Instructor Contact

Chris Martin

• Email: cmartin@ccsf.edu
• Office Hours: by appointment
• Office Location: My personal zoom room. Click here
• I will respond to all course email within 24 hours Monday-Friday, exclusive of school holidays. Once the course begins, I prefer to get messages through the Canvas "Inbox". 

Communication Plan

• I will aim to respond to your messages within 24 hours during the workweek (Monday-Friday) excluding holidays or if you are notified otherwise.
• Your work will be reviewed and I will comment on it within 48 hours of the due date unless you are informed otherwise. Please note that you will receive private comments on your discussion posts, your course journal entries, and your project and final exams. Your weekly quizzes also contain feedback for your own self-assessment. 
• I will participate in the weekly discussions, but will not respond to each individual student. You will receive private comments on your discussion posts.

Building Community

The heart of this class is the discussion forum. Each week you and your classmates will analyze and discuss the issues that come up in the material this week. Each time this class is offered, I am humbled by the thoughtfulness of all of you, your posts, and your responses to each other inform my understanding of the topics. We learn from each other, from our varied experiences, from our different world views. I look forward to participating in discussions with you.

Instructor Announcements 

The instructor will post announcements on the “Instructor Announcements” page in Canvas throughout the semester. Canvas notifies students according to their preferred Notification Preferences (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.as soon as the instructor creates an Announcement. 

Q&A Discussion

• The “Q&A Discussion” is located in Module 0. This discussion is for you to ask for assistance of your classmates or of instructor.

This course covers all aspects of planning the production of film projects. The skills needed to estimate, calculate, negotiate and evaluate all costs, legal concerns, insurance issues, permits and pitfalls of film production will be explored, including the COVID-19 Protocols for working on film projects. Project budgets and organization for shorts, music videos, commercials, documentaries and narrative feature films are examined. This class meets REMOTELY on Zoom: https://ccsf-edu.zoom.us/j/87861393926. 

Prerequisites/co-requisites/advisories

Student Learning Outcomes

1. Identify and implement logistical and municipal components of film production.
2. Generate a schedule for film production.
3. Evaluate and analyze different types of film production to estimate budget.

Class Meetings

Class will be held Monday evenings from 6:40pm PST to 9:30pm. Class meets remotely on Zoom at this address: https://ccsf-edu.zoom.us/j/878613 93926.

CLASS SCHEDULE - FALL 2022

This is bird’s eye view of the semester. There may be a tweak or two, or even improvements on the fly as we go along. But I will attempt to conform as closely as possible to the listed format. 

August 22 – Introduction to Production Planning

August 29 – Basics of Filmmaking for Production Planning

September 5 - NO CLASS – But that doesn't mean there aren't assignments and discussions this week. TOPIC: MORE BASICS OF FILMMAKING

September 12 - The First Steps in Production Planning 

September 19  – What’s a Schedule?

September 26 – Refining Your Schedule

October 3 – Estimating Time in Production Planning

October 10 – MIDTERM DUE – NO CLASS -- But that won't stop us. TOPIC:  THE MANY FACES OF LIVE ACTION: COMMERCIALS, CORPORATE VIDEO, LIVE STREAM

October 17 – Introduction to Budgeting

October 24 – Focus on Documentaries

October 31 – Unions & The Business of Film

November 7 –  Imagining Your Post Production

November 14 – More Post Production + Finishing & Delivering Your Project

November 28 – A Movie and Its Budget

December 5 – YOUR Business of Film

December 12 – Getting Production Ready

December 19 – Wrap, and All It Entails

FINAL DUE

Course Web Site

Students will use the Canvas Learning Management system [for assignment instructions, submitting assignments, viewing classmates' work, sharing resources, and viewing grades].  I can help with the course material and with some Canvas issues. But, if you need help uploading an assignment or with the mechanics of Canvas, Canvas help is the number to call.

For 24/7 help with Canvas call: 1-844-592-2198.

Canvas

Students will use the Canvas Learning Management system [for assignment instructions, submitting assignments, viewing classmates' work, sharing resources, and viewing grades].  I can help with the course material and with some Canvas issues. But, if you need help uploading an assignment or with the mechanics of Canvas, Canvas help is the number to call.

For 24/7 help with Canvas call: 1-844-592-2198.

Zoom Video Conferencing

If you wish to meet with me email me to make an appointment. We can meet in my Zoom room.  https://ccsf-edu.zoom.us/j/3012796066

Required Software

City College makes the Microsoft Office suite available to you for free. Your assignments will require you to use some of these programs, i.e., Office and Excel. Both of these programs will be utilized in this class and it is expected that you use them to the best of your ability. There is an Excel tutorial that I recommend on an external site, which you can find here. You can also find more information in Module 1 about this tutorial.

Finally, I'll always be available for help and guidance on how to use Excel.

Download the appropriate programs and get to know them as soon as you can.

• Adobe Reader (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.
• Update your browser (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.

