging/dropping files into video timeline
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with this?
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typing screen flips to video screen. text in screen reads
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everything. (expands to fill screen)
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etc. You may want to be extremely precise (as above), or you may want to mark
key "signposts" in your development.
Materials
You will need to set up a separate folder in your drive for all of your video
files. Trust me on this one. What goes in there?
image files saved in native format. What does this mean?
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if you were to search for images using, say, google image search...
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click on the image file in the results.
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Click on "see full size image."
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Right click to "save image as" and save that file in the appropriate
folder.
In theory, you could copy and paste the image into a word doc, but it would
not be usable in your video.
...speaking of word docs...
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start a Works Cited doc for your video.
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Save it in your video folder.
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When you copy/save a file, you will need to keep track of where it came
from. This WC is the place to do that.
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Go back to where you clicked on the image file in the results.
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Click on the link following "Below is the image in its original
context on the page:"
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Take down the site information using the handbook guidelines for citing a
work from a website.
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Yup. Do it. You need to cite this just as you would statistics or other
data.
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Do I need to mention that this includes video and audio as well? If the
work is "republished" (for example, a Gorillaz song downloaded via
iTunes), you will need to indicate both the original source and the source
through which you retrieved the work
Some Helpful (Re)Sources
Wink
(Video screen capture freeware)
YouTube
Ifilm
AltaVista
Video Search
Media-Convert.com
(converts files to usable formats) (Movie Maker accepts avi, msf, and mpeg)
Windows
Movie Maker Resources (Transitions, sounds, and the like)
Process
Let's Get Started
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Start Windows Movie Maker (Start->all
programs->accessories->entertainment... if you can't find it there,
start-->run-->browse-->c:\Program Files\movie maker\moviemk.exe)
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Ctrl-i (import into collections) -> select the folder where you have kept
your video files; double click to open that folder; click once in the window
where the files are ->ctrl - a to select all-> click Import
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The easiest way to work is in timeline view (Ctrl-t changes the view from
timeline to storyline)
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The rest is more or less simply drag and drop.
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To add text, go to tools-> titles and credits
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To add effects, tools->video effects
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To add transitions, tools->video transitions
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I'd suggest you take about 10 minutes and just goof off. Learn how the
program works. After that, learn as you go.
The final and most important suggestion I can make: SAVE YOUR MOVIE OFTEN.
.
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