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Section 1: Overview

Creators: Making Movies

What are the tools of the trade for filmmakers, and how do they use those tools to tell a story? How does the perspective of a filmmaker compare to those of the audience and of critics who review movies? In response to these questions, we will analyze a critically acclaimed film: Hidden Figures. We will learn about movie-making elements, conventions, and techniques (sound, visual effects, storytelling, plot and characters, production, and more). We will also examine the different perspectives from which movies are viewed—that of the audience, filmmakers, and film critics—as we compare reviews of Hidden Figures to better understand film criticism. After considering which genres and types of movies interest us, we will choose a movie to view at home, which we will analyze and summarize using an Understanding a Movie Tool.

  • Lesson 1:

    We will learn about movies as a medium for storytelling from the point of view of filmmakers, and we will learn how to analyze a movie. We will watch the opening sequence of the critically acclaimed feature film Hidden Figures (Theodore Melfi, 2016) and analyze the storytelling choices, tools, and techniques used by the creators of the movie.

  • Lesson 2:

    We will watch Hidden Figures in its entirety, to fully appreciate and understand the storytelling craft that went into making the movie. We will also complete the other sections of the Understanding a Movie Tool.

  • Lesson 3:

    As we consider how a film tells a story, we will discuss three different perspectives we might use to understand filmmakers’ choices: the perspective of the film’s creators, the perspective of the film’s audience, and the perspective of critics. Film critics closely analyze a film’s construction and the quality of its storytelling, while audience members view the film for personal entertainment or enrichment, without having to articulate a response. We will read critical reviews of movies, talk about our experiences as audience members, and apply both of these viewing approaches so that we can use them on the Culminating Task, in which we will create a concept for our own, original movie.

  • Lesson 4:

    We will read an additional, more challenging movie review of Hidden Figures to learn more about the language of film criticism and to examine and emulate mentor sentences from the review.

  • Lesson 5:

    Why do some stories pull us in? We will watch interviews with Pixar animators to learn about some concepts and “tools of the trade” that filmmakers use to tell a good story. We will consider movies that have moved us and intrigued us, and we will identify the film we intend to watch and analyze independently at home.

  • Lesson 6:

    As a class, we will view clips and trailers from the movies we have chosen to view independently for the Section Diagnostic and the completion of an Understanding a Movie Tool. We will use the Filmmaking Glossary and our Vocabulary Journals to continue learning about filmmaking concepts and terms, and we will look for examples of movie techniques in the clips and trailers.

  • Lesson 7:

    In preparation for writing a synopsis for the Section Diagnostic, we will review our Understanding a Movie Tools with our peers, then team up to analyze and discuss how each movie tells a story.

  • Lesson 8:

    We will write a multiparagraph synopsis of the movie we independently watched and analyzed that provides background information about the movie, summarizes its storyline and its central characters’ story arcs, and analyzes its use of filmmaking techniques, its overall style, and the filmmakers’ message.

  • Lesson 9:

    We will review feedback on the Section Diagnostic. We will use the feedback to make revisions to our work.

  • Lesson 10:

    We will commence an Independent Reading Program in which we choose texts to read independently as we progress through the unit. We will learn how to choose texts, what activities we may complete, about the final task, and about any materials we will use as we read our independent reading texts. We will begin by reading our texts, using tools to help us take notes and analyze important textual elements.