100-level

TITO101
Maori Storytelling
Description
This course introduces students to a wide range of Maori writing in English, and situates these works within a vast and vibrant whakapapa of Maori creative production in Aotearoa and beyond. Key themes within the course include: purakau and their contemporary retellings, Maori futurism(s), representations of kai and palate politics, the relationship between birds, writers, and the written word, and narrative sovereignty.
Occurrences
Semester Two 2024
Semester Two 2024 (Distance)
Points
15 points
Restrictions
ENGL110, MAOR130
ENGL118
Creative Writing: Skills, Techniques and Practice
Description
This course provides a grounding in the skills, techniques and tricks a writer needs to transform ideas and material into art. Guided exercises will develop students’ creative practice of observation, play and experiment; the study of selected poetry, short prose and dramatic texts will introduce diverse forms and approaches. Students will also develop a feedback and revision practice at the weekly workshops; closely and sensitively engage with both published and peer texts.
Occurrences
Semester One 2024
Points
15 points

200-level

TITO201
Indigilit - Indigenous Literature in Aotearoa and Beyond
Description
This course is a survey of Indigenous literature which presents Indigenous creative production in Aotearoa in relation to Indigenous literatures around the globe. Students are encouraged to consider various forms of narrative which constitute "literature" in Indigenous contexts, to critically engage with representations of and ideas about Indigenous peoples within a range of texts, and to read Indigenous texts comparatively.
Occurrences
Semester Two 2024
Points
15 points
Prerequisites
60 points at 100 level any subject
DISC212
Screenwriting: research and story development
Description
Students focus on the work of screening that takes place before the actual drafting of a script, including: initial concept or story idea, research, character exploration, dialogue, scene structure and plot development. Written work includes character profiles, plot outlines, a treatment and initial draft. An important feature of the course is feedback, whereby student’s critique and support each other’s projects. Finally, students will learn the essential elements of the screenplay format.
Occurrences
Semester One 2024
Points
15 points
Prerequisites
DISC102
DISC220
Feature screenwriting project 1
Description
This class is a writing workshop focused on conceptualising, constructing and composing long form, 100 to 120-page, screenplays. In most cases students will turn Act I of the script they wrote in DISC222 into a fully developed feature-length, three-act screenplay.
Occurrences
Semester Two 2024
Points
30 points
Prerequisites
DISC101, DISC222
ENGL220
Creative Writing: Storymaking and the Short Story
Description
This course explores short-form prose storytelling with a focus on the short story. Students will be introduced to a wide range of short story forms and structures, and writing exercises will guide students towards expanding their writing practice and examining their own developing voice and style. This is a workshop process course where discussion, critical attentiveness, supportive insight and diverse ways of thinking will contribute to considered craft and creative exchange.
Occurrences
Semester Two 2024
Points
15 points
Prerequisites
Any 15 points at 100 level from ENGL, or any 60 points at 100 level from the Schedule V of the BA.
DISC222
Feature Screenwriting: The first act
Description
The primary purpose of this class is to facilitate and develop a fiction screenplay with emphasis on Act I. Structured as a workshop, students develop a flexible model of a feature script that draws upon the widely used "W" approached developed by Sid Field (see below). While the W approach is flexible and applies to many mainstream and independent movie narratives, it is not the only way of structuring a feature film and should not be taken as such. Students will be expected to learn, master and adapt this model to their own ideas, pitching those ideas, and writing Act I of a script to industry-standard format.
Occurrences
Semester One 2024
Points
15 points
Prerequisites
DISC101
DISC223
Creating story worlds
Description
This class focuses on the development of creative intellectual properties for screenwriting and other media to produce deep, coherent and flexible story worlds that can generate successful narratives across platforms.
Occurrences
Semester Two 2024
Points
15 points
Prerequisites
DISC101 and DISC212

Not Offered Courses in 2024

300-level

TITO301
Indigenous Stories, Digital Realms
Description
This course considers the representation of Indigenous narratives within the digital world. By closely analysing a series of case studies from various media including gaming and VR (virtual realities), as well as trends in film, television, and other media, we discuss thematic and stylistic trends in Indigenous texts as well as production methods and ethics utilised in their creation and development.
Occurrences
Not offered 2024
For further information see TITO301 course details
Points
15 points
DISC321
Episodic Screenwriting
Description
Advanced exploration of episodic screenwriting with an emphasis on collaboration, pitching and drafting. Students will hone their screenwriting skills through episodic concept development, treatment preparation, known as the "bible", pitching and writing a pilot for an episodic series. Students will also learn the business-side of writing in the television and streaming industries, from the "writer’s room" to the role of the showrunner.
Occurrences
Not offered 2024
For further information see DISC321 course details
Points
15 points
DISC322
Adaptation
Description
This course examines the challenges and complexities of adapting literary texts (novels, short stories, plays, comics, anime, fairy tales, myths and legends) and historical events (biographies, autobiographies, memoirs, reportage) to the screen. In the process, students will reflect upon the differences between working in words and images, in writing for a verbal or visual-based medium. They will create their own adaptation of a selected text.
Occurrences
Not offered 2024
For further information see DISC322 course details
Points
15 points
DISC333
Screen writing: revision and doctoring
Description
This is an advanced writing workshop in which students, first, learn how to evaluate an extant script for a producer or studio to option and, next, become familiar with the processes involved in restructuring and revising a screenplay in relation to market considerations (television, independent, tentpole, etc.). The aim is to enhance a previous written script by refining the story premise, characters and plot through successive revisions directed by producers (in this case, the instructor, guests from the industry and classmates). The final output will be a polished script that can be submitted to competitions, agents and producers for purchase or licensing.
Occurrences
Not offered 2024
For further information see DISC333 course details
Points
15 points