CMGT 550/Hollywood 3.0 Page 3 of 9
CMGT 550
Hollywood 3.0: New Media and the Entertainment Industries
Spring 2013
Section: 21745D
Classroom: ASC 204
Days/Times: Tuesday/ 6:30-9:20pm
CMGT 550/Hollywood 3.0 Page 3 of 9
Instructor: David Craig
Email:
Telephone: 213-281-1613 (cell)
Office hours: By appointment; email your request; please include topic.
Instructor: Keyvan Peymani Email:
Telephone:
Office hours:
CMGT 550/Hollywood 3.0 Page 3 of 9
NOTE: This class has been redesiged to focus on transmedia production. You need not be an expert in video production or web design. We will be offering training in class.
COURSE DESCRIPTION: Are we witnessing the collapse of Hollywood in the wake of new media and digital and interactive technologies? If not, then how can we develop the tools and awareness to best predict what will happen next? Hollywood 3.0 explores the shift in media and entertainment industries towards new media forms, distribution and exhibition. These shifts pose new challenges to aspiring media professionals, whether content creators, producers or executives. We will be examining the forces of media convergence from multiple perspectives, including technologically, industrially, political economy, and socio-culturally. In addition, we will be generating original transmedia projects, whether scripted, live action or animated web series, social media marketing or interactive apps.
COURSE GOALS
· To produce a transmedia project.
· To develop a critical understanding of media convergence;
· To cultivate a broad range of skills for producing media, conducting research, making presentations, and writing critical essays.
REQUIRED TEXTS:
· Jenkins, H. (2013). Spreadable Media. NYU Press.
· Meikle, G. and Young, S. (2012). Media Convergence. Palgrave-Macmillan.
· Phillips, A. (2012). A Creator’s Guide to Transmedia Storytelling. McGraw-Hill
SYLLABUS (Subject to Change)
1/15 / Introductions
Lecture: Transmedia
1/22 / Present Prezumes; chose groups / Transmedia Storytelling Book/ Intro-14
Long/ Moving Stories
1/29 / iMovie Training / Transmedia Storytelling Book/15-28
Zhao/ Chinese Storytelling on the web
2/5 / Wordpress Training / Class essay due by 6pm via email
2/12 / Project Proposals / No blog/ No reading
2/19 / Guest Speaker: tbd / Jenkins/ Worship at the Altar of Convergence
Bird/ Are we all Produsers Now?
Bratitch/ User-generated Discontent
2/26 / Guest Speaker: tbd / Cunningham/ Informal and Media Economies
Maxwell and Miller/ Old New Media Convergence
Verstraete/ The Politics of Convergence
Singh/New Media and Cultural Identity
3/5 / Guest Speaker: tbd / Spreadable Media, 1-4
3/12 / Guest Speaker: tbd / Spreadable Media, 5-8
3/19 / SPRING BREAK
3/26 / Lecture: Media Evolution / Media Convergence, 1-4
4/2 / Rough Cuts
Visiting scholars from Hamburg / No blog/no reading
4/9 / Lecture: Media Convergence / Media Convergence, 5-8
4/16 / TBD
4/23 / Lecture: New Media Management / Merkin/ The Management of Transmedia Production
4/26 / H3.0 Forum – Final Projects / No blog/ Reading
4/30 / Lecture: The New Hollywood
Essay Exam posted / Ginsburg/ Rethinking the Digital Age
Levin/ Velocity of Change
Pardo/ Hollywood at the Digital Crossroads
5/14 / Final Essay Exam due
COURSE GRADING and ASSIGNMENTS
25% Blog/Class Essay
50% Transmedia Project (Group)
25% Final Essay Exam
PREZUME (Prezi + resume)
· This will not be graded.
· Go to Prezi.com, sign up for a free educational account, take the tutorial and get started.
· “Show me” 5-7 things I should know about you: where you are from, where you went to school, your work experience, the reason you picked this course, etc.
· You HAVE 5 minutes MAX. Focus only on the most important information and be brief.
· Use images, pictures, logos, video. Limit your text as much as possible. Be creative.
· Post the link to your Prezi on the class blog before class.
BLOG
· You are to relate THAT WEEK’s reading to a current news item. Unless there is a guest speaker, in which case you are to relate from the reading to what the speaker discussed.
· Write a brief description (2-3 lines) of the article and its relation to the reading.
· Cite the reading, including page number.
· Create a successful hyperlink. See blackboard for instructions.
· Be prepared to discuss in class.
· Do not post what has been previously been posted by another student.
· Sources may include the following, although you are welcome to look elsewhere.
