Instructor: David Witzling

Satisfies GER-Art and Oral & Written Communications Part B requirements

Still from Craig Baldwin: Sonic Outlaws (1995).

Course Topic
In this class we’ll examine how digital cinema as an art form might respond to some of the cultural, philosophical, and technical implications of inexpensive, ubiquitous computing technology. We’ll place a special emphasis on the aesthetic dimensions and copyright implications of remix, appropriation, and multiple authorship in contemporary digital cinema. We’ll situate these cinematic developments within open source culture more broadly, and we’ll take stock of how the ethos of open source collaborative software development aligns with contemporary cinematic remix practices. Class time will include digital cinema screenings, writing workshops, reading time, critique, and discussions of course content. The midterm will involve an in-class oral presentation of research, and the final will be a remix-based video production assignment.

NOTE FOR GER STUDENTS: The final project is explicitly designed to that it is possible for non-majors to receive a good grade.

Course Goals
The primary goal of this course is to provide students with a variety of ways to
think about digital cinema in the world of open source culture. Students will be expected to demonstrate their understanding of the aesthetic, conceptual, and legal dimensions of computer-mediated remix art through written work, oral expression, and by using video production strategies to synthesize course readings and discussion. The final remix-based digital video production assignment will also help students learn experientially about the computer as a cultural artifact that sits at the crossroads of complex social, philosophical, and technical issues.

Sample Screenings

• Guy Debord: Society of the Spectacle (1973)
• Craig Baldwin: Sonic Outlaws (1995)
• Penn and Teller: Tim’s Vermeer (2013)

Sample Readings

• Electronic Frontier Foundation: “Digital Rights Management: A Failure in the  Developed World, a Danger to the Developing World” (2005)
• Patricia Loughlan: “Pirates, Parasites, Reapers, Sowers, Fruits, Foxes… The Metaphors of Intellectual Property” (2006)
• US Supreme Court: Sony Corporation of America v. Universal City
  Studios (1984)
• Jonathan Lethem: “The Ecstasy of Influence: a Plagiarism Mosaic” (2007)

Class Time and Attendance
Attendance is mandatory. After three unexcused absences, students will lose one letter grade per additional absence. Students must arrive to class on time; after two (2) late arrivals, each late arrival = one (1) absence.

Grading Components

• Midterm Research Paper     15%
• Midterm Oral Presentation (on same topic, in class)     10%
• Written User Interface “Treasure Hunt” Report      5%
• Written Abstract, Bibliography, Outline      5%

• Oral Discussion of Assigned Readings      10%
• In-Class Writing Workshop Participation      5%
• In-Class Reading Quizzes (open note)      5%
• Informal Reading Responses (5)      5%
• Informal Position Paper      5%

• Final Remix Video (Presentation of Final Edit)      10%
• “Beta Version” Final Project (Presentation of Rough Edit)      10%
• Media Sketch (First Edit)      5%
• Quality of Video Clip Archive (Source Media)      5%
• Written Statement for Remix Video 5%

* You do not need access to a camera to complete the final project, although the FINAL will involve motion picture editing. Free editing software like Windows Movie Maker or iMovie will be adequate to complete the FINAL.