The latvian academy of culture

Description of the Study Course

The Name of the Course: The History and Theory of Television.
The Scope of the Course: 64 academic hours (30 hours of lectures, 34 hours of seminars).

4 credit points.

The type of assessment – a test and an examination.

The Author of the Course: Ass. Prof. Ģirts Nagainis
Preconditions for the Acquisition of the Course: Prior knowledge in fine arts, the history of the cinema and literature.
The Scope of the Course: The course includes the most important aspects in the development of TV technologies, practice, genres and theory. The objective of the course is to acquire the history, theory, development and perspectives of television and its importance in society.

The Thematic Planning:

Theme	Week	Type of classes and hours
The role of TV in the life of an individual and the society.	1.	L2
The technological, communicative and social preconditions for the formation of TV in the 20’ies – the 40’ies of the 20^th century.	2.	L2
The development of TV technologies from the radio valve till “star wars”.	3.	L2
How TV became the main information source of mankind.	4.,5.	L2;S2
Live broadcasts and the effect of participation.	6.	L2;S2
Virtual TV and the Internet.	7.	L2;S2
Clip thinking.	8.	L2;S2
Postmodernism and TV.	9.	L2;L2;S2
The VHS camera and author television.	10.	L2;S2
The history of Latvian TV.	11.	L2;S2
TV genres and influence on an individual and the society in general. ”Talkshow”, soap operas, developments of the game in various societies.	12.,13.	L2;L2;S2;S2
Advertising and commerce on TV.	14.	L2;S2
The principles of creating a TV programme on public and commercial TV.	15.	L2;S2
The assessment of the work of TV. Ratings, audience research departments, critics.	16.	L2;S2

Requirements for the Acquisition of Credit Points:
1. To participate in all seminars.

2. To successfully pass a test and an examination.

Literature:

1.Herbert Zett., Television Production Hand Book., Wordsworths Publ. Coup., California, 1992

2.Director on TV. - London, 1985.

3.Paas M. TV used time. - Paris, 1995.

4.Videofilms. - London, 1995.

The Name of the Course: Set design
The Scope of the Course: 48 contact hours: 36 hours of lectures and 12 hours of practical work. 2 credit points.

The type of assessment – a written test at the end of Term 3, an examination at the end of Term 4.

The Author of the Course: Lecturer Ieva Romanova
Preconditions for the Acquisition of the Course: The knowledge of the basics of the chosen speciality, an understanding of the structure of film creation, knowledge in the use of optics, the history of art and the cinema.
The Contents of the Course: During the course of lectures the students are introduced to the principles of the selection and use of objects to be filmed. The course also explores the possibilities of the creation of stage design, its construction and extension, the coloristic and stylistic organization of the environment, the possibilities of the use of space. The course deals with the regularities of a film project: the execution of sketches, technical designing, the drawing of explication and framing; the composition of the picture and perspective. The students are also acquainted with the works of the most famous film artists.
Thematic Planning:

Theme	Week	Hours
Who is a film artist. His/her importance, status and place in a film group. The Latvian film artists. The structure of the group of an artist.	1,2	L2, L2
A film project. An explication. The ways of drawing an explication. The creation of style, rhythm, and artistic colouring. Framing, sketches. Comprehension of the characteristic visual material. The selection of the objects to be filmed, its preconditions.	3	L2
The basic principles of picture composition. Balance, rhythm, colour, lights, perspective, the peculiarities of the optical conception.	4,5	L2, L2
Practical classes for the development of compositional skills and explication drawing.	6,7	S2, S2
The direct, parallel, and inverted perspective, the typology of space, description of space as a phenomenon relating to history.	8	L2
The transformation of drawings for a dimensional composition. The creation and calculation of a plan. A draft drawing. The drawing of detail. The technical design. “The net of the artist”.	9,10	L2, S2
The principles of the construction of stage design, the fundus, the calculation of the necessary space. Extensions to the stage design. Making an estimate.	11,12	L2, L2
The decoration of objects, the perspective compatibility, the coefficient of compensation, a purposeful use of the optics.	13	L2
The scale as a characteristic element, its use. The meaning of details in the characteristics of drama. The analysis of examples.	14	L2
The conditional and the realistic in film scenography. Subjection of nature to the general stylistic solution. Historical stylization. Creation of the conditional environment. The analysis of examples.	15,16	L2, S2
Work of the costume and make-up artists. The canonical and the individual in a person, making use and neutralization of the distinctive features in the creation of an image. The style, fashion and the characteristics of the period. The creation of an untraditional image. The cult of stars.	17,18	L2, L2
Modelling and the use of models. The artist’s work with the split screen. Special effects, their planning and use. The analysis of examples.	19,20	L2, S2
The peculiarities of the work of a TV studio artist. The design of a telecast. Stage design for work with several cameras. The conditions for the use of colours.	21	L2
The most outstanding film artists in the world, their works. The trends and fashions in film scenography. The analysis of examples.	22,23	L2, L2
A practical class: the analysis of the drawings of an explication and the project of stage design.	24	S2

Requirements for the Acquisition of Credit Points:

1. A passed test and an examination.

2. The completion of the practical tasks: a self-portrait, explication and a sketch of the project of stage design.
Literature:
1. Арнхеим Р. Искусство и визуальное воспитание. Москва, Прогресс, 1974.

2. Голдштеин Л.Г. и др. Комбинирование киносъемкки. Москва, Искусство, 1972.

3. Жегин Л.Ф. Язык живописного произведения. Москва, Искусство, 1970.

4. Толмачев В, Полянский К. Кингдеккорации, проектирование и постройка. Москва, Искусство, 1956.

5. Affron Ch. And M.J. Sets in Motion, Art Direction and Film Narrative. Rutgers University Press, USA, 1995.

6. Barsacq L. Caligari’s Cabinet and other Grand Illusions. A History of Film Design. A Plume Book, USA, 1978.