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o Cynthia’s Cynopsis/ Nikki Finke’s Deadline.com
o Hollywood Reporter/ Variety
o New York Times/LA Times
o Iwantmedia.com
o Wired.com
o Gizmodo.com
o ExtremeTech.com
o Buzzfeed.com/Tech
o AllthingsD.com
o Metascott.com
o Techdirt.com
CMGT 550/Hollywood 3.0 Page 3 of 9
CLASS ESSAY/VIDEO:
· Write an argument essay based on this question: identify and research a Transmedia company and discuss why you think this company will or will not be successful.
· Make certain to define your terms: Transmedia and successful.
· 2 pages MAXIMUM, including citations.
· Use WORD and APA Format.
· The essays should be emailed to Professor Craig by 6pm.
FINAL ESSAY EXAM: the questions and instructions will be posted on Blackboard towards the end of the semester. This exam requires that you have attended class, performed the readings, completed your assignments and synthesized the knowledge from the lectures, reading, presentations and speakers. On this last note, I recommend taking notes on speakers.
TRANSMEDIA PROJECT: Each group will be responsible for generating a transmedia storytelling project. This must involve some form of video production PLUS a proposal for distribution, whether creating a website, software or app. We will discuss further in class.
· The schedule has been written into our class schedule. Follow this very carefully.
· We will be arranging for mentors to work with you, whether a new media professional for guidance or a production expert to assist with creating and shooting video.
Sample Transmedia projects: The following are examples of transmedia projects and sites for you to explore. These are just examples; you are welcome to propose something else.
· MEDIA Marketing Project: develop a transmedia marketing campaign for a movie or series in production, whether produced professionally, by a student or user-generated. This may include generating an EPK (Electronic Press Kit) with behind-the-scene videos, cast interviews, photos and descriptions of the projects and cast and production along with a companion website should be developed to post these materials.
· MEDIA Branding Project: develop transmedia branded projects to cross-promote, tie-in or stand alongside a film or television or web-based series in production. This may include graphic novels, RPGs, interactive web or mobile games, etc.
· COMMUNITY Project: develop a transmedia promotional campaign on behalf of a community, subculture or non-profit organization. This may include generating scripted PSAs, non-scripted short form documentaries, social media websites, etc.
· BUSINESS Project: developed transmedia brand extensions for a business. This may include developing an online advertising campaign, a viral video campaign, a customer-based website.
· The following sites offer examples of fully developed and funded transmedia projects.
· http://www.airmedia.org/PageInfo.php?PageID=704
· http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ToSiyIjiVdg
DELIVERABLES: Every week we will be discussing and receiving updates from your groups. The following describes those deliverables that must be received as per the class schedule.
· Project proposals - in prezi with original video. Length tbd. Detailed description of your project, what form, pProjects must include a detailed production schedule. Your prezi should include an original video that describes your team and any pertinent details regarding your project, including the subject, design and production. Video should be between 2-4 minutes.
· Rough cuts - each group must come prepared to show their projects, as close or as near to completions as possible. The professors and your classmates will weigh in with their observations, suggestions, assistance, etc.
· Final presentation: each group will present their projects at the H3.0 Forum.
Training: We will be offering brief training courses on iMovie and Wordpress in class.
· Also, Virtual Commons (offers quick guides): annenberg.usc.edu/virtualcommons
· Lynda.com offer video tutorials: www.usc.edu/its/lynda
· For assistance, Courtney Miller, New Media Specialist, or 213-740-3433
OPTIONAL READING
Andrewjevic, M. (2007). iSpy: Surveillance and Power in the Interactive Era. Kansas.
Andrews, L. (2011). I Know Who You Are and I Saw What You Did: Social Networks and the
Death of Privacy. Free Press.
Auletta, K. (2010). Googled: the end of the world as we know it. Penguin.
Burgess, J. & Green, J. (2010). YouTube: Digital Media and Society Series. Polity Press.
Carr. N. (2011). The Shallows: What the Internet is doing to our Brain. Norton.
Cerra, A. and James, C. (2012). Identity Shift: Where Identity Meets Technology in the
Networked-Community Age. Wiley.
Castells, M. (2001). The Internet Galaxy. Oxford University Press.
Chorost, M. (2011). World Wide Mind: The Coming Integration of Humanity, Machines and
the Internet. Free Press.
Couldry, N. (2012). Media, Society, World: Social Theory and Digital Media Practice. Polity.
Grant, A. E. and Wilkingson, J. S. (Eds.) (2009) Understanding Media Convergence: The State of
the Field. Oxford University Press.
Gray, J. et. al. (Eds.) (2007). Fandom: Identities and Communities in a Mediated World. NYU.
Gitlin, T. (2002). Media Unlimited: How the Torrent of Images and Sounds Overwhelms our Lives. Owl Books.
Goldsmith, J. and Wu, T. (2008). Who Controls the Internet? Illusions of a Borderless World.
Oxford.
Ito, M. (Et. al. )(2009). Living and Learning with New Media: Summary of Findings from the
Digital Youth Project. MacArthur Press.
