Week 9 — Developing the Video Essay: Ideas, Subjects, and Methods
This week focuses on getting ideas out of your head and onto the page. Before editing or production decisions are made, you will explore possible subjects for your video essay through writing, diagramming, discussion, and exploratory AI conversation.
Video essays do not begin with finished arguments. They begin with questions, intuitions, images, tensions, and fragments.
Class Focus
The goal of this class is to help you identify a strong, workable subject for your video essay and begin imagining how it might exist as an audiovisual form.
You will move from:
- open-ended ideas
- to a focused subject
- to a preliminary sense of form, style, and method
In-Class Writing: Journal Work
Step 1: Idea List
Begin by writing a list of possible ideas, interests, questions, or obsessions. Do not judge or narrow yet.
- Things you are curious about
- Issues you return to repeatedly
- Personal experiences that raise questions
- Cultural, technological, or political topics
- Images, places, or sounds that stay with you
Step 2: Diagram One Chosen Subject
Choose one idea from your list and begin diagramming it. This can be visual, spatial, or textual.
- Write the subject in the center of the page
- Branch out with related thoughts, questions, memories, references
- Include contradictions, uncertainties, and tensions
- Do not aim for clarity yet—aim for richness
Thinking Audiovisually
Once your subject begins to take shape, list the kinds of audiovisual material that might best express it.
- Interviews or spoken voice
- Observational footage
- Enactments or staged moments
- Archival images or video
- Graphics, diagrams, or still images
- Title cards or on-screen text
- Voice-over (your own or synthetic)
Ask:
- What does this idea sound like?
- What does it look like?
- What should be shown rather than explained?
Exploration with ChatGPT
After fleshing out your idea in your journal, you will explore it through an open-ended conversation with ChatGPT.
This is not about generating a script. It is about thinking with another system.
Use ChatGPT to:
- Ask questions about your subject
- Test different framings or angles
- Identify possible structures or approaches
- Surface tensions or counter-arguments
- Brainstorm visual or sonic strategies
Spend 15–20 minutes in conversation. Take notes on what clarifies your thinking—and what complicates it.
Small Group Discussion
You will meet in small groups to share your developing idea.
- Briefly describe your subject
- Explain what draws you to it
- Describe how it might work as a video essay
Listen for:
- What resonates with others
- Where confusion arises
- What questions your peers ask
Take notes on the feedback you receive.
After Class: Developing the Pitch
After class, continue developing your idea through:
- Further journaling
- Additional AI conversations
- Light research and reference gathering
You will then post a short video essay pitch in the class Slack channel.
Your Slack Post Should Include:
- Subject: What the essay is about
- Core question or tension: What you are exploring
- Approach: Analytical, reflective, poetic, speculative, etc.
- Materials: Types of images, sounds, voices you plan to use
- Style: Tone, pacing, mood, or formal influences
- Method: How you imagine assembling the essay
This pitch is a working document—not a commitment. It will evolve as you move into editing.