the class page

Class 1 : a History of cinema technology
Introductions. Presentation of class structure, of syllabus, of final project.
We will examine the relationship between history of cinema and history of technology, to understand why cinema has become what it is today and how new technologies are redefining it.
Overview of representation techniques : the hand, the camera, the procedure. Genealogy of the camera : From the camera obscura to hard-disk DV. From Marey to motion capture. From Muybridge to multiple-camera arrays.
Assignment for next class :
Watch a movie by Peter Greenaway, Chris Marker or Jean Luc-Godard. How is it challenging the conventions of established cinema ? How is the filmmaker working at the margins of the medium ? How could you adapt this work to the computer or how could you use some of these ideas to make a computational film ?
Be prepared to share your findings in class with us.

Class 2 : Post-linear film aesthetics
We will look at examples of existing linear films that use post-celluloid aesthetics : breaking the rectangular frame, non-linear time, loop aesthetics, saturated colors, hypercinema, story segmentation.
Mixing camera image and data. Exploding the frame. Loop aesthetics. Rethinking time. Color and form. Story segmentation. Hypertext for cinema. Technology and aesthetics.
Assignment for next class :
Browse the "Future Cinema" book (2004, MIT Press). Choose one article. Do a web research about the artist's background and current work. Write a short article about the artist's work (15-30 lines) and post it on the class blog.

Class 3 : Interactive cinema by example
We will go over all the major influential examples of interactive cinema pieces and learn from their success and failures.
Editor as interaction designer. Improvisation, interpretation. Generativity. Balance between user input and immersion.
Reading : browse "Future Cinema" and study one article

Class 4 : Making computational films
We will examine different methods, algorithms and architectures to combine footage with computer code.
combining the vision machine with the Turing machine. footage + code. media + behaviour. code as art. automatic editing.
Reading : "the future of cinema is loops" unpublished article by Nicholas Negroponte

Class 5 : Understanding infrastructure for delivering interactive moving image
We will explain and demystify the whole technological infrastructure needed to deliver interactive film experiences at home. We will estimate theoretical limitations, go over the different market players, standards and authoring tools.
information theory fundamentals, delivery, network architectures, platforms, interactive TV, set-top boxes, authoring tools.
Reading : current technical report from Ovum or other media technology consulting firm.

Class 6 : Narratology
We will present key results from research in narrative theories and structures, from Russian and French narratology schools. We will see how to use these ideas to design better interaction and better narrative structures for computational film.
From Propp to Genette. Aristotle : digesis, mimesis. Story/Discourse. 1st, 2nd, 3rd person. heterodiegetic/homodiegetic. triply temporal structure (story, presentation, viewer). metalepsis
Reading : Marie-Laure Ryan, Gérard Genette.

Class 7 : Database cinema
We will present ideas on database cinema. We will expose contemporary theories about real-time and automatic editing (as explored by Lew, Manovich, Davis, Boissier). We will go over 15 years of work done on interactive documentary at MIT Media Lab in the Interactive Cinema and Object-Based Media groups.
Case studies : Lynch, Greenaway, Buñuel, Figgis, incident.net, Hackney girl, Annenberg labyrinth projects, SoftCinema.
Reading : selected chapter from "the Language of New Media". Article on media semantics.

* Mid-term exam takes place here. Production of final project should be starting.*

Class 8 : Representing narrative structure
We will introduce the problem of visual representation of narrative structure, explore different narrative infrastructures and non-traditional ways of writing for interactive film.
Notions of narrative maps ; film scores for improvisational film. State diagrams, tree-like structures. Structure based on character, space, time or emotion.
Reading : Chapter 2 of "Six Walks in the Fictional Woods" by Umberto Eco.

Class 9 : Game or story ?
We will examine together the origin, conventions and expectations connected to these culturally-rooted concepts.
Taxonomy of games. Design objectives. Game-like structures in narrative. Placing interaction at level of plot or presentation. Time flow. Interactive narrative. Game AI.

Class 10 : Explorable movies
How to make cinema novels for electronic books, where the viewer can explore the fictional world at her own pace.

Class 11 : Polyptych cinema
Demultiplying the frame using multiple screens that can be virtual computer windows or physical installation monitors.

Week 12 : News of the future
Designing the future of online cinema for the broadband internet. Page design for moviezines.

Week 13 : Personalized documentaries
Creating scalable documentaries that can adapt to people's interests and that let viewers explore topics according to their own choices.

Week 14 : Elastic timeline
Creating expandable mutiple-level movies that can be compressed and expanded while keeping narrative coherence. Implementing an intelligent fast-forward or zoom button that is narratively aware.

Week 15 : Project presentation with guest critics
Presentation of the final computational films.