DEEPER MEANINGS: WORKING WITH MOTIFS
Ages 16-29
Spring 2022, Online
Good stories communicate with audiences both directly and indirectly. Literature and film often employ subtle patterns called motifs, recurring ideas, which in film might be evoked through audio and image; through objects, actions, lines of dialogue, music, sound effects, colors, and other elements. In this workshop, student fellows will learn to enrich and layer their texts through the use of motifs. They’ll locate themes in their own life experiences, documenting ordinary or not so ordinary events, and experiment with a range of strategies to surface these themes, creating continuity and interest beyond the level of narrative. They’ll be tasked to use their cellphones cinematically to create high-quality short videos, and learn to edit using free apps, adding visual and sound effects, graphics, and music. Their work will be shared through a public exhibition and on the program website. Limited to 8 student fellows.
Deeper Meanings: Working with Motifs is a co-production of Baltimore Youth Film Arts and Morgan State University.
David Lee Roberts Jr., an award-winning television producer and documentary filmmaker, is Adjunct Professor in the Screenwriting and Animation (SWAN) program at Morgan State University. Television credits include Metro Focus and Oh, Gospel; film credits include Credible Messenger, about juvenile justice reform, and Charm City, about Baltimore community reform and engagement.
Priyanka Kotha is an engineering management graduate student from India who takes comfort in art. She is obsessed with painting skies and taking pictures, and she enjoys meeting new people.
