• Our Final Exam day is Tues Dec 15 from 10:15 – 12:15. We will watch final projects that day and attendance is optional since there is no exam.

1. Make a short video piece that incorporates elements associated with 2 or more of the following concepts discussed in class:

• realistic motion (acceleration/decceleration/anticipation)

• surreal motion (defying/bending the laws of physics)

• expressionistic motion/effects (capturing/transmitting energy/emotion)

• mechanical motion (smoothness and/or precision)

• interpretive color correction (using color/value/contrast to enhance meaning)

2. Total running time: any length

3. Content: can be anything ranging from narrative to abstract or any point in between

4. Can be a group project if you want

2.    Duration: approximately 30 secs – 1 min

3.    Images: approximately 5-10 images

4.    Use sensibilities and imagery commonly associated with surrealism, such as floating, interiority, odd juxtapositions of everyday things, etc.

5.    Use techniques covered in the class up to this point, such as color correction, particle systems, easing in/easing out (acceleration/deceleration), animation of properties like scale, opacity, duplicate layers, etc.

6.    Prepare images in Photoshop first: paste selcted images on a Photoshop document with a transparent background

7.    Import prepared Photoshop documents into Aftereffects as “footage”, then choose “select layer”

8.    In Aftereffects, “toggle transparency” at the bottom of the composition window to keep the background transparent (checkerboard)

1. Objective color correction: Find or shoot a clip in need of repair and fix it.

2. Interpretive color correction: Find or shoot a clip that could be made more interesting and make interpretive, artistic “corrections”

These can be different clips or the same clip. The changes can be subtle or dramatic, but should be motivated.

Try to stick with the following techniques:

-Color Balance (Separate Shadow/Midtone/Highlight controls for each color channel)

-Levels (Contrast on the outer controls, gamma on the middle control)

-Hue/Saturation (Saturation is the strength or intensity of the color, decreasing saturation may be more effective than increasing it)

-Photo Filters (Warm, cool, etc.)

-Mask (Optional, for selecting specific regions of the frame to correct)

Due on Thursday, Oct 1. Please upload the original, uncorrected versions along with the corrected versions.

2. Create an approximately 10-second composition.

3. Use Keyframes and the Graph Editor to animate Properties such as Position and Scale, paying special attention to acceleration, deceleration, easing.

4. No effects.

5. It’s OK to use multiple layers and/or multiple images if necessary.

6. Consider enabling Motion Blur as a finishing touch.

7. Render as a Quicktime movie and upload to your Vimeo site.

2. Open After Effects and create a new composition with duration of 10 seconds

3. Import your downloaded video clip

4. Drag it down into the timeline

5. Create a new solid layer

6. Establish a CC Particle Systems II effect on that solid layer

7. Make sure the particle system layer is above the video clip layer

8. Make the particle system layer transparent  by clicking on the transparent background icon

9. If desired, create more particle system layers for a compound effect

10. Attempt a realistic natural forces particle system effect by manipulating the various settings

11. Export to Quicktime movie at medium quality using the codec H.264

12. Upload the finished movie to your vimeo site

• Reference for CC Paricle Systems II: http://www.adobe.com/designcenter/dialogbox/all_broken_up/

Instructor: David Callaghan

Class time: Tues/Thurs 11:00-1:50 in AC 401

Office hours: Tues 2:00-3:00 by appointment in AC 401

Email: dtc1950@csun.edu

Course Description:

Studies into artistic concepts and technologies involved in the creation of video art and digital time-based art forms. Investigations into digital imaging, non-linear compositing and visual effects result in the creation of short artistic statements presented in video/digital format.

Course Website:

art302.wordpress.com

Course Requirements:

There is no textbook – the class material will be available for free on the course website and updated throughout the semester. The class material is presented in 8 chapters, each with an exercise and a project. Most of the exercises are Adobe After Effects tutorials designed to illuminate key concepts in video/digital art, and the projects are opportunities for expanded creative exploration of those concepts.

Typically we will begin a new chapter with a class discussion, demonstration, and/or critique. Then students will work on the exercise in class and, when finished, begin working on the project. Projects are due on the day we start the next chapter. There will be a lot of time in class to work on projects, but some students may find it necessary to work on projects outside of class time. Open lab times are posted outside the computer labs.

Students will need to sign up for a free account at http://vimeo.com/ in order to submit completed video projects.

Students will need to check their CSUN email account because the university considers it to be the official means of contacting you.

Attendance is mandatory, more than three absences may result in lowering of final grade by a full letter grade. Grades for late assignments may be lowered by a full letter grade for each week late.

Grades:

60% Projects

20% Exercises

20% Attendance & Participation

Equipment and Supplies:

Optional: digital video camera or digital still camera that has video function

Optional: USB flash drive

Course Schedule (subject to change):

Tue  8/25           Intro

Thur 8/27           Chapter 1 Simulating Realistic Motion: Particle Systems

Tue 9/1              “

Thur 9/3             “

Tue 9/8              Chapter 2 Interpreting Motion: Keyframe Animation

Thur 9/10           “

Tue 9/15            Lab day – no class meeting

Thur 9/17           Continue Chapter 2

Tue 9/22             Chapter 3 Interpreting Color: Color Correction

Thur 9/24            “

Tue 9/29             Chapter 4 Simulating Surreal Motion

Thur 10/1            “

Tue 10/6             Chapter 5 Photographic Interpretation

Thur 10/8            “

Tue 10/13            Chapter 6 Scene Transformation: Set Extension

Thu 10/15            “

Tue 10/20            “

Thur 10/22           “

Tue 10/27            Chapter 7 Machine Motion

Thur 10/29           “

Tue 11/3             “

Thu 11/5             “

Tue 11/10           Chapter 8 Expressionistic Motion

Thur 11/12          “

Tue 11/17          “

Thur 11/19         Start final projects

Tue 11/24         Lab day – no class meeting

Thur 11/26        Thanksgiving

Tue 12/1           Final projects

Thur 12/3          Final projects

Tue 12/8           Final projects / Last day of regular class

12/10 – 12/16    Finals Week