The Artist's Mind: Filmmaking and the Creative Process

Catalog description

How do you make a film—or any piece of art, with a succinct point of view and an original voice? How does the artist take his or her individual, private vision and transform it into a finished work of art that best expresses these ideas? This practicum will look at the method and practice of filmmaking as a case study for the artistic process more generally. It will offer students a sense of how to move from initial inspiration to finished product: a look at the way that the creative process develops in this most collective of artistic forms. It will also provide a space for students to share work in progress and to think together about the ways in which art is made. Students will workshop their material through a series of multidisciplinary exercises (i.e. painting the emotions that they wish to express with their words, photographing the central themes of their work, writing tangential stories in their characters' lives) with the aim of clarifying their ideas and expanding the prism through which they approach their work. Special sessions will introduce students to fine artists and others in the filmmaking industry, including filmmakers, actors, agents, and photographers.