27928 - Laboratory (1) (LM) (G.C)

Learning outcomes

At the end of the laboratory, the student acquires the fundamentals of some specific aspects of audiovisual and multimedia languages through a program of guided exercises.

Course contents

The laboratory aims to provide students with the basic theoretical elements for understanding and writing a script, transmitting concepts and practices related to the screenwriter's profession and the related working methodologies. At the end of the laboratory the student will have both theoretical and practical tools to tackle the writing process, attempt their first personal experiments and evaluate the quality of their work.

In order to achieve this purpose, a part of the laboratory will be dedicated to the theoretical aspect and will contain a description of the main conceptual tools that the screenwriter needs to orient himself during the work that leads from the conception of a story to the writing of the screenplay.In particular, the following points will be covered:

What is a story and how can be told. Story and plot.

The steps to write a film: subject, outline, treatment, screenplay.

The steps to write a TV series: logline, concept, series subject, (grid), episode subjects, (bible), outlines, scripts.

 High-concept projects and low-concept projects.

 Elements of dramaturgy:

- Presentation of the protagonist and the ordinary world

-catalyst

- consequences on the protagonists

- objective and difficulty

- denouement

Formats, elements and stylistic register of the screenplay.

 Elements of television series

 Structures of the various types of series: from TV films to long seriality.

 Setting up a TV series:

- Characters and relationship networks: single protagonist or group

- Setting: world/arena

- Plot mechanisms: how to power the "serial machine"

There will be exercises in which students will face concrete examples of cinematographic writing.Furthermore, taking advantage of the teacher's practical experiences, the laboratory will also provide testimonies on the activity of the screenwriter and the functioning of the Italian audiovisual, cinematographic and television market.

Readings/Bibliography

• Cristina Borsatti, Scrivere per il cinema e la televisione, Editrice Bibliografica;
• McKee Robert, Story. Contenuti, struttura, stile, principi della sceneggiatura per il cinema e la fiction tv, International Forum Edizioni, Roma 2000 (o edizioni successive);
• Filippo Losito, Scrivere una serie, UTET.

Teaching methods

Laboratory attendance is compulsory: it is necessary to attend at least 70% of the lessons.

To register you must write an email to my email address no later than October 30, 2024.

After having analyzed the theoretical elements of dramaturgy and writing for cinema and television series, the students, divided into working groups, will tackle the various steps that lead from the conception of a subject to the composition of the screenplay.

Assessment methods

The various texts produced by the students during the laboratory will be read, analyzed and commented together, under the supervision of the teacher, with the aim of stimulating the attitude to comparison, the ability to identify the weak points of the papers and to proceed with their revision. The learning assessment will be evaluated throughout the duration of the laboratory. Participation, involvement and ability to work in a group will be the parameters through which the learning of the members will be evaluated.

Teaching tools

During the workshop, some clips from films and television series will be screened in the classroom, as well as exemplary materials.

Office hours

See the website of Giampiero Rigosi