MULTIMEDIA SYLLABUS

Course Description:

An introductory course examining the process of creating interactive multimedia presentations.  Using programs such as Macromedia Director, Adobe Premier and Sound Forge, students will learn how to utilize interactivity, sound, video, and animated motion graphics for the successful composition of interactive multimedia projects.  Students will produce a final digital portfolio of their own work, both traditional and digital.

Materials needed:

• IBM formatted 100 or 250 MB ZIP disk.

Projects:

• Canned 4 page interface
• Student created interface
• Animation: cast to time, film loop and tweening
• Animation, behavior library, and score interface
• Mid-term:  build 2 pages with buttons and a midterm test
• Adobe Premier: Video capture and edit in adobe premier with transitions.
• Sound forge: capture and import sound into director; and Story boarding for final project.
• Final Digital Art Portfolio

Course Outline

Week 1: Overview and course description is covered including grading, project assignments and Multimedia as it pertains to this class.

                Lecture and Demo: Discuss the 4 basic windows: Score, Cast, Stage and Control Panel.

                In-Class:

1. Set preferences from menu for sprites, cast and stage
2. Modify from menu for stage size and stage color
3. Create a 4-paged interface with roll over and upstate buttons from an existing PICTS folder previously created in Photoshop
4. Learn to Save work and navigate on a PC

Project 1: Multimedia Canned Project into Director (5 points)
Homework:  Read Chapters 1-3 of the class textbook.

Week 2: Create a (3) page interface (5 points)

                Lecture and Demo: Five elements of multimedia: Animation, sound, graphics, text, and video.

                In-Class:

1. Create in Photoshop - 640x480 images, rollover and upstate buttons
2. Cut out buttons and save
3. Import in director
4. Apply behaviors, interactivity to buttons and navigate between pages
   Homework:  Create a "page 3" to interface with pages created today in class (if not finished already).  Read Chapter 4.

Week 3: Animation I (5 points)

                Lecture and Demo: Three types of animation: Cast to time, film loop, and tweening.

                In-Class:

1. Open existing animated folder
2. Import and cast to time.
3. Tween on stage using sprite path
4. Tween in score using by inserting keyframes
5. Animate a bouncing ball on stage using keyframes or tweening.  Then use that to create a film loop.

Week 4: Continued work in Animation (5 points)

Lecture and Demo: Zooming, rotating, duplicating, animating sprites using tools in the score and applying the behaviors library animation scripts to sprites.

                In-Class:

1. Apply above techniques (Zooming, rotating, duplicating, animating sprites) to multiple sprites.

Week 5: MIDTERM (10 points): Written test on all info to date plus students must create a 2 page interface, designed in Photoshop and played in Director.  Closed book and notes.

Week 6: Adobe Premier Movie Trailer (5 points)

                Lecture and Demo: Use provided captured video to edit and create a movie trailer.

                In-Class:

1. Import film clips into Adobe Premiere.
2. Edit, insert transitions, export to a final film clip.
   Homework: Make a movie trailer of good taste with 3 (or more) clips and transitions between the clips.

Week 7: Sound Forge (5 points)

                Lecture and Demo: Record 15 seconds from a CD on soundForge.

                In-Class:

1. Import into the sound channel of an existing Director movie.
2. Use categorized lingo for a "sound fade"

                Lecture: Final Project Digital Art Portfolio

1. Story-boarding and flow charts
2. Begin flowcharting and designing a 5 page Final Project that must contain:
• Introduction Page
• Main Page
• Art Page (life, digital, traditional, or any combination)
• Resume Page
• Exit Page
  Homework: Start selecting final art pieces you would like to have in your portfolio.

Week 8: Final Project: Build interface screens

Lab Time in Class: Create all pages, buttons and rollovers in Adobe Photoshop.
Homework: If adding artwork, scan all images and save onto disk.

Week 9: Continued work on Final Project: Start in Director

                Lab time in class: Import into Director: pages, buttons, add behaviors and animation.

Week 10: Continued work on Final Project: Test and debug project

Lab time in class: Check navigation between pages, buttons, rollover buttons, animation, and overall presentation of digital movie.
Homework:  Burn Final Project onto CD (optional).

Week 11: Present Final Project for Grade

                In-Class:

1. Turn in Final project on CD or Zip.
2. Leave classroom and come back for final grade.

Attendance:  each day you get two (2) points for being on time.  If you are tardy, you get 1 point.  Absent, zero.  It may not seem like much, but it’s worth 20% of your final grade.

Grading: