Syllabus

TRM 153: STUDIO CONCEPTS

FALL 2015

Instructor: Jessica Posner

Email: jlposner@syr.edu

Class Time: Tuesday, 8:25am- 12:25pm

Location: Shaffer 214

Office Hours: By appointment. 
Please email first, and try to schedule an in-person meeting at least 3days in advance.

Office: Room 231, Shaffer

Website: trmstudioconcepts.blogspot.com

COURSE DESCRIPTION

This class is an interdisciplinary studio course in Transmedia. “Transmedia” references a discipline encompassing both time-based and digital art forms. At Syracuse University, “Transmedia” is a department within the College of Visual and Performing Arts (CVPA) which includes four majors: Art Video, Computer Art, Film, and Art Photography. In this class, you will be required to challenge and expand your assumptions and ideas about these specific disciplines, as well as ideas about art in general. You will be encouraged to think critically and practically about your creative practices within the context of a rigorous, supportive peer group.

We will explore and deepen skills with digital tools including computers, digital cameras, Photoshop CC, and Adobe Premiere Pro CC. Conceptually, this course will address three major themes:

Myth Making: Synthetic Image, Constructed Self

Cut, Collide, Critique: The Mashup

Narrative Sequences and Telling Frames: Cinematic Storytelling

Each of these themes will correlate with specific skills and concepts, homework assignments and readings, and a major assignment to be presented in critique. More information about critiques, grading, and tentative course schedule is included in this syllabus.

EXPECTATIONS

The expectation is that you will work hard.

Push yourself. A seed becomes a tree only after pushing through the firmament.

We will celebrate collective and individual successes and failures (also known as “not successes”), receiving both as valuable learning experiences.

If you need help, reach out sooner than later. I understand life happens, and am committed to helping you make the best work possible given any circumstance.

YOUR RESPONSIBILITIES

Your responsibilities as a student in this class are to gather creative research, make artworks using digital tools, and share and talk about your work. In addition, you must actively engage with your fellow students by being generous with your thoughts and feedback about their work.

You are responsible for communicating respectfully, frequently, and punctually with both me (your professor), and your classmates. Always ask questions. Try to anticipate your needs. Some of your classmates may become life long resources, collaborators, and humans in your life. Trust, use, and respect each other. Ask for help and feedback. Be kind and generous with help and feedback when asked. This is a life skill. Practice frequently. Commit to being part of a community of critical thinkers and passionate makers.

If you feel stuck or “blocked,” it is your responsibility to contact me and commit to working through your blockage. An important part of learning the creative process is learning how to move through it when things get hard, seem impossible, or feel futile.

I am here for you. Do not hesitate to contact me. I will always do my best to get back to you within 24 hours or sooner. I ask that you please practice patience and professionalism. As emails do sometimes end up in the wrong inbox or get accidentally archived, please follow up if I have not responded to your query within a reasonable period of time.

TOOLS + MATERIALS

• You will need a Mac laptop and Adobe CC (Creative Cloud) software, which you are required to purchase as an incoming freshman. We will be using Photoshop CC and Premiere Pro CC in this course. Student Subscriptions are $19.99/month at creative.adobe.com/plans.

Note: It is possible to complete and be successful on all assignments on a PC, many students have done so. Classroom instruction will take place on a Mac. If you are using a non- Mac operating system, you are responsible for learning, adapting to, and navigating the differences. Regardless of your operating system, you are required to learn and work in the Adobe CC programs taught within the framework of this class.

• If you do not already have one, you must purchase an external hard drive to regularly back up your computer and work. Computer failure and data loss are not acceptable excuses for not completing assignments. Please get one of these as soon as possible, and back up frequently. You will use this for backing up your entire computer-based life, and also for moving files between computers. Recommended size: 1TB. Lacie, WD, and Seagate are popular brands.
• You must purchase an SDHC Memory card for use with all Cage issued equipment (digital video cameras, dSLRS, etc.). You will use this in other classes and for many years. Recommended size: 32GB ($12 on amazon.com).
• A subscription to Lynda.com. As a Syracuse University student, you can access Lynda.com for FREE via lynda.syr.edu. Lynda.com is an incredible resource offering professional level tutorials for software and more. You will be required to view specified tutorials for homework. Lynda.com is truly an incredible resource available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
• A paper notebook, or sketchbook for your ideas, thoughts, notes. Your name and class time must be written on the cover. You will use this notebook to thoughtfully respond to writing prompts, questions, and readings. It will be collected from time-to-time. This will factor into your participation grade.
• TURNING IN WORK: You will be required to turn in the majority of your coursework using the Transmedia server. You can easily log on to the server from a Mac computer. If you do not have a mac computer, you will need to access one in a lab, from a friend, or make other arrangements to upload your work. To log on to the server from a Mac:

1) Open Finder, select “Go> Connect to Server...” from the menu

2) Paste the server address: “afp://vpa-trmshare.syr.edu”

3) “Connect” as “Guest.”

4) A finder window will open, upload files to the appropriate folder

• Check your email. Syracuse University expects you to check your @syr.edu email account at least once a day. You will be held responsible for information emailed to you at your @syr.edu email address.

CRITIQUES

Critiques (also referred to as “crits”) are the equivalent of exams for studio classes. Depending on the size of our class, there will be between three and six formal critique days during the course of the semester. Attendance on critique days is mandatory. Failure to attend will impact both your class participation grade and your project grade. Choosing to not turn in assignments on critique day will earn an F grade for the assignment.

Additionally, all students are expected to be set-up and ready to participate at the beginning of the class period. For example: you should be done rendering, done printing, done compressing, done uploading, done transferring files, and absolutely done editing.

