Working in teams of 5, you will develop an original digital documentary. This documentary should tell a compelling story based on reality, and it should make imaginative use of new media. So that you can draw upon nearby resources and learn more about the local community, your documentary should focus on some aspect of Rice or Houston. You have a lot of freedom in determining the subject of your documentary; it can look at a past event or current issue, and can focus on a place, a person, a problem, or an event. Although the documentary should reflect substantial effort, it should also be focused and coherent—avoid tackling a subject that’s too big, too one-sided, or too dull. This documentary will be made publicly available on the course web site.
You will be given some time in class to work on your projects, but you should expect to spend some time meeting outside of class. I’ll more or less leave it up to you all to divide labor and guide the evolution of the project, but please let me know if you have any problems or if you would like any feedback.
Criteria for Evaluation
Your project will be evaluated based on the following criteria:
· How well does the documentary meet its goal—that is, how well does it tell a story and reach its audience?
· How well does the documentary take advantage of the digital medium? Does it incorporate different forms of media (such as text, image, sound, animation, and video)? Is it interactive? Is it immersive?
· How effective are the various elements of the documentary? Is the text clear and eloquent? Are the graphical elements aesthetically appealing and appropriate to the documentary’s purpose?
· How coherent is the documentary? Is it well edited? Is it clear why each element is part of the documentary, and how they relate to a larger whole?
Grading
Your overall grade for the project will be based on two components:
· 2/3: Group grade for the overall quality of the documentary (see criteria above)
· 1/3: Individual grade. Your fellow group members will complete evaluations of your contributions to the project, and you will fill in a self-evaluation. You will also submit a 2 page essay in which you describe the purposes of the documentary, explain how it was made, and reflect on the experience of making it.
Topics
The following broad topics are only suggestions meant to spark your own thinking-- you are encouraged to develop your own topic. For further guidance on finding and developing an idea for a documentary, see Michael Rabiger’s Directing the Documentary, pages 37-51 [on reserve].
· The Masterson controversy: In1969, students and faculty actively protested against the selection of Harris Masterson as the president of Rice. His appointment was reversed.
· The integration of Rice
· The history of a student organization at Rice (The Thresher, KTRU, the Rice Players, the MOB, the SA, etc.)
· Rice in wartime. (The Woodson Research Center has good collections about WWI and WWII.)
· Working at Rice: interviews with members of Rice’s staff, e.g. Dining and Housing, Buildings and Grounds, college coordinators, etc.
· Student athletes at Rice
· The development of a Rice tradition: Beer Bike (the Woodson has good collections in this area), NOD, Club 13, etc.
· Houston thoroughfares: trace the changes (geographical, cultural, and/or historical) on a major street in Houston, such as Main St., Westheimer, West Gray, Telephone Road, etc.
· Houston music: the story of a local musician (Lightnin’ Hopkins, Big Mama Thornton, Lydia Mendoza, etc), club, record label, or scene.
· Experimental education in Houston: the YES College Preparatory Academy; the Rice School; home schooling; etc.
· Find a focused way to explore a social issue such as environmental degradation, homelessness, sprawl, etc.
· Focus on a place in Houston. For instance, you might look at a particular neighborhood, or at a local institution: House of Pies, Herman Park, the Orange Show (local folk art shrine), etc.
· Profile a local character.
Resources
· Marguerite Johnston, Houston: The Unknown City, 1836-1946
· The Houston Press
· The Houston Chronicle
· Texas Monthly
· The Woodson Research Center (Rice archives)
· The Houston Metropolitan Research Center (archives housed at the Houston Public Library downtown.)
Important Deadlines
o Friday, September 29: Prospectus for the documentary due. In your treatment, you should offer a brief summary of your digital documentary, any necessary background information, and an explanation of why the documentary is worth making. You should also include a schedule for completing the various stages of the documentary. Due to the class web site by 5:00 p.m (Email it to me if you have any trouble.)
o November 7: Project update. One page description of the current status of your project, due in class.
o December 5: Review version of project due.
o December 12: Final version of the project due.
Project Roles
Each person on the project team should participate in every aspect of the documentary, from performing research to designing the web site to shaping the story. However, each group should appoint someone to be responsible for one of the following sets of duties:
· Project manager
· Graphics whiz
· Lead researcher
· Writer and editor
· Web guru
Project Teams
Team 1:
o Beth Williams
o Mary Templeton
o Jared Singer
o Brock Tautenhahn
o Patrick Hallmark
Team 2
o Matt Drosjack
o David Chien
o Robert Reichle
o Rebecca Mackiernan
o Thom Blaylock
Team 3
o Nancy Gresham
o Gavin Parks
o Brad Filice
o David Castillo
Team 4
o Jamie Lisagor
o Max Starkenburg
o Javier Garza
o Chis Sullivan
o Michelle Stevenson