Movie Performance and Identity

THE FUTURE OF IDENTITY: A Multi-media Assignment

(A Truth Activist Joint)

 Due Date:

What does it mean to be human?  What will it mean in the future? How are technologies affecting the way we think about our identities?  How does thinking about the non-human help us think about social justice?    We hope this course has spurred you to consider these kinds of questions and want to see your best thinking about them in these collaborative projects. 

Your project may include discussion and speech from group members, film and audio clips, art and images created by members of the group, quotes from books or articles, or any other media you want to include.  Groups are free to choose their own topics, just so long as they address issues of science and identity.   You can research (or imagine) future developments in technology, or address the way technology mediates or shape identities today.  You may take a positive spin on technology, or focus on its perils, or stage your project as a debate.

Possible topics include:  The perils or promises of artificial intelligence; “human” rights and androids or animals; a topic related to bioethics; can the earth sustain our current levels of consumption?  Will we have to move off world?  The past, present or future of mechanization – is their hope for the Luddite?; social media and identity; dating and mating rituals of the future; gender identities & technology; will privacy be possible in the future?  (Is it possible now?); who controls (or will control) your personal information, including your DNA and image?  If you are cloned, will you have rights to the clone or will someone else?

In all of these questions you can consider how a corporate driven model of accumulating profits has shaped, is shaping, or will shape the answer to your questions.  Think about how often corporations are the “bad guy” in science-fiction films.

THE BASICS: Each group of 4-5 students will make a 2 1/2  to 3 minute multi-media presentation.

Presentations that do not meet these basic requirements will not receive more than 160 out of 200 points.

  • The voice of each member of the group must be heard in the presentation.
  • Each member’s face must be seen (although the face may be in costume or in the guise of an “alter ego” from that project).
  • Begin your project by citing a story, article, film, or other media that sparked your interest in the topic.
  • Include a slide called: Suggestions for further reading/viewing on this topic
  • For groups of four: Not shorter than 130 seconds. Not longer than 150 seconds.
  • For groups of five: Not shorter than 160 seconds. Not longer than 180 seconds.
  • Each group must submit their membership and idea for a project to me by April 17 (on moodle).

Steps in putting your project together:

Meet in groups of 4-5 to choose a topic.   Share ideas and possible topics.  Once you have found your topic, decide on a text that has inspired your group to consider the topic.  You will share this in your presentation.

Give each person in your group a role (some may share these roles).  Each person should share responsibility for researching and thinking about the topic, but your group should have clear roles in terms of getting the project done.

 ROLES
  • The Director – will make creative decisions about the order and shape of the project. This person is most responsible for assembling clips, creating the initial storyboard, and the overall finish of the project. Film those in your group sharing their intellectual curiosity about the topic.    If you have five people in your group, have two work in this area.
  • The Scriptwriter- writes the dialogue and also the titles used in your project. Makes sure that any information included is from credible sources and properly cited.
  • Editor — someone who knows how to use a moviemaking program, or is willing to learn, and who is comfortable converting files and getting the entire project together. Will create titles as necessary between or on top of other media (although the scriptwriter may write these titles).
  • Art & Music Design — the creative person in your group who can ensure you have a great looking design and feel. Help others in your group with costumes as needed.

Before doing any filming or collecting of video material, your scriptwriter should create a storyboard.  Plan out how the project will look ahead of time.  It will really help with your final version!

Practice public speaking skills in all that you do.  Pay attention to both verbal and non-verbal aspects of communication.  When filming yourselves, pay attention to posture, to the lighting on faces, to how your eyes look on film, and where you appear in the frame of the shot.  In other words, don’t film yourself in shadow from you laptop’s PC with a bunch of unrelated clutter in the background of your shot.  Speak clearly and play back recordings to make sure you are easy to hear. If you have a very good sound editor, poor audio can be cleaned up later, but it is much better to start with a good recording in the first place.

When we screen the projects, the teachers from all the sections will fill out evaluations of your media project.

The best presentations will:

  • Show visual and verbal imagination – be interesting!
  • Present ideas and opinions and the nature of identity in thoughtful and stimulating ways
  • Look and sound GREAT!
  • Reflect collaboration. Everyone is involved and has a role.
  • Use clips from films or other media, but also include the ideas, words and images of members of the group.
  • Use interesting quotes about science and/or science fiction. You may choose texts we have studied together or texts you have enjoyed on your own.   Show us what has drawn you into thinking about your topics.
  • Show excellent public speaking from all speakers.
  • Document or attribute any information that has been researched and properly cite (“according to. . . ) any quotations.