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Final Syllabus

Visual Storytelling:
Documenting the Intercultural Experience
Fall 2015
Copenhagen
3 Credits
Major Disciplines: Communication, Rhetoric, Humanities
Faculty Member: Dr. Elizabeth Jochum, jochum@hum.aau.dk
Program Director: Helle Rytknen, Vestergade 7.38, hry@dis.dk
Assistant Program Director: Dorte Mari Aggergaard, Vestergade 7.37, dma@dis.dk
Program Assistant: Kelsey Keegan, Vestergade 7.37, kke@dis.dk

Mondays, 13.15-16.10, F24-302

Course Description
Narratives and storytelling are fundamental to human culture and experience. We tell stories for
many reasons: to capture or instigate change, to convey important values, to impress or impart
knowledge, to entertain, to transform society, etc. Living abroad and experiencing a different culture
from within is both exciting and challenging, and this course invites you to reflect on the intercultural
experience and communicate those stories through visual narratives. The course introduces you to
the basic concepts of visual storytelling, including creative approaches to static and dynamic visual
narratives using photography and digital cinematography. You will be introduced to theoretical
concepts concerning visual culture, street photography and documentary film and aesthetics.
Practice-based assignments will allow you the opportunity to apply your theoretical knowledge of
visual storytelling and documentary approaches to your own artworks that reflect your unique,
intercultural experience in Denmark.

During the course you will be asked to develop - alone or in collaboration - a visual narrative that
documents an intercultural experience in Denmark. The final project is a gallery installation, a three-
minute film, or an interactive visual narrative.

Learning Objectives
To explore creative approaches to single camera digital photography and cinematography through
short projects, discussions, and screenings. You will learn to relate creative photography and poetic
approaches to the digital camera cinema.

You will gain basic knowledge about:

Visual Storytelling
Narrative Theory
Photography and Film history
Images as Communication
History of documentary
Contemporary street photography
Documentary film

Visual Storytelling: Documenting the Intercultural Experience | DIS

Related Disciplines: Communication, Rhetoric, Humanities
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Final Syllabus
Skills in:
Basic sketching, framing a shot
Arrangement of shots
Editing (Adobe Premiere Elements/iMovie)
Filming approaches
Storyboarding

Competencies in:
Visual culture theory
Film theory
Photography and film practice
Documentary approaches

Instructor
Dr. Elizabeth Jochum, jochum@hum.aau.dk
Assistant Professor at the Department of Communication and Psychology at Aalborg University.
Elizabeth earned a Ph.D. and an M.A. from the University of Colorado Boulder and a B.A. from
Wellesley College. She is the co-founder of the robotic culture and aesthetics research group at
Copenhagen University.

Method of Work
Weekly lectures, workshops, and readings. Individual assignments in relation to course activities.
Film screenings. No previous drawing, photography or moviemaking experience is necessary.

Examination
The final examination is the successful completion of a visual narrative and a short paper (5-7 pages,
12pt, font, double-spaced) outlining the relevant theories and approaches concerning photography,
film, and digital cinema and how they relate to the project/artifact. All written assignments should
adhere to MLA citation and bibliographic reference standards. The course ends with a showcase in
which you will be able to discuss your work with Danish students who take a similar course at a
Danish university.

Evaluation
25% Participation (attendance, and discussion)
25% Midterm Assignments (in class presentation 10% and project pitch 15%)
50% Final Project (Artifact 25%, Final Written Report 25%)

Equipment
Students will work with disposable cameras as well as their personal mobile phones with
photographic and video recording capabilities. Editing software will be made available on DIS
computers for students who do not have their own. Materials for sketching will be made available
through the course. Students may choose to work with their own cameras, lenses, or video recording
devices, but this is not required. The emphasis of the course in on creative approaches to visual
storytelling rather than technical competencies associated with devices and technologies.

Assignments
There are three graded assignments in the course: 1) individual presentations; 2) final project pitch;
and 3) final project. All written, hand-in assignments will be submitted online via Blackboard. No
hard copies will be accepted.

Visual Storytelling: Documenting the Intercultural Experience | DIS

Related Disciplines: Communication, Rhetoric, Humanities
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Final Syllabus

1. Individual Presentations: on the first day of class students will select from the list of
photographers. All presentations will happen EITHER October 5th or October 12th. There is no
make-up assignment, so students should be prepared not to miss class on these days. The
presentation is 5 minutes (they will be timed), and should include no more than three (3)
Powerpoint slides. Students will be asked to submit a one-page hand-in with written information
on the artist and their work. The presentations should not focus on biographical details or
presenting the artists entire oeuvre. Rather, the student should present a selection of the
artists work in relation to the core concepts of the course: visual storytelling and narrative.

2. Final Project Pitch: Students will prepare a three (3) minute pitch (no more than one Powerpoint
slide), and a one-page written hand-in describing their final project proposal. The students will
deliver their project pitches to the professor and a local Danish television/film producer and
filmmaker Ulrik E.E. Gutt Nielsen (stv.dk). The pitch should include a description of the POV,
narrative elements, location, etc.

