News Story

MSCH-P 436 Business of Producing Motion Pictures

When students take Business of Producing Motion Pictures, they are learning how to be producers under the instruction of a producer who is still very active in Hollywood. In this course, students are divided into small groups or “producer teams.” Then, they have to come up with movie ideas, create presentations and then pitch the idea to Uslan as if he were a film executive.

The whole process is very hands on which, according to Uslan, is the best way to learn this trade.

“It’s important to have this experiential component,” said Uslan. “That better helps develop your knowledge of the business and allows you to plan for the Hollywood of today and tomorrow.”

When students present their movie ideas, Uslan tries to give his students a realistic depiction of what it is like to pitch in Hollywood. Uslan chats with each team in the beginning of the pitch session, then frankly assesses their ideas. He has also been known to answer his cellphone in the middle of a pitch to keep things interesting.

“It’s the best class I have ever taken,” said Virginia Warner, a former student of the class and Uslan’s spring teaching assistant. “I didn’t know anything about producing until this class. No other class compares.”

MSCH-M 453 Live from L.A.: Pros Make Movies

Taking Live from L.A. allows students to Skype with 30 expert guest speakers who work in all aspects of Hollywood. Each class is a four-hour long Q&A with Hollywood producers, directors, writers, agents, managers, lawyers, publicists and stars. These classes are intended to teach students about the reality of filmmaking, directly from the experts’ mouths.

“Even if you’re on the fence about what you want to do, take the class,” said Andy Ballow, who took Uslan’s Business of Producing Motions Pictures and attended some of the Skype sessions. “Michael’s class will give you a good idea of what the business is like.”

This course is centered around the active participation of students. Ted Castronova, chair of the school’s Media Arts & Production area, of which Uslan is a faculty member, warned that Uslan doesn’t like lulls in questions when experts are waiting to be grilled.

“You’d better be ready to talk,” he said.

“When you’re a filmmaker you have to consider, first of all, does the film speak for you, and second of all, how do you want to address your audience?” Schwibs said of the philosophy of the course.

The students spend the entirety of the semester coming up with video ideas, setting up the film and shooting video. They partner with students from the Jacobs School of Music, who compose soundtracks for each video. During the film festival, students perform their compositions live when the films are screened for the public in IU Cinema.

Senior Emily Lovell enjoys the opportunity to work with real film, cutting it with scissors instead of editing on a computer. This can be the hardest and most nerve-wracking part, she said. Her film focuses on the techniques of a dancer, an idea sparked by Lovell’s long experience in dance classes.

Senior Madison Dowers said considering how the techniques marry message is difficult.

“The hardest part of the class is stretching my mind in ways, specifically involving conventional filmmaking, and trying to grow through that,” she said. “But the best part is the growth I’ve seen in my abilities to think of a piece I’d like to create and see the creative process as I execute.”

Her final film project is about the way dance and music collaborate, switching the standard practice of dance being set to music and allowing the composers to set music to a silent film of a dancer.

Each semester, the class produces nine to 11 projects, each one four to six minutes long.

The Double Exposure film festival has become a campus favorite.

“It always fills the room,” Schwibs said. “And it’s not just one project. That might be harder for audiences to sit through. It’s more of a variety. That also helps because you have nine composers, so you have more styles of music as well.”

Senior Dexter Clardy is interested in design and production. He encourages fellow students not to be afraid to be different, to try new techniques and envision new products.

“I really can’t explain how important it is to be creative” he said.

Students review basic camera skills and produce news stories at first. Then, they learn about portraiture lighting to prepare for their interview stories. Next up are art stories and dramatic stories, and the type of project for their final work is up to them.

Krause said these final projects often are the most interesting because students work with community groups to produce work, such as public service announcements or short film projects. The course listed with the IU Office of Service Learning because of this element.

You don’t have to be a budding producer to get a lot from taking the course. Senior Sam Lieberman said he thinks video production skills will be valuable in almost any media career now.

“If you want to get hands-on experience, absolutely take this class,” he said.

While the class introduces students to professional equipment, Krause’s goal is for the students to become good producers.

“While hardware is important and skills are important, in a way it doesn’t matter what camera you use,” Krause said. “It doesn’t matter what editing software you use. It’s what you do with it.”