Neo-Noir Investigations: The Art Of Directing And Writing An Interactive Experience, James Phillip Koehler Jr.

Honors Projects

This project intends to explore the process behind writing and directing for an interactive experience; video games, specifically. A team, including artists, programmers, and a musician, was organized to work toward the completion of a playable demo. Included in this project is a video of the playable demo, alongside various other completed materials that were unable to be included.

Making The Subconscious Conscious - Showcasing Unresolved Childhood Trauma Through Animation, Alexis Hunter

All Theses

The focus of this work is to shed light on unresolved childhood trauma that can contribute to mental hardships - whether people are aware of its presence in their lives or not. In this paper, I will discuss childhood trauma, its impact on adult life when left unresolved, self-parenting as a method to manage it, and how it is portrayed in various media. Drawing inspiration from my research on trauma and visual storytelling, I will present a proof-of-concept for a 2D animated short film, Strongholds, which visualizes the internal mental struggles through the character dynamics of the personifications of the …

Nothing Happens Here, Kai Diego Parcher-Charles

Senior Projects Spring 2023

Senior Project submitted to The Division of Arts of Bard College.

What An Interesting Video To Put On The Internet (An Amusing Economic Indicator), Dahlia S. Bloomstone

Theses and Dissertations

My exhibition reconciles representations of domesticity, labor, and morality through the lens of sex-work (SW). It consists of video work, a video game, and free-to-take objects, where donation, the strip club, and the fish tank converge. My work concludes that SW is a timeless construct that will always exist even after reimagining multiple worlds.

Different Tides: A Journey Of Loss, Loneliness, And Friendship, William Gilmer

All Theses

This project is an exploration of story, producing an animatic for the original story Different Tides. Different Tides is a story about loss and separation, and how we carry with us a piece of everyone that has ever been close to us. This thesis will explore the themes of loneliness and loss that pervade the short, as well as the methods of visually expressing those themes. The goal of this thesis is to produce an animatable story, complete with storyboards, animatic, and color script, as well as explore the psychology behind loss and friendship.

..., Claire Alfonso

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Words are fickle, easily misunderstood, and often put us at a loss... but we all have so much we feel we need to express. This begs the question: Is there any safe way of communication? Can anything ever really be communicated how you mean it? Will you ever see the reflection of what you feel, think, and dream outside of yourself? In response to this existential dilemma, I imagine an alternative language of images, sounds, color, feelings, and non-identification. My thesis is a meditation on the issues with standard language and the idea of alternative language. In my argument I …

Fractured Selves, Gearoid Dolan

Theses and Dissertations

Fractured Selves is a self-portrait that examines the histories and points of conflation and diversion of my four public personas. In the style of a Zoom meeting, they chat with a host against animated backgrounds. Interactivity creates non-linear consuming of the content and user directed navigation through four timelines

Letting The Body Lead, Amanda Boggs

Masters Theses

Letting the Body Lead is an exhibition and workshop series that focuses on embodiment in social context and invites attendees to engage with the work, both as viewers and active participants. Embodiment in social context refers to the understanding of lived experiences in the body. Within my creative practice, I explore the body's creativity, knowledge, and agency while bridging and brining together the fields of fine arts, movement-based and socially just art making. I believe in the transformative potential of how movement and contemplative practices can support a more liberated way of being both within an individual and, by extension, …

Plastic Goes Concrete: "Plasticnic" And "Plasticpoems", Two Animated Poetry Videos About Plastic Pollution, Fiona Tinwei Lam, Nhat Truong, Tisha Deb Pillai

The Goose

The author describes the creation of two short animated video poems about plastic pollution that originated in concrete/visual poems. "Plasticnic" is a humorous and colourful narrated video based on a shaped poem depicting how we enjoy nature while simultaneously harming it through plastic consumption. "Plasticpoems" is a text-based, unnarrated animated video poem about plastic pollution based on two shaped/visual/concrete poems.

