Precursors to the Film Medium

In this, the third in a series of four resources that use Robert Wise's 1951 version of The Day The Earth Stood Still as the core text, young film makers examine the language of film including shot composition, camera angle, lighting,...

An insult to American politicians? A satire of news media? Or a critique of censorship, political corruption, and media propaganda? As part of a unit study on film, class members examine how director Frank Capra's develops these themes...

Watch the Skies! Duck and Cover! Project Blue Book! Film, as a reflection of historical, cultural, and social issues, are the focus of the final lessons in a film unit that uses primary source documents and Robert Wise's 1951 version of...

How are films made? As part of their study of film, middle schoolers investigate the pre-production, production, and post-production process and consider the role of the director, the screenwriter, production designer, cinematographer,...

How do you read a frame? How do you read a shot? Here's a resource that shows viewers how to read films. As part of the study, class members examine the camera angles, lighting, movement, and cinematic point of view in Mr. Smith Goes to...

Watching is not the same as seeing. Transform viewers from passive watchers to active students of film with this 34-page packet, filled with lessons and activities that use Mr. Smith Goes to Washington to examine the technology, the...

Middle schoolers explore the art of film with this carefully scaffolded series of lessons that introduces film genres, explores the narrative structure of films, and uses The Day the Earth Stood Still to model how to become active...

The frame, the shot, the sequence. As part of a unit study of Robert Mulligan's film version of To Kill a Mockingbird, class members learn to read the visual text of the film, examining the composition of frames and shorts, camera...

Consumer technology has made it possible for filmmakers to create entire movies from the comfort of their home computer. Guide high school film buffs through the process of designing a documentary with an extensive unit published by...

Take two! Middle school and high school students learn what it takes to film and produce videos. Use these activities to challenge young cinematographers to learn the parts of a camera, filming techniques, and practice using the...