Jackson, M. (2008) Distracted: The Erosion of Attention and the Coming Dark Age.
Prometheus Books.
Jenkins, H. (2006). Convergence Culture: Where Old and New Media Collide. NYU Press.
Jenkins, H. (2006). Fans, Bloggers and Gamers. New York University Press.
Jenkins, H. et. al. (2009). Confronting the Challenges of Participatory Culture: Media
Education for the 21st Century. MIT Press, London England.
Johnson, S. (2010). Where Good Ideas Come From: The Natural History of Innovation.
Riverhead Press.
Keen, A. (2012). Digital Vertigo: How Today’s online social revolution is dividing, diminishing
and disorienting us. St. Martin’s Press.
Keen, A. (2007). The Cult of the Amateur. Doubleday.
Knopper, S. (2010). Appetite for Self-Destruction. Soft Shell Press.
Lanier, J. (2010). You are Not a Gadget: A Manifesto. Knopf.
Lievrouw, L. A. (2011). Alternative and Activist New Media. Polity Press
Marsden, C. (2010) Net Neutrality: Towards a Co-regulatory Solution.Bloomsbury Academic.
Marshall, P. D. (2004). New Media Cultures. Arnold Publishers.
Morozov, E. (2011). The Net Delusion: The Dark Side of Internet Freedom. Public Affairs.
Neuman, W. R. (Ed.) (2010). Media, Technology and Society: Theories of Media Evolution.
Digital Culture Books.
Pariser, E. (2011). The Filter Bubble: What the Internet is Hiding From You. Penguin.
Robins, K. and Webster, F. (1999). Times of the Technoculture. Routledge.
Rose, F. (2011). The Art of Immersion. Norton
Sachs, J. (2012). Winning the Story Wars: Why those who tell and live the best stories will
Rule the future. Harvard Business Review.
Shirky, Clay (2010). Cognitive Surplus: Creativity and Generosity in a Connected Age. Penguin
Press.
Staiger, J. and Hake, S. (Eds.)(2009). Convergence Media History. Routledge.
Streeter, T. (2011). The Net Effect: Romanticism, Capitalism and the Internet. NYU Press.
Thorburn, D. and Jenkins, H. (2003). Rethinking Media Change: The Aesthetics of Transition.
MIT Press.
Turkle, S. (2011). Alone Together: Why we expect more from Technology and Less from each
Other. Basic Books.
Turow, J. (2011). The Daily You: How the New Advertising Industry is Defining Your Identity
And Your Worth. Yale.
Vaidhyanathan, S. (2011). The Googlization of Everything (and Why we should Worry).
University of California Press.
Winograd & Hais (2009). Millennial Makeover: My Space, YouTube & The Future of American
Politics. Rutgers.
Wu, T. (2011). The Master Switch: The Rise and Fall of Information Empires. Vintage.
Zengotita, T.D. (2005) Mediated: How the Media Shapes Your World and The Way You Live In
It. Bloomsbury: New York.
Zittrain, J. (2008). The Future of the Internet And How to Stop It. Yale University Press.
HOW TO NETWORK:
· Become active in TEC (Trojan Entertainment Connection) at https://www.facebook.com/TECUSC
· Join the Linked In Annenberg Media & Entertainment Professionals Group at http://www.linkedin.com/groups?gid=4572205&trk=hb_side_g
· Start Early!!! That’s not early enough. Start NOW!
· Made certain you reach the right person. For example, a consultant is not an employee. A line producer is not involved in the creative process. A production executive may or may not be creatively involved. Come to me for clarification first if you are concerned.
· Locate their office and/or representatives through any means possible, whether the internet, e.g., IMDB or Hollywood Creative Directory or the Studio System.
· Call, write or email them to request permission to interview them, either by phone, in person or by email. This will probably require numerous attempts.
· DO WHATEVER IT TAKES! Go through our alumni on the Linked In site; ask you friends, parents, professors. Send cards, deliver gift baskets, ANYTHING YOU CAN DO!
· Be discreet!
HOW TO MAKE A PRESENT (INCLUDING PREZI, HANDOUTS AND INTERVIEWS)
· You should do your research and have an outline prepared BEFORE starting your prezi.
· You should be careful to use credible sources and cite these in your handout.
· This is not POWERPOINT. The PREZI should compliment your lecture, not repeat it.
· Use as many logos, images, pictures and audio and video clips as possible.
· Use limited text; no full sentences; try to use no more than three brief bullet points.
· If you use charts or graphs, make sure they are simple and legible.
· Take advantage of the movement...try to make it fun, unusual, animated.
· Pay attention to design. Make your prezi legible but also interesting. BE DARING!
· Show, Don’t Tell. Avoid long breaks between Prezi points where you just talking.
· Be professional and confident, even if you have to fake it.
· DO NOT RUN OVER TIME. I will cut you off.