RTV 3101: Advanced Writing for Electronic Media

This required course for upper-level Telecommunication undergraduates is designed to provide a thorough understanding and overview of the principles of scriptwriting, and to learn to apply these principles through practical exercises in various programs: commercials, sponsored and corporate videos, radio and television documentaries, essays, as well as fictional works. Another major objective is to help develop the students’ critical faculties, enabling them to better examine and evaluate the scripts of others, as well as their own. The assignments for this course include writing television public service announcements and commercials; radio documentaries; detailed treatments for sponsored media projects and/or television documentaries; character sketches and dialogue exercises; fictional scripts; as well as preparing screen adaptations of short stories, novels or plays. The course is comprised of lectures, exercises, screenings, workshops, analyses, and discussions.

RTV 4929C: Advanced Production Workshop: Directing Drama

This capstone course is designed to teach the student the process of how to direct a dramatic video program, using single-camera, film-style technique. The course is very comprehensive. Students learn how to write short, dramatic scripts; how to translate a script into a shooting script; how to schedule a shoot; how to audition, rehearse and direct actors; how to set up a shot and cover a scene; how to edit; how to work with a composer; and so on. The approach we will use is very similar to preparing and producing a typical, feature-length film, and students will get first-hand knowledge of what awaits them if they decide to pursue a career in dramatic film/video production.

RTV 2100: Writing for Electronic Media

This introductory course provides a basic understanding of how to go about writing for broadcast media. Approximately half the course concentrates on scripting radio and television news stories, and the second half involves non-news writing, such as promos, public service announcements, commercials, video essays, and documentaries. There is also an introduction to the basic concepts involved for writing corporate/instructional programs and some drama. The goal is to acquaint the students with the various broadcast formats, as well as to help them think and write clearly, effectively, logically and creatively, This course is divided up into two basic sections: lecture and lab. The lab is where students do in-class, weekly, written assignments, and these labs are taught by lab instructors (most usually graduate students) that I supervise.

RTV 4931 Ethics and Problems in Telecommunication

This required course for graduating seniors introduces students to the main theories and perspectives on ethics, and then helps them use these theories and perspectives to tackle media-related issues and problems that they may run into as professionals in this field. The specific goals of the class are manifold, and they include helping students to recognize when ethical situations exist; develop theoretical frameworks and moral reasoning skills to evaluate the various issues; develop ethical problem-solving skills; develop their abilities to see the problems from various points of view, and to tolerate disagreement; and develop a sense of moral obligation and responsibility.

RTV 4905 and MMC 6905: Independent Study

Since a graduate level media writing course has not been offered for the last few years, many graduate students interested in the subject take it as an independent study with me. Also, some undergraduates who have taken my advanced writing course and are motivated to work on longer and more sophisticated scripts sign up for an independent course as well. On top of this, I have worked with students who produced videos for an independent study, as well as others who did readings and wrote papers on film theory and history, and documentary film and television. I usually average about three or four students who take independent studies with me per semester, both graduate and undergraduate. Weekly meetings are scheduled with these students to discuss their work and provide them with constructive criticism.