EAE 4UMme Laurin Independent Study Unit

For your ISU you will select a novel and its corresponding movie to analyze, contrast and compare. Here are a few ideas:

Title Author Director and year of movieAtonement Ian McEwan Joe Wright (2007)The Help Kathryn Stockett Tate Taylor (2011)Memoires of a Geisha Arthur Golden Rob Marshall (2005)Dracula Bram Stoker Frances Ford Coppola (1992)Fight Club Chuck Palahniuk David Fincher (1999)Water for Elephants Sara Gruen Frances Lawrence (2011)The Colour Purple Alice Walker Stephen Spielberg (1985)Lord of the Flies* William Golding Peter Brooks (1963)Dr. Zhivago Boris Pasternak David Lean (1965)The Kite Runner Khaled Hosseini Marc Forster (2007)The Girl With the Pearl Earring Tracey Chevalier Peter Webber (2003)One Flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest Ken Kesey Milos Forman (1975)Pride and Prejudice* Jane Austen 1995 miniseries or Joe Wright

(2005)Sense and Sensibility Jane Austen Ang Lee (1995)Gone With the Wind * Margaret Mitchell Victor Fleming (1939)*The Godfather Mario Puzo Frances Ford Coppola (1972)Jane Eyre* Charlotte Brontë Cory Funkunaga (2011)The Count of Monte Cristo Alexandre Dumas Kevin Reynolds (2002)*Silence of the Lambs Thomas Harris Jonathan Demme (1991)The Road * Cormack McCarthy John Hillcoat (2009)Circle of Friends * Maeve Binchy Pat O’Connor (1995)No Country for Old Men Cormac McCarthy Joel and Ethan Coen (2007)Under the Tuscan Sun Frances Mayes Christophe Beck (2003)Oliver Twist Charles Dickens Roman Polanski (2005)Silver Linings Playbook Matthew Quick David O. Russell (2012)The Da Vinci Code Dan Brown Ron Howard (2006)Angels and Demons Dan Brown Ron Howard (2009)* = Teacher has either movie or novel

Should none of these interest you, do a Google search of film adaptations of novels to find more.

YOU WILL NEED TO HAVE THE TEACHER APPROVE YOUR CHOICE BEFORE MOVING AHEAD!!!

EAE 4UMme Laurin Independent Study Unit

www.rfclipart.com

Components of the ISU

1- Novel Study

2- Compare and Contrast Essay 1500 words (about 6 pages)a. In this component you will learn how to write a compare and

contrast essay about the novel and the film you have selected for your ISU.

3- Film Sequence Analysis a. In this component, you will learn the terminology and the “how

to” to complete a Film Sequence Analysis of one scene.

4- “Director’s Cut”a. You will use the information from your Film Sequence

Analysis, and provide an oral-visual presentation of your work.

EAE 4UMme Laurin Independent Study Unit

Reading and Interpretation

Novel Study

As you read your novel, you will:

Write a paragraph that provides the following information:

The setting The rising action The climax The denouement

Write a paragraph that provides a psychoanalytic profile of the main character (protagonist) of the novel. Make sure to provide proof from the novel to support your analysis.

Provide at least four important quotations from the novel, and a paragraph that details the significance for each. Make sure you provide page numbers for your quotations..

image from: www.parkhillkids.edublog.org/english/

EAE 4UMme Laurin Independent Study Unit

Writing and Interpretation

How to Write a Compare and Contrast Essay

1. Introduction Your introduction should begin with a generalized statement such as a quotation, anecdote, common-knowledge statement – like the five-paragraph-essay – and should provide a strong statement as to whether this was or was not a strong adaptation, followed by a solid and well thought-out thesis statement.

2. All Comparisons (Topics A and B) This section — which should consist of several paragraphs — should go through all similarities that you have found between the two topics on which you are writing (in this case, the novel and the film). There should be at least three formal comparisons (essentially three short body paragraphs) in which you give an example from both topics of comparisons in each.

