Assignment:
Produce a video essay. It can be nonfiction, creative, performative, machinima, personal, etcetera.
The video has to be between 5 and 15 minutes.
It can be centered on a game, a topic that relates to many games, or a phenomenon related to gaming and play, both digital and non-digital.
It should answer a research question, or present a thesis that is not already widely discussed.
Part 1
1-Bring two proposals for your video essay.
Post it in a shared document.
A proposal is a one-paragraph description, plus the supplemental material (eg a link to a video playthrough of the game). We’ll do a role-play pre-critique like we did for the presentation.
2- Watch a few video essays and select at least 2 that relate to the topics you’d like to cover in your final project. It can also be on a different topic but have other aspects you find inspirational such as: style, “voice”, editing, depth of research etc.
Be prepared to summarize them briefly and orally to the class.
Plan B
If you are stuck or not enthusiastic about your proposals, you can rework the subversive play assignment or game aesthetics presentation, polishing, expanding or refining it.
Part 2
Continue working on your shared document.
Treatment
Pick your project, incorporate the feedback you found valuable, and update the proposal.
Spell out your research question, thesis, or process (if it’s a more creative/experimental piece) in the most precise way possible: In this video I will…
Title
Come up with a good catchy title
Benchmark
Is there already literature or videos about the topic? Are they any good? Does the world need another video like that?
Outline
Make a bullet point list of the “chapters” in chronological order.
You can picture them as slides in a presentation.
Research
Make an inventory of what don’t you know yet (facts, data, previous research).
Make a list of all the Visual material that can be used in the video eg:
-game footage (be specific about the scene or situation)
-paratext (game cover, manuals, sites, surrounding the game)
-community content (forum posts, playthroughs, commentary)
-B-roll audiovisual material that is not game capture
-Talking head?
Part 3
Write the first half, or more, of your script.
Be ready to read it in class.
Do the research.