Syllabus
DTC 208 | Fall 2025
- Class Time: F 2:10pm–5:00pm
- Location: VMMC 111
- Instructor: Will Luers
- Phone: 503-975-3254
- Email: wluers@wsu.edu
- Office Hours: F 1– 2:00pm (in the Digs, basement of VMMC 111) and arranged on Zoom
COURSE OBJECTIVE
In DTC 208 / DIGITAL CINEMA, students will explore the techniques and aesthetic strategies of video in the age of digital media. Through a variety of short assignments and one final project, students will build basic skills in screenwriting, storyboarding, camera and sound work and editing. Students will be exposed to a range of cinema styles and approaches - continuity and montage editing, documentary work, lighting, interviews and cinematic storytelling - and will ultimately choose the approach that fits best with their creative goals.This course will approach video production less as a set of specialized technical skills using high-end equipment, and more as a set of composition practices using commonly used tools. Students are encouraged to use their own (or borrowed) digital cameras, phones or hybrid devices that they can carry with them everywhere. There will also be a range of semi-professional video and audio equipment available for check-out from the equipment room.
LEARNING GOALS
| Required Course Activities | University Learning Goals | University Learning Objectives | CMDC Goals & Objectives |
| 1. Mini Video Assignments | Critical and Creative Thinking (ULG1) Communication (ULG4) | Combine and synthesize existing ideas, images, or expertise in original ways. Express concepts propositions, and beliefs in coherent, concise, and technically correct form. | Goal 1: Demonstrate competency with computers for designing, distributing, retrieving, and preserving digital works in various mediums for humane and effective human-computer interactions Goal 2: Synthesize media forms for multimedia contexts Goal 3: Employ the principles of visual form for sophisticated image manipulation |
| 2. Pitch Deck | Critical and Creative Thinking (ULG1) Communication (ULG4) Quantitative and Symbolic Reasoning (ULG2) | Combine and synthesize existing ideas, images, or expertise in original ways. Express concepts propositions, and beliefs in coherent, concise, and technically correct form. Understand and apply quantitative, symbolic and computational principles and methods in the solution of problems | Goal 7 Recognize various forms of language processing and their implications for media authoring |
| 3. Profile Project | Critical and Creative Thinking (ULG1) Communication (ULG4) Quantitative and Symbolic Reasoning (ULG2) | Combine and synthesize existing ideas, images, or expertise in original ways. Express concepts propositions, and beliefs in coherent, concise, and technically correct form. Understand and apply quantitative, symbolic and computational principles and methods in the solution of problems | Goal 7 Recognize various forms of language processing and their implications for media authoring |
| 4. One Minute Group Project | Critical and Creative Thinking (ULG1) Information Literacy (ULG2) Communication (ULG4) Depth, Breadth, and Integration of Learning (ULG7) | Combine and synthesize existing ideas, images, or expertise in original ways. Determine the extent and type of information needed. Express concepts propositions, and beliefs in coherent, concise, and technically correct form.By applying the concepts of the general and specialized studies to personal, academic, service learning, professional, and/or community activities. | Goal 7 Recognize various forms of language processing and their implications for media authoring Goal 5 Know the basics of information architecture and knowledge management along with ways digital information can be structured for retrieval and archival purposes for different audiences |
COURSE STRUCTURE
- Focus on the conception and creation of expressive video
- Multiple assignments and projects
REQUIRED TEXTS/SUPPLIES
- Extra computer storage for video editing
- Headphones or "earbuds"
- Digital camera or smartphone with HD video camera and monopod (available to check out)
- Smartphone of Digital Camera stabilization: monopod, tripod, gorilla grip...
COURSE POINT-EARNING POTENTIALS
Participation(10%)- In-class activities, discussion and screening attentiveness.