Projects still in progress at the start of class on critique day will be considered late. An automatic deduction of one letter will be made to the project grade for late work. Late work will receive a partial grade reduction for every day it is late. (For example: the highest possible grade for an assignment turned in seven days late is a D.)

REVISING/ RE-EDITING WORK

You may continue to work on any assigned project for a higher grade until the end of the semester, as long as a completed version of the project was presented for critique.

HOMEWORK

You are expected to complete at least 6-9 hours of work outside of class every week. Please be proactive about managing your time wisely and economically. Things often take longer and frequently go wrong when you wait until the very last minute—especially when dealing with technology. Procrastination often leads to unnecessary stress, and not realizing efforts to your highest potential.

READINGS

You will be given few readings for this class, as your reading load in Colloquium is fairly heavy. The readings for both classes will provide you with a frame of reference and language for criticality, both in our time together and also for participating in the discourse of contemporary culture in general.

Expect to grapple with the texts. Reading about art can be challenging. You are not expected to perfectly understand everything you read. To help process these texts, you are required to take notes for each assigned reading in your notebook. Come to class with at least 5 prepared points you would like to discuss in class. These points should include (1) the main arguments of the reading and (2) any questions, concerns, disagreements, or agreements you have with the text. Bring these with you class, and be prepared to share (and sometimes turn them in). This will factor in your participation grade.

CLASS ATTENDANCE

Attendance is mandatory. 3 or more absences will result in course failure.

DO NOT ARRIVE LATE. DO NOT LEAVE EARLY. More than one tardy counts as an absence. I begin every class with important information, and will not repeat it for late comers. If you regularly arrive after the start of class, your grade will suffer. You are responsible for information you miss.

Only illness or family emergency with a signed excuse from your legal guardian, note from a physician, or a notification of religious observance (within the first two week of class, via myslice) are considered excusable absences according to university policy. Please do your best to inform me prior to the start of class if you will be missing class.

Please do not come to class if you are suffering from contagious, infectious disease.

GRADING

25% Class Participation, Blog, and Attendance

15% Artist Presentations

60% Projects (20% x 3)

Project grading:

50% demonstration of technical competence

50% conceptual merit

You will receive instructions and expectations for each project. Questions not answered in the assignment sheet should be voiced.

Grade Guide:

A/A- 90-100% Outstanding: critically pushes the limits of

student's creativity, technology, and assignment.

B/+/- 80-89% Thorough: thoughtful, creative, good work.

C/+/- 70-79% Average: minimum project requirements met. Displays basic competency.

D 60-69% Poor: does not meet minimum requirements.

F 0-59% Failure: unacceptable, incomplete, absent.

CLASS POLICIES

Your psychic presence is as important as your physical presence. Please keep all cell phones, tablets, computers, and other devices off and stowed away for the duration of class. Laptops are permitted during lab time only. Breaking this policy results in a drop in your participation grade, and can result in ejection from the classroom.

ACADEMIC INTEGRITY

Syracuse University’s academic integrity policy reflects the high value that we, as a university community, place on honesty in academic work. The policy defines our expectations for academic honesty and holds students accountable for the integrity of all work they submit. Students should understand that it is their responsibility to learn about course-specific expectations, as well as about university-wide academic integrity expectations. The university policy governs appropriate citation and use of sources, the integrity of work submitted in exams and assignments, and the veracity of signatures on attendance sheets and other verification of participation in class activities. The policy also prohibits students from submitting the same written work in more than one class without receiving written authorization in advance from both instructors. The presumptive penalty for a first instance of academic dishonesty by an undergraduate student is course failure, accompanied by a transcript notation indicating that the failure resulted from a violation of academic integrity policy. The presumptive penalty for a first instance of academic dishonesty by a graduate student is suspension or expulsion. SU students are required to read an online summary of the university’s academic integrity expectations and provide an electronic signature agreeing to abide by them twice a year during pre-term check-in on MySlice. For more information and the complete policy, see academicintegrity.syr.edu.

INSURANCE

Equipment checked out from the cage is your responsibility entirely. If it is lost, stolen, or broken; you are responsible for the replacement costs. You may want to consider purchasing equipment insurance through the University. This is optional, and more details are available at the cage. Your renters insurance or parents' insurance may cover this, so be sure to check.

DISABILITY SERVICES

Our community values diversity and seeks to promote meaningful access to educational opportunities for all students. Syracuse University and I are committed to your success and to supporting Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended and the Americans with Disabilities Act (1990). This means that in general no individual who is otherwise qualified shall be excluded from participation in, be denied benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity, solely by reason of having a disability.

If you believe that you need accommodations for a disability, please contact the Office of Disability Services (ODS), disabilityservices.syr.edu, located at 804 University Avenue, room 309, or call 315-443-4498 for an appointment to discuss your needs and the process for requesting accommodations. ODS is responsible for coordinating disability-related accommodations and will issue “Accommodation Authorization Letters” to students with documented disabilities as appropriate. Since accommodations may require early planning and generally are not provided retroactively, please contact ODS as soon as possible.

You are also welcome to contact me privately to discuss your academic needs , although I cannot arrange for disability-related accommodations.

FAITH TRADITION OBSERVANCES

It is the policy of Syracuse University that no student should be refused admission or be expelled because he or she is unable to participate in any examination, study or work requirement because of his or her religious holy day requirements. Please fill out the required faith tradition observance form on myslice.syr.edu within the first two weeks of class. Additionally, please arrange a time to meet with me to make arrangements on a case-by-case basis.

STUDENT ACADEMIC WORK

I intend to use academic work that you complete this semester in subsequent semesters for educational purposes. Before using your work for that purpose, I will either get your written permission or render the work anonymous by removing all your personal identification.