Script Adaptation: Stage, Screen and Multimedia
LPW603
Overview
To enrol in this unit, you must be accepted into a course from the provider.
Read before you start
Level of study: What does Postgraduate mean?
Postgraduate
EFTSL: What does EFTSL mean?
0.125
Delivery Method: What does delivery method mean?
Fully Online
Prerequisites: What are the prerequisites?
Duration:
13 weeks
Government loans available:
FEE-HELP FEE-HELP
Domestic student fee:
$1,750.00 (AUD)
International student fee:
$1,975.00 (AUD)
Description
Develop an understanding of how to read, write and research the wide range of adaptations that are made for presentation on stage, screen and in the digital world. This unit introduces students to a range of adaptive processes, and invites them to consider the challenges inherent in the transfer of content from one modality (eg. print or TV) to delivery through another (eg. cinema or internet). In this unit, students identify and apply elements of writing for performance, including plot, character and mise-en-scene; develop script proposals and outlines; and explore the industrial and cultural demands of proposing and developing a script for performance.
Please note: Assessment values are indicative only; details will be advised at the start of the unit.
Enrolment Restriction
In order to enrol in this unit, you must be accepted into one of the following courses:
If you wish to seek approval to enrol in this unit without being accepted in a course, please contact OUA regarding the process.
Prerequisites
Mandatory prerequisites
You must have successfully completed the following unit(s) before starting this unit:
- LPW500 — Critical Friends: The Real and Virtual Support of Writers
If you have completed equivalent study at another university, please contact a Student Advisor for advice.
Learning Outcomes
At the completion of this unit students will be able to:
- demonstrate their exploration of the principles of adaptation
- act as ‘writerly-readers’ of scripts
- reflect their understanding of different media for performance and the role of the writer, through written responses
- identify and apply elements of writing for performance, including plot, character and mise-en-scene
- demonstrate emergent skills appropriate to script writing through the development of their own script proposals, outlines and the script itself
- offer understanding of the particular industrial and cultural demands of proposing and developing a script for performance
- show insights into the processes of adaptation of a story for performance
- demonstrate an understanding of the demands of writing for visual screens from film to TV and multimedia.
Topics
This unit addresses the following topics.
| Number | Topic |
|---|---|
| 1 | Narrative in writing for stage and screens |
| 2 | Creation and development of character |
| 3 | Voice and dialogue |
| 4 | Dramatic elements: space, time, tension, conflict |
| 5 | Thinking adaptation: from book to film |
| 6 | Structure and adaptations |
| 7 | Elements of the stage play |
| 8 | The Elements of the screen play: structure, substructure, timing |
| 9 | Substructure: Technical requirements of adapting for screen and stage |
| 10 | Elements of writing for multi-media formats: shots, scenes and sequences |
| 11 | Writing for the visual |
| 12 | Case studies: Successful adaptations |
| 13 | Case studies: script writers and writing process |
Study Resources
This unit is delivered using the following methods and materials:
Print based materials
- Welcome Letter
Online materials
- Printable format materials
Relevant Courses
This unit is a core requirement in the following courses:
- Graduate Diploma of Arts in Writing, Swinburne University of Tnlgy
- Master of Arts (Writing), Swinburne University of Tnlgy
This unit may be eligible for credit towards other courses:
- Many undergraduate courses on offer through OUA include 'open elective' where any OUA unit can be credited to the course. You need to check the Award Requirements on the course page for the number of allowed open electives and any level limitations.
- In other cases, the content of this unit might be relevant to a course on offer through OUA or elsewhere. In order to receive credit for this unit in the course you will need to supply the provider institution with a copy of the Unit Profile in the approved format, which you can download here. Note that the Unit Profile is set at the start of the year, and if textbooks change this may not match the Unibooks textbook list.