- framing assignment 5%
- continuity assignment 5%
- sound design assignment 5%
- montage assignment 5%
- script 5%
- storyboard 5%
- moodboard or production design 5%
- rough cut (10%)
- final cut (15%)
- group participation (5%)
- script and storyboard (5%)
- final cut (20%)
Schedule & Project Due Dates
| Week | Date | Topic | Assignment / Project Due |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Aug 22 | Introduction & Cinema Grammar | – |
| 2 | Aug 29 | Camera & Lighting Basics | – |
| 3 | Sept 5 | Continuity Editing & Camera Coverage | Framing Assignment (5%) – due Sept 5 |
| 4 | Sept 12 | Making & Breaking Space | – |
| 5 | Sept 19 | Sound 101 | Continuity Assignment (5%) – due Sept 19 |
| 6 | Sept 26 | Story Structure & Scripts | Sound Design Assignment (5%) – due Sept 26 |
| 7 | Oct 3 | Storyboards & Pre-production | Pitch Deck: Script (5%) – due Oct 3 |
| 8 | Oct 10 | Montage & Rhythm | – |
| 9 | Oct 17 | Visual Evidence & Documentary Portrait | Pitch Deck: Storyboard (5%) & Moodboard (5%) – due Oct 17 |
| 10 | Oct 24 | Interview Setup & B-roll Integration | Montage Assignment (5%) & Shooting Plan (5%) – due Oct 24 |
| 11 | Oct 31 | Effects & Post‑Production | Profile Project: Rough Cut (5%) – due Oct 31 |
| 12 | Nov 7 | One‑Minute Shorts – Small‑Group Planning | Profile Project: Final Cut (15%) – due Nov 7 |
| 13 | Nov 14 | One‑Minute Short – Shoot, Edit & Post | One-Minute Script & Storyboard (5%) – due Nov 14 |
| 14 | Nov 21 | THANKSGIVING BREAK | – |
| 15 | Dec 5 | One Minute Screenings | One-Minute Rough Cut > Final Cut (15%) – due Dec 5 |
GENERAL ASSIGNMENT AND PROJECT GUIDELINES
- Do not use copyright-protected text, images, audio or video
- You may use material that is in the public domain, but please credit the source
- You may use AI to generate effects and certain parts of video projects.
- Your work must be your own, produced for this course (ie. nit previous videos)
Attendance Policy
Two absences are allowed. Each additional absence deducts 5 points. It is your responsibility to make sure I check your attendance if you arrive after the start of class. Frequent late arrivals, leaving early, or other forms of lack of attendance will also deduct points from the cumulative total.Participation in discussion and critique is essential.
Both attendance and participation will be monitored and deficiencies in either/both will result in lower final grades. Participation means being attentive in class, joining in discussions, engaging in informal critiques and completing all in-class and outside assignments.
It is your responsibility to make sure I check your attendance if you come to class after the start of class. Frequent late arrivals, leaving early, or other forms of lack of attendance will also deduct points from the cumulative total. Absent students remain responsible for all course matters during their absence(s). Opportunities to make up missed work may not be available. Final grades are determined from the cumulative points earned, plus or minus any deductions or additions for attendance or participation. No curving, averaging, or other manipulations are utilized. No other assessment or extra credit opportunities are planned. Incompletes are not available.
Final grades are based on the following scale:
| A | 94-100 |
| A- | 90-93 |
| B+ | 87-89 |
| B | 83-86 |
| B- | 80-82 |
| C+ | 77-79 |
| C | 73-76 |
| C- | 70-72 |
| D | * |
| F | 0-69 |
Submission of Late Work
All work must be submitted as and when required. If you anticipate you will be late with an assignment, you must message me on Slack with a date (within a week) when it will be submitted.AI Use Policy
Although most of the projects will be edited with live video shot by you, you are still encouraged to use AI tools for different aspects of production and post-production. AI can be a valuable resource for:
- Learning and research (always fact-checked for accuracy)
- Brainstorming and world-building
- Mood board creation and visual inspiration
- Planning and structuring projects
- Video effects such a green screen and color correction.
- Generative media for some clips, sound, and other production needs.
However, in this course, ideas and approaches will begin with you. Much of the creative process will be spent in discussion, journaling, and workshopping in and out of class. These steps are designed to slow the process down and help you develop a clear perspective and direction before you turn to AI tools.
AI should be used as a support for thinking — not a shortcut to bypass it.
- Your final submissions must reflect your own style, approach, and aesthetic.
- For most projects, I may require documentation of all AI-assisted work — including transcripts of chats, prompts, and outputs used during development.
- Transparency is essential to your growth in digital media and in working with generative AI. If AI meaningfully shaped your work, you should note where and how you used it (for example: “I used ChatGPT to debug a function, then rewrote the solution in my own style” or “I generated images to explore a visual style and then used my own sketches to refine and complete the scenes”). This documentation helps track your role in a complex creative process.
- Direct, unmodified AI outputs should not be submitted as your own work. This includes copy-pasting code, text, or images without adaptation or acknowledgment.
AI tools — including those for generative media — are powerful learning partners, but they cannot replace the slower, deeper process of design thinking, workshopping, and evolving your own ideas in dialogue with others.