New Media Writing
Objectives: This module provides screenwriting students with the core skills necessary to succeed in the modern era. The primary objective of this module is to teach students the history, theory, and techniques of webisode writing.
Prof. Frank Chindamo
Program Features
- Start date: Oct 3, 2024
- Online Prerequisite:
- Min Age - 16+
- Blockchain-based Certificate
Program Features
- Start date: Oct 3, 2024
- Online Prerequisite:
- Min Age - 16+
- Blockchain-based Certificate
Description
Subject Description, Suitable for College Calendar:
Media literacy practices are rapidly evolving beyond traditional scriptwriting for film and TV to include webisode writing. This project-based, experiential, synchronous learning module covers the history, theory, and techniques of short-form episodic content creation to conceptualize and write an original webisode series pilot that could be successfully shared via online video-sharing platforms.
Program Syllabus
Theory (The key elements that a student is expected to know upon completion of a subject):
New Media Writing I: Writing a Digital Series Pilot is a project-focused module designed to prepare highly motivated screenwriting students for careers in the digital age. The curriculum places equal emphasis on the creative and the business, to enhance and develop artistic skills and judgment while providing a sound understanding of the New Media industry.
1. Discover key New Media scriptwriting techniques and methodologies
2. Learn the history of New Media scriptwriting and how it differs from traditional screenwriting for film and TV
3. Understand the importance of webisode writing and how it has become an essential part of modern media literacy practices
4. Master the art of storytelling and how it applies to webisode writing
5. Discover the most trending and discoverable genres and subject matters that can be used in webisodes and why Comedy is #1
6. Learn how to scale down your big ideas for the web and mobile medium
7. Research the market and market competition and set clear goals for your webisode pilot
8. Produce valuable mental real estate and be top of mind to your audience
9. Ideate and develop a big concept for a webisode series
10. Create characters that are relatable, interesting, and engaging
11. Learn how to write dialogue that is clever, engaging, and authentic
12. Know the importance of conflict in webisode writing
13. Write a pitch page and pilot episode of a web series
14. Discover the pros and cons of writing with a partner
15. Effectively use ChatGPT as a research and writing assistant or writing partner
16. Have the opportunity to access a network of teachers and alumni who are currently working in the New Media industry.
Prof. Frank Chindamo
PROF. FRANK CHINDAMO VFS BIO 2024
The founder of Virtual Film School, Prof. Frank Chindamo, is a former professor at various film schools including USC, UCLA, Chapman, Emerson and Pepperdine. Frank started his career in film and TV working on Saturday Night Live and Ghostbusters. He also got to work as a production coordinator with Mother Teresa in her first documentary. Chindamo rose up the ladder in filmmaking from assistant to writer/producer, and went on to hold the world’s record for most short films produced. Of course that record has been shattered now, but back in the day he made films for HBO, Showtime, CBS, PBS, Comedy Central, etc. Frank pioneered the use of video on the Internet and premiered the first comedy series on the web at the Sundance “DigiDance” festival in 2001. Soon after, he would be featured on the covers of the LA Times and Forbes Magazine for launching the first comedy video channel on mobile phones in 2004 for Sprint. In New Media, he led the team awarded a $1,000,000 production grant from YouTube. While speaking around the world on this emerging medium, he was asked to revamp the short film program at USC where his students went on to great success, including Freddy Wong (FreddyW, with 9 million YouTube subscribers, 2 billion views, and 2 series on Netflix and 2 on Hulu) and www.5SecondFilms.com, who were featured in a cover story in Entertainment Weekly. Students from other schools include Nicki Baber, with 6 million TikTok followers, 180 million likes, and approximately 2 billion views, and Bernie Su from UCLA, who’s won 3 Emmy Awards so far.
Chindamo excelled at teaming students New Media (YouTube, TikTok, etc.) He was awarded “Distinguished Lecturer” at USC and “Adjunct of the Year” at Chapman University. He was the top-rated professor in the media school at Chapman, see ratings here. However, Frank saw that traditional film schools were selling a false dream. For example, even though Chapman University was ranked the 4th best film school by the Hollywood Reporter, and they’ve graduated about 25,000 film/TV students, only 2 are working film directors. So along with (former) TV Academy Governor Lori H. Schwartz and branding guru/book author Lynn Speier, he created Virtual Film School Inc., where students could get a more advanced education in New Media production and monetization. (To quote a student, “All my other courses teach how to spend money I don’t have, but your courses is the only one that teaches me how to make money at this.”) Virtual Film School has launched in 6 countries so far, (US, Canada, China, Japan, Singapore, and Finland) with pilot programs using Virtual Reality classrooms. Their best work includes a collaborated class with the Beijing Film Academy and the Beijing 2022 Olympic Committee, where the students created the first TikTok series for the Olympics. This is pioneering and so far, unique work because students can use VR to actually step onto a film stage and create scenes in the Metaverse that they then recreate in real life with greater learning, ease and speed. The results speak for themselves, as does the success of the students. Numerous other schools will be launching remote courses in 2024, from the Philippines to Mauritius, Africa.