Race Book, Robert Dejesus

Theses

Race Book is a satiric animated short film about how social media influenced people during the 2020 presidential election.

Repairing A Nation: A Visual Exploration Into The American Debate On Reparations, Desi Jeseve Lapoole

Senior Independent Study Theses

The debate on reparations for slavery in the United States of America has persisted for generations, capturing the attention and imagination of America in waves before falling out of public consciousness over the decades. Throughout its longevity, the debate on reparations has had many arguments in support of and opposition towards the idea and has inspired many different proposals which seek to solve many different problems. Today, reparations have found new mainstream attention, thanks in part Ta-Nehisi Coates’ article, “The Case for Reparations,” published in The Atlantic, and to two new reparations bills in Congress. My research explores the …

From The President: On Creating

DePaul Magazine

DePaul's president, A. Gabriel Esteban, PhD, reflects on creative collaboration at the School of Cinematic Arts.

Low-Cost 8mm/Super 8 Film Digitization Using A Canon 9000f Ii Flatbed Scanner And Photoshop: A Case Study, Kenneth Eckert

Journal of Contemporary Archival Studies

For some fifty years, 8mm/Super 8 movie film was a widespread format for home movies and amateur hobbyists; yet the films and projection or telecine transfer equipment are now aging and obscure, presenting a difficulty for archivists and filmmakers. Online DIY solutions usually involve photographing the film with a DSLR and macro bellows, requiring a high degree of expertise and expense. This case study examines typical problems and proposes a simpler and low-cost solution involving using a Canon flatbed scanner with a transparency adapter and improvised film holder, and more importantly, describes technical solutions and script code to straighten and …

Mdocs Poster-Fall 2018, Course Offerings, Jesse Wakeman

MDOCS Publications

Fall 2018 Course Offerings:

Documentary Fundamentals:

• Documentary Storytelling
• Intro to Audio Documentary
• Documentary and Narrative Screenwriting

• Storytelling: Video
• Storytelling: Game Development
• Storytelling: Mapping

• The Artist Interview
• Festival Curation

New Perspectives: Reno Street Art In Virtual Reality, Amy J. Hunsaker, Laura Rocke

Digital Initiatives Symposium

UNR Libraries’ Digital Initiatives Unit and Digital Media Technology Department partnered with an art historian, local art organizations, and Reno street artists to create an online archive, exhibit, and virtual reality experience highlighting the explosion of urban street art in Reno. The Libraries assembled a team that photographed the art using traditional 2D digital cameras, and captured 360 VR footage of the art and of several artists creating interior and exterior murals. The team conducted on-camera interviews of prominent street artists in Reno; collected permission forms; generated metadata; preserved the images and created an archive using CatDV, the Libraries’ media …

Mdocs Poster-2018-04-02, Palestinian Voices: Lyd In Exile, Jesse Wakeman

MDOCS Publications

April 2, 6pm

Free and open to the public

Location: Somers Room

The Palestinian Voices series is organized and co-sponsored by the John B. Moore Documentary Studies Collaborative (MDOCS), the Environmental Studies and Sciences Program, International Affairs, Media and Film Studies, Art History, History, Hayat, and the Skidmore College Dean’s Office

Join us for a talk by Rami Younis and Sarah Friedland, and a screening of their work-in-progress documentary Lyd In Exile. Younis and Friedland have spent over three years researching and filming Lyd In Exile, and are in post-production. They will screen clips from their film and …

Mdocs Poster-Spring 2018, Course List, Jesse Wakeman, Jordana Dym

MDOCS Publications

Spring 2018 Classes Documentary Studies

Production Fundamentals

• DS 116A - Storytelling: Map Design and Spatial Visualization (1 cr)
• DS 116B - 360 Degree Audio Video and Photogrammetry (2 cr) -- NEW!!

