Teaching Philosophy...

Film production is a practice that stretches across numerous academic disciplines in ways that can impact many individuals, cultures, and societies. Whether it is an artist who wants to express some form of narrative and/or visual creativity, an activist who must raise awareness of an important social or political issue, or an educator who challenges students to utilize filmmaking as a contextual learning process to synthesize knowledge, the practice of creating movies can generate powerful modes of visual expression that produce strong emotional interactions from audiences as well as facilitate effective information transfer and retention in developing learners.

 

With that in mind, my philosophy toward mentoring students in the art of motion pictures is based on four objectives:

1. To educate students toward successful careers in their desired media industry by employing real-world experiences and professionals’ perspectives in my classes whenever possible.

2. To empower students to develop strong stories as the foundations of their projects that later guide a proper practice of film production techniques, which in turn drives their appropriate selection and manipulation of technology.

3. To integrate film theories and history with production practices when/where appropriate to build stronger media artists capable of the innovation and critical problem solving required by the profession.

4. To foster collaborative learning both within and outside the motion picture field by challenging students to understand and apply the cross-disciplinary aspects of the filmmaking process to their work.

 

As an educator, instructional designer, and independent filmmaker, I strongly feel that students aspiring to make a career in any specific media field must be exposed to the realities of that industry as much as possible. This helps to deter misconceptions students often bring with them when entering a motion picture program, such as: (a) not practicing a strong work ethic necessary to hold an industry job, or (b) believing that, upon graduation, they will run their own production company, or (c) they will immediately begin directing films without first climbing the workforce ladder. To dispel these misconceptions, I make these realities come alive inside the classroom by providing students with video testimonials from professionals currently working in the field and guest speakers who relay similar experiences as well as engage them in courses designed to simulate a real industry film set or post-production house.  For example, the Georgia Southern Feature-Film Project, a 9-week summer course in which my students act as a Hollywood-style film crew, was successful in wrapping its filming of a 110-minute action-adventure movie during June-August of 2015, which involved travel to distant locations, detailed prop creation, and the continuous planning and problem-solving common on any low-budget independent film project (Relics, Behind the Scenes: https://youtu.be/2bAZIp6wBy0).

 

Additionally, it is my belief that any successful motion picture must begin with a strong story. Too often, I see professionals as well as students fall into the trap of focusing too much on the latest advances in video technology or incorporating an overused production technique into their work. However, choosing to shoot in 4k over 1080p or being able to execute a smooth dolly shot means nothing if these choices are not directly motivated by a character’s journey. This is what I challenge my students to understand when undertaking any time-based media project. In my screenwriting courses, I often lead brainstorming activities where students work together to organize random ideas into coherent stories, which they further analyze to write dynamic narratives into properly formatted screenplays. Then, they are required to pitch these scripts to students in production courses for possible pickup as a film project. Student groups who accept those scripts for production must conduct scene breakdowns and funding research to determine what outside resources, techniques, and technology is possible to best convey the story. By engaging in this process, students see the value of using a script to drive the production process, a process that recently earned several of my students top awards at the 2016 Campus Movie Fest, which also led to their projects being accepted for screening at the 2016 Festival de Cannes (http://bit.ly/29lxyG6; e.g. For A Moment: https://youtu.be/pUx9DUn-J8k).

 

From a instructional design perspective, I believe that employing critical pedagogy – the curricular integration of film theory and history with the filmmaking practice – into cinema courses is a positive approach that, when and where applied appropriately, can dramatically improve both the students’ understanding of studies-based material as well as quality of their productions. One assignment I implement in my cinematography class requires students to apply their knowledge of German Expressionism to a low-key lighting design and set manipulation in a short Film Noir project. In my advanced screenwriting and directing classes, my students apply postmodernist film doctrines to enhance the character development guiding their scripts, then use these same paradigms to coach their actors to portray these characters’ behavior in a compelling way. And in my documentary class, students synthesize Kuleshov’s, Pudovkin’s, Eisenstein’s, and Vertov’s editing theories of Russian Formalism with Andre Bazin’s Phenomenological Realism and aspects of the French New Wave to engage audiences with a juxtaposition between invisible continuity that enhances the story and transparent cutting (or even a lack of cuts) that demonstrate the authenticity of their approach. I often prefer to teach documentary as an introductory class because I want students to grasp the foundations of research, cinematography, and editing before tackling the additional complexities of casting, screenwriting, location scouting, and directing, which I address in later courses.

 

I also believe a good film and/or television-broadcast professor should inspire students to investigate how the visual narrative of cinema can directly influence as well as be influenced by other fields. Many of the course exercises applied in my classroom require students to use common math, physics, creative writing, and management skills to solve real-world film production scenarios. In turn, other academic programs as well as local businesses, community leaders, and international organizations have sought help from my students and myself in integrating aspects of film production into their professions. This has led some of my students to produce documentaries covering undergraduate projects in other departments on campus (e.g. Eagle Motor Sports’ Baja 1000 journey: http://news.georgiasouthern.edu/magazine/2016/01/21/ride-of-a-lifetime/), promotional videos celebrating the unique efforts of a business community (e.g. Raccoon Caverns: https://youtu.be/UtYH7Mhcj_U), and book trailers for History professors as a lesson in how to create Visual History for the digital humanities (Dark Places of the Earth: https://youtu.be/aqiUO-QblVM; The Stigma of Surrender: http://bit.ly/2mKNg1j).

 

Finally, I believe that an effective college educator must also be a lifelong learner, and I am always open to learning from my students as I hope they would learn from me and from each other. At your convenience, you can review specific examples of my teaching effectiveness and curriculum design (which include project rubrics, exams, and evaluations) on other pages of this website listed under the Teaching menu heading above.