3. All Contrasts (Topics A and B) This section — which should consist of several paragraphs — should go through all differences that you have found in the two topics on which you are writing (in this case, the novel and the film). There should be at least three formal contrasts (essentially three short body paragraphs) in which you give an example from both topics of comparisons in each.

4. Conclusion This conclusion is wrapping up everything you have just proven in your paper. It should restate the thesis in a new, more official way, and you should show confidence in your ideas. Make sure to explain whether this film was a successful adaptation.

***Refer to your MLA Guide to format your citations for both the novel and the film.

If you are writing an essay that compares apples (A) and oranges (B) your Essay structure will look like this:

IntroductionParagraph 1 = Compare A and B (Example: They are both fruit)Paragraph 2 = Compare A and B (Example: They are both healthy)Paragraph 3 = Contrast A and B (Example: You eat the peel of one and not the other)Paragraph 4 = Contrast A and B (Example: you can make pies out of one and not the other)Conclusion

EAE 4UMme Laurin Independent Study Unit

Example of structure for compare contrast essay

EAE 4UMme Laurin Independent Study Unit

Specifics for your essay:

1- Your essay should be about 1500 words in length (6 pages).

2- Your essay should be double-spaced and in a 12-point font, in Times New Roman or

Arial.

3- Your essay must be accompanied by all brainstorms, and at least THREE drafts that

show your revisions and editing.

4- Your essay should contain at least FOUR print or web sources.

5- Your essay should contain a title page and a Works Cited page.

6- All citations and references should follow proper MLA (Modern Language Association)

style.

Oral-Visual Communication

Film Sequence Analysis Presentation (“Director’s Cut”)

EAE 4UMme Laurin Independent Study Unit

You will present a Film Sequence Analysis to the class, transforming it into a visual presentation.

Your “Director’s Cut” should include the following things:

o A brief synopsis of the storyline

o Names of characters and actors, description of setting, and of themes

o Similarities and differences between the novel and film

o Choices that the director made to represent people, places or things in the movie, and possible reasons why the director chose to change things or keep them

o A clip of the sequence you have chosen, which you will give a play-by-play for and which you will use to support your ideas

o Your general reaction to the adaptation.

You will have to present your director’s cut to the class using some visual medium, including the trailer of the film, and a clip of the sequence you have chosen to support your ideas. You will need to use the terminology that you have learned, and to know your stuff.

EAE 4UMme Laurin Independent Study Unit

Tips on How to do a Film Sequence Analysis

A film sequence is a “scene” within a film. In your film sequence analysis, you will choose a particular sequence (“scene”) in the film adaptation that you have chosen, and explain its importance within the larger context of the film. You would want to make sure that the scene you choose is an important one, and provides you with a point from which you can show similarities or differences between the novel and its film adaptation.

Here are the steps in planning, organizing, and writing your Film Sequence Analysis:

Step 1Watch the film in its entirety. Then watch it again. Take notes during the first viewing and, if you are analyzing a movie that is available on DVD, be ready with your remote control to pause and rewind.

Step 2Choose a sequence (scene) that is particularly important in terms of how the director chose to portray the novel. Make sure the scene isn’t too long, but it could consist in a number of things, including symbols, characterization, setting (place and time), storyline, etc.

Step 3Take detailed notes of what you see and hear, such as facial expressions, dialogue, background music, and action. Do you like the actors’ performances? Are they convincing? Are they effectively depicting the novel’s characters?

Step 4Get familiar with filmmaking terminology, understanding the differences between the different elements such as the importance of lighting, sound, transitions, camera angles and shots.

Step 5Begin to organize your analysis, thinking about your scene, and how it depicts the director’s choices such as set design, background music, special effects, costume design, performances, props, etc., and how it is similar to, or different from, the novel.

Step 6Make sure to think critically and creatively about how you will present your work. For the best and most fulfilling results, think outside the box!

