DOCUMENTARY FILM APPRECIATION AND FILMMAKING COURSE
AT OPEN SPACE, PUNE
SEPTEMBER 11 - OCTOBER 3, 2006
DOES DIGITIAL MEDIA INTEREST YOU?
WOULD YOU LIKE TO DOCUMENT ISSUES OF CONCERN ON FILM?
COME AND LEARN THE BASICS OF USING FILM TO:
TELL A STORY
DEBATE AN ISSUE
RAISE AWARENESS
DOCUMENT INJUSTICE
PRESENT THE WORLD AROUND YOU
ACT FOR CHANGE
To build the capacity of citizens - particularly youth -- to
institute social change, Open Space, the civil society outreach
initiative of the Centre for Communication and Development Studies
(CCDS), is offering a 4-week course in using film as a medium of social
communications and social change. The course is designed for students,
activists and concerned citizens.
OBJECTIVES OF THE COURSE
1) To understand the form and function of documentary cinema
2) To learn to make documentaries on socially-relevant themes using a
medium that is accessible and affordable
3) To learn to use documentary for self-expression, advocacy and social
change.
The course will be supplemented by a hands-on, guided filmmaking module
where participants will choose topics, script, direct and complete
their own films. Groups of participants will have made a 10-minute film
on a socially relevant theme at the end of the course.
In addition to learning about the elements of digital film making
(script development, shooting, sound, editing and post-production),
participants will be exposed to the fundamentals of social
communications as they explore issues related to sustainable
development, social justice and human rights.
FACULTY
The course will be conducted in Pune and will have lectures and inputs
from well-known documentary film makers and experts in social
communications including
P K Nair, Founding Director, National Film Archive of India, and
teacher at the Film and Television Institute of India
Paromita Vohra, Visiting Faculty at the Sophia College Center for
Social Communications Media in Bombay, and scriptwriter,
documentary/feature filmmaker
Anand Patwardhan, award-winning documentary filmmaker.
The course coordinator is Prakash Belawadi, Co-Director of the Centre
for Film and Drama, Bangalore, journalist, documentary filmmaker and
winner of the National Award for best feature film in English.
FRAMEWORK
The course will run for approximately 25 working days (including
teaching, shooting and post-production) and will allow participants
sufficient time with equipment and training. Five contingency days have
also been provided and will be used if necessary.
Each film will be made by a group of participants and the length of
shooting and post-production schedules will enable participants to get
a complete feel of the medium and the technology they are working with.
The equipment used will be professional, ensuring a broadcast-quality
final product.
MODULE ONE: THEORY AND BACKGROUND
Five days of classes (6 hours per day).
The first module of the course will highlight the form and function of
documentary films and the larger documentary enterprise. Through
moderated discussions, we will make students aware of how to watch
documentaries and how to write about them, how to use them as
innovative means of communication and how to integrate them in
professional situations.
Students will have a chance to post their film reviews and critiques on
the Open Space website (www.openspaceindia.org).
Outline of the module:
A general introduction to the history of the documentary, its
traditional purposes and intent
The Indian documentary film movement
Different styles, positions and ideologies
How does documentary differ from short film, from news reports on
television, from commissioned film?
The impact of documentary cinema
How to watch documentaries and how to write for/about them, how to use
them as innovative means of communication and how to integrate them
into professional situations
The evolution of documentaries in the age of digital filmmaking and the
Internet.
Students will have the opportunity to view several documentary films in
the course of the sessions. Students will also be watching films from
the collection at the National Film Archive of India in Pune at special
screenings in the mini theatre.
Sessions will be interactive and will elicit the views of the students
as well as guide them through new ideas, concepts and perspectives.
TECHNICAL ORIENTATION
One day of orientation to cameras, sound, editing and post-production
possibilities so that participants understand what can be done during a
shoot and what can be done in the studio. This will enable students to
write their scripts with technical details and constraints in mind.
MODULE TWO: PREPARING TO MAKE A FILM
Seven days of guided research and training for script development with
reference to a provided topic.
Outline of the module:
Understanding visual language
Researching and developing a script idea
Developing and practicing interview techniques
Planning pre-production
Introduction to directing, editing and sound recording
Planning post-production
Putting together the shooting script for a documentary
MODULE THREE: MAKING A FILM
Ten days (one shift per day) of shooting and post-production for each
group. The ten film-making days will run parallel as each group shoots
and edits simultaneously but separately.
Participants will work with professional camera, sound and editing
technicians to make their film. Each group will go through the entire
process of making a film as a production unit with designated tasks and
functions.
Outline of the module:
Shooting
Editing
Post production (effects, titles and sub-titles, music, voice over,
etc)
COURSE FEE
Rs 15,000 per head. There are no scholarships available.
Participants from outside Pune will be expected to make their own
arrangements for boarding and lodging.
This course is open to all. No prior experience in filmmaking is
necessary though candidates demonstrating commitment to social change
will be given preference.
For more information and an application form, please contact Open Space
at 020 2545 7371 or write to renu@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
for completed applications and payment of course fee: 15th
August, 2006
The Centre for Communication and Development Studies (CCDS) is a social
change resource centre working to strengthen civil society by
researching and disseminating information and analysis on issues
related to sustainable development, social justice and human rights,
and building the capacity of citizens to institute social change. CCDS
manages the civil society and youth outreach programme called Open
Space in Pune (www.openspaceindia.org), and manages InfoChange News &
Features (www.infochangeindia.org), a leading online resource base on
social justice and development issues in India.
For further information on any of these programs call Arshia, Renu or
Nikhil at 25457371
Open Space encourages debate and action on rights, justice and
sustainable development.
Open Space is an initiative of the Centre for Communication &
Development Studies (CCDS) aimed at strengthening civil society and
mobilising citizen's action.
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