In your final project for this class, you will take one of your creative explorations and develop it more fully. Ideally, this will mean completing a project (a video, zine, game, or installation), but depending on the scope of your idea, you may find that there are elements you cannot complete within the time available to you.
- Your class project may be closely related to your capstone, or it may be something completely different.
- It does not need to be precisely the same as the creative explorations you completed in class, but it must be clearly related to one or more of them.
- If you and one of your collaborators in a creative exploration want to develop the same project, you may, but I need to see your individual work. You may both work independently on different versions of the same project, or you may work together to produce a more ambitious project in which each person’s work is clearly demarcated.
Final project requirements
No matter which creative exploration you choose to develop, you will have to include the following components:
- RESEARCH.
How will your project expand on issues we began to explore during the course? Within either your project itself or the reflection you write about it, incorporate at least one of our course readings and at least three additional sources relating to your project. Your additional sources may be scholarly articles, books, or online multimedia sources, but they should be substantial and research-based (no short videos or blog posts, in other words, though in-depth online articles of the kind we’ve used for class are fine). Your research might explore a theme or issue (like colorblind racism or the gendered gaze), a genre (like zines or vids), or a process (like game design). You will bring an annotated list of research sources to our workshop day on December 1 and draw from them in designing your project and writing your reflection.
- WORKSHOP
In class on December 1, we will workshop project ideas. Bring:
– your list of research sources, with annotations explaining why you chose each one
– the project you are planning to develop
– an outline of the ways you are planning to extend your project.
During this class session, we will decide on the specific requirements for each person’s project submission.
- PRESENTATION
In class on December 8, you will present your completed project. This might mean handing out copies of a zine, playing a video, setting up a game or exhibit in class. You can present your work any way you like, but should plan to take at least five minutes and absolutely no more than ten minutes, including setup time. December 8 is also when you will submit your final project to me, in physical or digital form. I will return any original materials from your submission before winter break.
- REFLECTION
By Friday December 11, you will make your final post on the blog: a reflection on the process of your final project. Your reflection should respond to the following question:
How does your project deepen and extend your engagement with the ideas we have discussed in class?
In your reflection, you should refer to all of your research. Make sure to discuss your process of creation as well as the finished product. Include any questions you still have, as well as ways you might want to extend the project if you had more time. I encourage you to include images, screen shots, and any other relevant media. Write at least 800 words.
This is the rubric I use to assess DCC projects. The factors are in order of importance.
1. Thoughtful engagement with course concepts and assignment. Are you meeting the expectations that have been set up for the assignment? How vividly can I see the influence of readings and discussions in your work?
2. Nuance and complexity of ideas explored. How deeply are you reckoning with the challenges and contradictions that surround the aspects of media, culture, and identity on which you are focusing?
3. Evidence of effort exerted. Have you put substantial time and energy into this work, researching beyond class material and seeking help with conceptual and technical difficulties as they arose?
4. Originality and imagination. How fresh and exciting are the concept and execution? Is there scope for further development beyond this class?
5. Technical proficiency. How effectively are you making use of the methods you have chosen? This doesn’t necessarily mean that your project will be technically elaborate, but that you understand the affordances of the method you are using and are taking advantage of them.