EAE 4UMme Laurin Independent Study Unit

Glossary of terms used in Film Study

Animation The process of photographing drawings or objects a frame at a time; by changing a

drawing or moving an object slightly before each frame is taken, the illusion of motion is realized. Traditional (Ex. Lion King, The Iron Giant, Spirited Away, etc.) Computer-generated (Ex. Wall-E, Toy Story, Shrek, etc.)

Background Music Music accompanying action on the screen, but coming from no discernible source

within the film. For example in “Jaws,” the background music lets us know the shark is coming, but you don’t see a symphony sitting on the beach playing the famous background music.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OH7czR4fjEA (some scary images)

Cast Ensemble of actors chosen to play the roles of different characters in a movie.

Cinematography Art and technology of motion-picture photography. It involves the composition of a

scene, lighting of the set and actors, choice of cameras, camera angle, and integration of special effects to achieve the photographic images desired by the director. (http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cinematography)

Clip A brief segment excerpted from a film.

Costume design The clothing worn by the characters, which will serve to reflect the film’s setting and

era, but often doesn’t. It’s important to focus on how well the costumes bring the characters, the action, and the setting to life. (http://www.costumersguide.com/design.shtml)

Dissolve A transition between two shots, where one shot fades away and fades in.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iCEdSGeFCCA

Dubbing The recording of dialogue in a sound studio, after the footage is shot, where the film

and dialogue match the lip movements.

Fade A transition from a shot to black where the image gradually becomes darker is a Fade

Out or from black where the image gradually becomes brighter is a Fade In.

Frame A single image (of a series of them) on a piece of film. There are 24 frames per

second.

EAE 4UMme Laurin Independent Study Unit

Mise-en-scène Everything that is present within a sequence (or “scene”), such as setting (where and

when the scene is taking place), characters, props, and anything else that is required to create the scene.

Voice-Over Narration The use of a human voice off-screen for a variety of reasons.

Pan A horizontal camera move on an axis, from right to left or left to right. In a pan the

camera is turning on an axis rather than across space. Not to be confused with Tilt, technically it is not correct to say “pan up” or “pan down,” when you really mean tilt.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xD0HoBxDaAg

P.O.V. Shot (Point of View Shot) A shot from the perspective of one of the characters, as if the audience were seeing

the scene from their eyes. It is often important to get a Reaction Shot to establish that any given shot really is a P.O.V.

Performance The actor’s rendering of his or her role, and how convincingly he or she achieves this

rendering.

Sequence Also called “scene” which is really the theatrical meaning. A sequence in film means

several shots that come together to form a specific part of a film.

Soft Light A type of light with a built in surface to act as a bounce card, providing soft, indirect

light on the subject.

Special effects Illusions that are created in film using sounds, images, computer graphics,

camerawork, makeup, etc. (Dictionary.com) Sound effects:

o “A sound other than speech or music made artificially for use in a play, movie, or other broadcast production.” (Dictionary.com)

Visual effects: o “Various processes by which imagery is created and/or manipulated

outside the context of a live action shot. Visual effects involve the integration of live-action footage and generated imagery to create environments which look realistic, but would be dangerous, expensive, impractical, or simply impossible to capture on film. Visual effects using computer generated imagery has recently become accessible to the independent filmmaker with the introduction of affordable and user friendly animation and compositing software.” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visual_effect)

EAE 4UMme Laurin Independent Study Unit

Tilt Shot A vertical camera move on an axis, up or down. Not to be confused with pan. It is not

really correct to say “pan up” or “pan down,” when you really mean tilt.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AjudidLjXTE

Time Lapse Time lapse is when single frame shooting is used to dramatically speed up the action

over the course of a long period of time. Typically it is a process where a single frame is shot after a consistent pause. It could be one frame every ten seconds, or one frame every hour, and such.

Tracking Shot A tracking shot is one where the camera is placed on a dolly and is moved while

filming. Also known as a dolly shot.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ZgUu6VFmAI

Zoom “A camera shot that changes smoothly from a long shot to a close-up or vice

versa” (Dictionary.com) A zoom-in would be a close-up of a subject, while a zoom-out would be a shot

that moves away from the subject