Important Dates

• Day Class Begins: August 22, 2022
• Day Class Ends: December 19, 2022
• Last Day to Add without instructor's approval: September 2, 2022
• Last Day to Drop with refund: August 30, 20ss
• Last Day to Drop without a 'W' symbol: September 2, 2022
• Last Day to Opt for Pass/No Pass: September 15, 2022
• Last Day to Drop with a W or apply for leave of absence: November 3, 2022
• Final Exam Date: December 19, 2022

Dropping the Class

If you decide to discontinue this course, it is your responsibility to officially drop it to avoid getting no refund (after 10% of course length), a W symbol (after 20%), or a grade (after 60%). Also, for several consecutive, unexplained absences, the instructor may drop a student.

Pass‐NoPass (P/NP)

You may take this class P/NP. You must decide before the deadline, and add the option online with WEB4 or file the P/NP form with Admissions and Records. With a grade of C or better, you will get P.

You must file for the P/NP option by date listed above. Once you decide to go for P/NP, you cannot change back to a letter grade. If you are taking this course as part of a certificate program, you can probably still take the class P/NP. Check with a counselor to be sure.

Attendance

Students who fail to attend the first class (face-to-face courses) or do not log-in to an online class after the second week and participate in a learning activity will be dropped from the class. It is strongly advised that if you need to miss more than one class/homework deadline in a row that you contact me to avoid being dropped from the class. 

Late Policy

All assignments are due at 11:59 p.m. PST on the due date. A late submission will receive a 20% penalty. Submissions more than one week late are not accepted without prior arrangement. Late work will not be graded unless the student sends the instructor an email with URL for late work. 

Methods of Evaluation

Most weeks you will complete graded assignments and/or participate in a Discussion. Quizzes appear periodically and may be taken three times. All of these assignments can be completed after attending classes on line, reading the online material and/or view videos located in the content modules. 

Exams

There will be online quizzes throughout the course and an online final exam. The material comes from the textbook, class lectures and supplemental materials. If any exam is missed, a zero will be recorded as the score. It is your responsibility to take the online exams by the due date. 

Grading Policy

Visit the “Grades” in Canvas to keep track of your grades. I aim to grade once a week and post grades and comments on the online Canvas gradebook.

The grading system for this class is based on point accumulation. Weekly attendance in class receives points; contributing to discussions receives points; doing assignments receives points; answering quiz questions receives points. Finally, the Mid term and the Final will likewise be graded in point accumulation. In each case, the point values will be announced with the assignment/directive. The top level of point accumulation as the chart below indicates is 1000, though it's possible to score higher.

In general grades will be determined by the following factors. Estimates of these factors are:

• active participation in class and discussions — 20%
• assignments and quizzes — 20%
• the mid-term assignment — 30%
• the final assignment — 30%

Note that this valuation encourages participation — don’t save up your effort in class for the mid-term and the final. You’ll only get 60% of a grade out of that.

  How do I view my grades, teacher comments, and an assignment rubric as a student?

Grades will be assigned as follows:

If taking Pass/No Pass you need at least 70% of the total class points and complete the midterm exam and the final exam to pass the class.

An “F” grade indicates that a student attended, participated and completed the course but failed to master the course curriculum.

An “FW” grade indicates the student stopped attending a course after the “last day to withdraw” deadline and subsequently did not submit any work or participate in any exams. Please check with your counselor and financial aid advisor for possible implications of the FW grade on residency and financial aid status.

If you need classroom or testing accommodations because of a disability, or have emergency medical information to share with me, or need special arrangements in case the building needs to be evacuated, please make an appointment with me as soon as possible. My office hours are by appointment 9-4 p.m., Monday through Friday by Zoom video-conferencing.

Students seeking disability-related accommodations are encouraged to also register with Disabled Students Programs and Services located in Room 323 of the Rosenberg Library (415) 452-5481. Please see the DSPS website (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. for more information and alternate locations.

Students who register in CCSF classes are required to abide by the CCSF Student Code of Conduct (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.. Violation of the code is basis for referral to the Student Conduct Coordinator or dismissal from class or from the College. See the Office of Student Affairs (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site..

Collaborating on or copying of tests or homework in whole or in part will be considered an act of academic dishonesty and result in a grade of 0 for that test or assignment. I encourage students to share information and ideas, but not their work. See these links on Plagiarism:

Encourage Academic Integrity and Prevent Plagiarism (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.

Citing Information Sources (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.

Student Expectations 

You will succeed in this course if you meet the following expectations:

• Complete the assigned activities. Please let me know as soon as you can concerning difficulties that you may have in getting assignments in on time. 
• Complete the discussion posts and replies within the given window of time. Our discussions are much more vibrant when we all participate!
• Complete the weekly quizzes, the final project, and the final exam on time.
• Think critically about the weekly topics. Is something surprising? Is it new to you? How does it contrast with what you know about XYZ or how does it compare to ABC? 
• Do your own and your best work. 

Instructor Expectations 

Here is what you can expect of me:

• I will respond to your email or message within 24 hours during the week unless I inform you otherwise.
• I will treat you and your ideas with respect.
• I will grade your Course Journal and Discussion posts and replies most often within 48 hours. (If you have posted late work, it may take longer.) Grades on the final project and final exam will be done within a week.
• You will see your grades in the Canvas Gradebook.
• I will work hard to make this a great class.