1. In-camera edited videotape

Make a short (30 second to 1 minute maximum) in-camera edited videotape (a video post-card *) of a place, building or designed object with an emphasis on the abstraction of light, materiality, meter, color, texture, spatial sequence, formal order or the pathos and observable symbols and images of the objects you encounter.

Try a practice run first and then a  final shoot of the in-camera edited movie. You should work towards deliberate camera movement and yet take an open and experiential approach towards what you discover in the process of recording images and sounds.  Develop a few well selected sequences rather than necessarily a full description of your subject. Camera sign out is possible according to procedures established with Dick Smith within the School of Architecture, and with the Robertson Media Center. Signing out the camera with partners is encouraged to help to distribute its use. Alternatively, you may perform this assignment on your own video camera if you have access to one. We will review all of the videotapes in class.

NOTE: Robertson Digital Media Center requires that you purchase a Panasonic Master Series mini DV Tape for use their equipment. These mini DV tapes are of very high quality and allow recordings to be stable with respect to the range of the media center's equipment. They can be purchased at Cavalier Book Store. There is not such a requirement within the School of Architecture and so generally you can find less expensive mini DV tapes at a variety of vendors. However, you may want to purchase the Panasonic Master Series tape for best quality and to further your equipment access options. You only need to purchase one mini DV Tape for this exercise, and then optionally purchase others depending upon how much you intend to use digital video on future exercises.

2. Maya tutorial

Begin to examine the animation software on the Windows computers or Apple Computers in room 130, 139, room 402, or in studio. Begin to review the text for Maya (an older edition is on the reserve reading list at the fine arts library). Throughout the semester, you will likely want to cover much of the Riddell and Diamond text "Maya 6 for Windows and Macintosh". You may want to get jump on this by reading Chapters 1, 2 and 3 over the next few weeks.

Work with the creation and manipulation of:
(1) 3D objects generation and shading
(2) key framing

The  idea of a "post-card" video assignment was introduced in a filmmaking course at the MIT Film/Video Section by Rachel Strickland.