3. Final Project: The final project consists of two parts an artifact and a 5-7 page written report.
The artifact will either be a static narrative or dynamic visual narrative. Students may chose to
work together (no more than two persons in a group), but each student must submit an
individual, original written report (outlining their contribution to the project). Films should last
no more than three (3) minutes. The artifacts will be presented and evaluated in-class on
Monday November 30th. Written reports are due at the time of the scheduled final exam
(submitted online). Hard copies of written reports will not be accepted.

Course Schedule and Assignments (Readings are subject to change).

1. Monday, August 31 -- First Day of Class

Required Readings:
On Defining Visual Narratives. (Pimenta and Poovaiah, 2010).
A Short History of Photography (Walter Benjamin)

Activities:
Point of View, Static Narrative, Basic Sketching

Monday, September 7 No Class, Core Course Week

2. Monday, September 14 Photography and Narrative

Required Readings:
Camera Lucida (Roland Barthes)
Routledge Encyclopedia of Narrative Theory (Excerpts)

Activities:
Break-out sessions on Camera Lucida, identifying and defining narrative strategies

Visual Storytelling: Documenting the Intercultural Experience | DIS

Related Disciplines: Communication, Rhetoric, Humanities
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Final Syllabus

Wednesday, September 16, 13:00-17:00

Field Study: TBA

3. Monday, September 21 Photography and Visual Culture

Required Readings:
Introduction to Visual Culture (Nicholas Mirzoeff):
Introduction, Chapter 1, Chapter 2

Activities:
GUEST LECTURE: PATRICK GRIES (PHOTGRAPHER)

Monday, September 28 No Class, Travel Break 1

4. Monday, October 5 Documentary Photography I.

Required Readings:
Street Photography: From Brassai to Cartier Bresson (Clive Scott) (Ch 2)

Activities:
ASSIGNMENT DUE: Student Presentations

Henri Cartier Bresson Julia Margaret Cameron

Claude Cahun
Alfred Stieglitz
Berenice Abbott
Paul Strand Man Ray
Dorothea Lange
Vivian Maier
Dian Arbus Leni Reifenstahl
Robert Frank Margaret Bourke-White
William Eggleston

5. Monday, October 12 - Documentary Photography II.

Required Readings:
Photography and narrative: What is involved in telling a story? (David Campbell)

https://www.david-campbell.org/2010/11/18/photography-and-narrative/

Activities:

ASSIGNMENT DUE: Student Presentations

Stan Douglas Cindy Sherman

Barbara Probst Nan Goldin
Helen Levitt Jeff Wall
Mary Ellen Mark Sally Mann

Visual Storytelling: Documenting the Intercultural Experience | DIS

Related Disciplines: Communication, Rhetoric, Humanities
 DRAFT SYLLABUS SUBJECT TO CHANGE 5

Rineke Dijkstra Jacob Holdt

Torben Eskerod Astrid Kruse Jensen
Trine Sondergaard Per Bak Jensen
Char. Haslund Christensen Jacob Aue Sobol
Klaus Thymann

Wednesday, October 14, 8.30-12.30

Field Study: TBA

Monday, October 19 No Class, Travel Break 2

6. Monday, October 26 Documentary Filmmaking

Required Readings:
Introduction to Documentary (Bill Nichols, 2001). CH. 3

Activities:
GUEST LECTURE: ULRIK E. E. GUTT-NIELSEN (FILMMAKER)

ASSIGNMENT DUE: Final Project Pitch (see below).

7. Monday, November 2 Experimental Film From Breton to Warhol

Required Readings:

Documentary Film and the Avant-Garde (Bill Nichols)

Required Viewing:

Berlin: Symphony of a Great City (Walter Ruttman) (1927) (youtube)

Man with a Movie Camera (Dziga Vertov) (1929) (youtube)

Activities:

Finish pitch presentations, group feedback.

In-class screenings (Breton, Bunuel, Man Ray, Maya Deren)

In-class workshop on storyboarding.

Monday, November 9 No Class, Travel Break 3

Visual Storytelling: Documenting the Intercultural Experience | DIS

Related Disciplines: Communication, Rhetoric, Humanities
 DRAFT SYLLABUS SUBJECT TO CHANGE 6

8. Friday, November 6 OR Sunday, November 15 CPH DOX- Documentary Film

Festival* (see below)

9. Monday, November 16 Contemporary Documentary Film

Required Readings:

Death 24X Second (Laura Mulvey)

Editing handout.

Required Viewing:

Attendance at one or more of CPH-DOX films

Activities:

Post-Festival discussion. In class workshop on editing.

10. Monday, November 23 Intercultural Experience

Required Readings:

TBA

Activities:

Worksheet and small group discussions, written reflections.

11. Monday, November 30 - Last Day of Class Before Finals Period

Required Readings:
None

Activities:

Presentations of final projects/ Screenings/ Feedback

Final Communication Showcase

Monday, December 7, 15.00-18.00, Location: TBA

Visual Storytelling: Documenting the Intercultural Experience | DIS

Related Disciplines: Communication, Rhetoric, Humanities