Documentary Studies

• DS 201 - Principles of Documentary (3 cr)
• DS 251D - Documentary Film Production: Form and Content (4 cr)
• DS 251C - Documenting Makers:Writing and Filming Artist Profiles (3 cr)
• DS 251C - Participatory Documentary, Socially Engaged Art and Community Media (3 cr) -- NEW!!
• DS 302D - From Story to Screen: Crew-Based Film Doc and Narrative Production (4 cr)
• DS 351B - Documentary Practice in Photography …

Mdocs Poster-2018-04-01, Zines Workshop, Jesse Wakeman

MDOCS Publications

April 4, 12pm

Location:BerhardAtrium

Free and open to the public

On Wednesday, April 4, from 12:00 – 5:00 pm, join Evelyn Wang '19, Museum Store Associate, and Sean Fuller, Store and Publications Manager, for a zine making workshop focusing on the history of zines. Participants will learn two zine making methods: a simple one-page zine and a fold and staple pamphlet style. All materials will be provided.

This event is part of a series of drop-in zine making workshops occurring every Wednesday in April from 12:00 – 5:00 pm. The workshops will be held in the exhibition to be with …

Mdocs Poster-2018-03-27, Jason Houston, Jesse Wakeman

MDOCS Publications

Tuesday, March 27, 2018 5:30 PM - 7:30 PM (ET) Palamountain Hall Davis Auditorium

"Exploring how we live on the planet”

Photographer Jason Houston has spent over 20 years photographing community, culture, and how we live on the planet for editorial and NGO clients and personal projects. His engaged, long-term approach to complex issues captures informed, authentic narratives that help educate the public and guide social and environmental change. Recent projects include a global survey of conservation enterprises and a campaign for the protection of 10 million hectares in the Amazon for indigenous people in isolation and initial contact. He …

Mdocs Poster-2018-03-22, No Mas Bebes, Jesse Wakeman

MDOCS Publications

No Más Bebés tells the story of a little-known but landmark event in reproductive justice, when a small group of Mexican immigrant women sued county doctors, the state, and the U.S. government after they were sterilized while giving birth at Los Angeles County-USC Medical Center during the late 1960s and early 1970s.

Marginalized and fearful, many of these mothers spoke no English, and charged that they had been coerced into tubal ligation — having their tubes tied — by doctors during the late stages of labor. Often the procedure was performed after asking the mothers under duress.

The mothers’ cause …

Mdocs Poster-2018-03-21, Free To Rock, Jesse Wakeman

MDOCS Publications

Wednesday, March 21, 2018 7:00 PM - 9:00 PM (ET) PALMTN Davis Auditorium

FREE TO ROCK is a documentary film directed by 4-time Emmy winning filmmaker Jim Brown and narrated by Kiefer Sutherland. Rock & Roll spread like an uncontrollable virus across Eastern Europe despite Communist attempts to outlaw it. Thousands of underground bands and millions of young fans who yearned for Western freedoms and embraced this music as the Sound of Freedom, helped fuel the nonviolent implosion of the Soviet regime. Free to Rock features Presidents, diplomats, spies and rock stars from the West and the Soviet Union …

Mdocs Poster-2018-03-02, Oral History For Social Justice With Amy Starecheski, Jesse Wakeman

MDOCS Publications

TALK: Curating Oral History for the 21st Century: Listening Out Loud, Listening with the Eyes and the Body
Thursday, March 1, 3:40 pm – 5:00 pm
Skidmore College, Filene Hall, Room 119

The talk will highlight the dilemmas and the potential of curating oral history for a broad contemporary audience, highlighting Columbia University’s Oral History Master’s Program as an example of an application that bridges archival and public use, media and the textual, audio walking tours as a means to return aural/oral history to place and the body, and a few recent short video and documentary projects by OHMA students, …

Mdocs Poster-2018-02-06, Issam Nassar, Jesse Wakeman, Jordana Dym

MDOCS Publications

February 6, 6pm

Location: Payne Room

Free and open to the public.

