{"id":1634,"date":"2018-08-09T21:57:15","date_gmt":"2018-08-09T21:57:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mes153.commons.gc.cuny.edu\/?page_id=101"},"modified":"2026-02-10T20:57:03","modified_gmt":"2026-02-11T01:57:03","slug":"week-3-visual","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/openlab.bmcc.cuny.edu\/mes153-rowell_scriptwriting-26sp\/week-3-visual\/","title":{"rendered":"Unit 3 – Doc Project Deliverables, Beats, Outline"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"documentary<\/p>\n\n

WEEK 3 WORK<\/strong><\/h2>\n

MES153 0902: 2\/10 – 2\/16 | MES153 1000: 2\/19 – 2\/26<\/h3>\n

ALL ASSIGNMENTS TO BE COMPLETED BEFORE NEXT CLASS UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED
\n<\/strong><\/p>\n

NOTE: All links should work on this page and all pages of the OpenLab site. If you find a link not working or otherwise broken, please email me<\/a> ASAP so it can be fixed ASAP.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0Week 3 Readings<\/h2>\n

DEVELOPING THE DOC PROJECT DELIVERABLES<\/h3>\n

All the homework assignments in the first half of the course build toward writing a documentary script package. <\/strong>That’s called theDOC PROJECT and its guidelines here<\/a><\/strong>, but in short, what you are in the process of producing are the following:<\/p>\n

BASING DOCUMENTARY PROJECT ON LONG NEWS FEATURE APPROVED IN DP1<\/strong><\/h4>\n

After you receive a green light on one of your articles, you must study it, reading it in and out to know the entire story. Your script based on the events in the news piece will be shorter than the entire story captured in the article. It will also start differently and unfold differently because you are writing for the screen, writing a script for a movie that would be watched and listened to.<\/p>\n

You will build your documentary project over the first six to seven weeks of the course through a series of homework assignments.<\/p>\n

One of the first of these is writing a logline which has some more detail below.<\/p>\n

You’ll also need to come up with a title<\/strong> for the film. While short, the name of a film is like a calling card for it. It needs to point to the thrust of the story in a short, fitting, clever or otherwise smart and memorable name. Note: The title must be significantly different from the headline or anything else from the original article<\/strong> unless, perhaps, it is something a person in the article said and that short phrase really gets to the heart of the hypothetical documentary.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

    \n
  1. \n
      \n
    1. \n

      LOGLINE<\/strong><\/h4>\n

      This single sentence must include<\/h4>\n

      The logline should be a single sentence that has been revised several times <\/strong>over the first several weeks of the semester that focuses on the Doc Project.<\/p>\n

      There are a number of ways to get to a good, strong logline. Below are 12 different ways. Even if one is not exact, it should help you find a way to describe your story through its essential ingredients..<\/p>\n

      \"logline\"logline<\/p>\n

        \n
      1. When an event happens, a person takes action until antagonist threatens.<\/li>\n
      2. After shocking back story happens, a person pursues a difficult goal.<\/li>\n
      3. An interesting person pursues a familiar goal, in an unexpected way.<\/li>\n
      4. Driven by motivation, a person or people pursue a unique goal.<\/li>\n
      5. Special circumstances force a characterto engage in morally ambiguous behavior.<\/li>\n
      6. A group of interesting people face a variety of obstacles as they pursue a collective goal.<\/li>\n
      7. A group of interesting people must choose between their personal needs and the collective good as they face a common enemy.<\/li>\n
      8. An anti-hero makes it his or her mission to rise to power with a certain methodology.<\/li>\n
      9. Two opposite people with limited resourcesmust unite to accomplish a mission.<\/li>\n
      10. A negatively changed world can only be fixed with the accomplishment of an impossible task performed by a unique person.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

        More on loglines in this video<\/a>:<\/p>\n

        https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=bvlWd2tz4xg&t=1s<\/li>\n

      11. \n

        STEP OUTLINE
        \n<\/strong><\/h4>\n

        The step outline<\/strong> is essentially a list of the events\/scenes of the script you will write. Note that the description of these events\/scenes is a single sentence or phrase.<\/p>\n

        For a 10-15 minute project there should be between 8 and 25 events\/scenes. Each event\/scene should illustrate an element of the narrative explicitly.<\/p>\n

        A good step outline will include all the individual events that will be presented in the ultimate narrative; they may summarize what will be shown but should NOT include specific dialogue or image sequences unless such specificity is necessary to provide clarity of intent.<\/p>\n

        Read more on step outlines here \u00bb<\/a>
        \nSee an example of a step outline         here<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n

      12. \n

        TREATMENT
        \n<\/strong><\/h4>\n

        This detailed summary of the film-to-be describes in a moment-to-moment account from fade in to fade out everything that will be seen and heard. Here\u2019s what to remember about writing a treatment:<\/p>\n

        \u2022 You are telling the story thru VISUAL language<\/strong> \u2026 that includes all imagery and audio that will eventually end up on video.
        \n\u2022 Describe audio and video (NO SCRIPTED DIALOG<\/strong>) \u2013 create relationships between these main elements while trying to structure events around protagonist, protagonist want, obstacles (conflict), conflict
        \n\u2022 Written in the present tense<\/strong> using some 1st person plural sentences to create scenes \u2013 \u201cwe see\u2026or we hear\u2026\u201d
        \n\u2022 Avoid technical language. Stick to simple descriptive terms that are easily understood, and focus on action<\/strong> and imagery<\/strong> and sounds<\/strong> on screen.
        \n\u2022 You are creating a NARRATIVE<\/strong> based on real events, so you are figuring out a beginning, middle and end. Work sequentially.<\/p>\n

         <\/p>\n

        \"writing
        \nRead more on treatments         here<\/strong>.<\/a><\/li>\n

      13. \n

        SYNOPSIS<\/strong><\/h4>\n

         <\/p>\n

        This is a one- to three-paragraph summary that is less specific than a treatment and identifies things that the treatment does not, such as the film’s objective, theme, style, POV, access to sources, audience. Also significantly shorter than a treatment, the synopsis should include all additional info important to the film. (More on the synopsis along with five examples here<\/a>.)<\/h4>\n<\/li>\n
      14. \n

        A\/V SCRIPT – A two-column script that details what specific video clips and which specific audio parts play when.
        \n<\/strong><\/h4>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

        \"two-column
        \n<\/strong>Video overview of an A\/V script:<\/p>\n