Homework 14
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SURE TO FOLLOW THE FILE-NAMING CONVENTIONS FOR THIS COURSE (5% penalty
if you do not). All files should be saved on your computer as: your last name, followed by an underscore ("_"), followed by the first two letters of your first name, followed by an underscore ("_"), followed by the assignment number. So if a student named Saddam Hussein were to submit assignment number 14, the file name would be: hussein_sa_14.doc |
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Assigned Writing:
Final
Assignment
For your final project in this course you will be writing a 10-12 page
television script. You may choose to write a few scenes in your own episode
of The Wire or, if you have an original idea, you may use that instead.
Your idea of the script must present a clear dramatic conflict, interesting
characters, and a theme that resonates with a course entitled The Wire:
Urban Poverty, Urban Narratives.
You must adhere to the script format discussed in class (the PowerPoint
slides and readings are available on Blackboard). This document is written
for a visual medium, which basically means anything the audience is supposed
to see or hear must be included in the script. You may add music, special
effects, a narrator, etc., always bearing in mind that such additions
should be purposeful: establishing your personal creative approach to
the story, suggesting a mood or an attitude of mind, adding specific meaning
to that provided by the dialogue.
Keep in mind that one properly formatted page translates into twelve minutes
of screen time. Be realistic about what you can cover in twelve pages.
Although this isn’t a lot of time for an entire drama to unfold,
it is sufficient for you to clearly tell some aspect of a story that reflects
at least one of the sociological or historical issues we’ve covered
this semester. (Consider watching twelve minutes of The Wire or another
drama to see how much can be accomplished within this time frame).
Your final project must include:
1. a clear focus of your drama (the story should be easy to follow)
2. a cover
page with the rationale that clearly shows which readings and SPECIFIC
sociological/historical issues you addressed in your script. (You wrote
a draft rationale when you completed the script proposal for assignment
11. Please revise this if necessary and include this on the page before
your script begins. We will use this rationale to determine whether your
script has actually translated at least one of the readings, whether through
dialogue, imagery, music and the like).
3. location/scene descriptions, shot descriptions, descriptions of diegetic
and non-diegetic music, etc.
4. a well written dialogue that allows the characters to 'tell the story'
itself.
BONUS:
The Wire made use of epigraphs (quotations or phrases) at the beginning
of each episode. These epigraphs were drawn from dialogue in the episode
and it usually served the purpose of increasing the viewers’ understanding
of a social issue. You will be awarded bonus marks for including an epigraph
at the beginning of your script that connects the story you’re telling
with the social or historical issue you’re covering.
Remember the epigraph must be spoken by one of the characters.
"END
OF ASSIGNMENT"