In conjunction with the exhibition This Place

Part of the Palestinian Voices series, organized and co-sponsored by the John B. Moore Documentary Studies Collaborative (MDOCS), the Environmental Studies and Sciences Program, International Affairs, Media and Film Studies, Art History, History, Hayat, and the Skidmore College Dean’s Office

Join us for a lecture by Issam Nassar on the history of Palestinian photography. Nassar is a historian of the Modern Middle East and of Photography at Illinois State University. His work focuses on the modern Middle East and the history …

Mdocs Poster-2018-02-05, Voice As Documentary Audibility With Pooja Rangan, Jesse Wakeman

MDOCS Publications

Monday, February 5, 2018 6:00 PM - 7:45 PM (ET) PALMTN Emerson Auditorium In the field of documentary, voice, rather than point of view, is the prevailing metaphor for a filmmaker’s unique perspective, signaling the documentary genre’s textual emphasis on spoken words, as well as its social ethic of “giving voice.” Rangan’s talk will unpack the humanitarian resonances of this metaphor, as elaborated in her book Immediations: The Humanitarian Impulse in Documentary (Duke UP 2017), reframing voice as an audibility: a product of auditory forms and practices such as documentary that discipline unspoken norms of speaking and listening. Her talk …

Mdocs Poster-2018 Spring, Photography Workshop With Eric Jenks, Jesse Wakeman

MDOCS Publications

Friday, February 16th, 2018 @ 2-4pm:

Document your world: Learn how to compose a compelling photograph using your own camera

Friday, April 13th, 2018 @ 2-4:30pm:

Photo Editing: Bring 3-5 pictures for an introduction to editing with Photoshop

Join Skidmore alum and photographer Eric Jenks for a hands-on workshop on taking and editing compelling photos with any camera.

No experience required!

These workshops are for anyone planning to study abroad, travel over spring break, or explore or document closer to home, and those who have photos ready to share.

Mdocs Poster- 2017-12-06, Wspn An Alternative History, Jesse Wakeman, Jordana Dym

MDOCS Publications

No abstract provided.

Mdocs Poster-2017-11-12, Pass The Mic, Op Excellence: Stories In Color, Jesse Wakeman, Jordana Dym

MDOCS Publications

Join Pass the Mic as we dedicate a night to celebrate the excellence and talent of documentary storytellers who are also shining members of the Opportunity Program community. In honor of their powerful work as filmmakers and photographers, there will be a screening of their pieces and a discussion afterwards, led by our very own co-hosts, Cristal and Bri. We hope to see you there!

Featured works of the night:

A Black Womyns’ self-esteem is terrorized before she is even made aware that she has one. "The Miseducation of the Black Womyn", directed by Maryam Dewitt '18, is a three-part …

Mdocs Poster-2017-10-24, Hi-Phi Nation With Barry Lam, Jesse Wakeman, Jordana Dym

MDOCS Publications

Philosophy through Sound and Story: Hi-Phi Nation with Barry Lam

Tue, October 24 @ 7pm, Davis Aud

Hi-Phi Nation is the first sound and story-driven show about philosophy, weaving philosophy with narrative storytelling, investigative journalism, and sound design. The first season was produced out of Duke University on the Humanities Writ-Large Fellowship by Barry Lam, associate professor of Philosophy at Vassar College. Now in its second season, Every Hi-Phi Nation episode begins with a story from everyday life, current events, the law, history, science, or the arts, and pulls the big ideas of philosophy out of the story.

Barry Lam …

Mdocs Publication-2017-10-13, Documentary On Human Trafficking Screened At Bow Tie Cinema, Wendy Liberatore

MDOCS Publications

"Documentary on human trafficking to be screened at Bow Tie Criterion"

The Times Union

October 23, 2017

Author: Wendy Liberatore

Mdocs Publication-2017-10-22, Saratoga Springs Conference, Staff Report

MDOCS Publications

"Saratoga Springs conference, film screening to target sex trafficking"

The Saratogian

October 22, 2017

Author: Staff Report