The Past and Pending is a feature-length documentary by Samuel Eliot Torres, made as part of the requirements for earning a Master of Fine Arts in Film & Digital Media from the University of Central Florida. The film focuses on a family torn apart by a major decision to migrate to the U.S. from Puerto Rico. The protagonist, Torres, is now trying to receive closure from the events by asking the questions he could not ask as a child, but feels compelled to ask as an adult. Filming with only one person in the crew allowed for an intimacy and spontaneity that is prized by entrepreneurial digital cinema makers. Without the financial and scheduling constraints of enlisting a large crew, the film was allowed to thrive with a spontaneous and ongoing shooting schedule, controlled entirely by one person.

The study of stage combat is designed to fabricate the illusion of physical combat without causing harm to the performers. Most research in this field does not take into account the characterization of the actor during the training of a fight scene. An actor primarily learns the stunt choreography of the scene and often times the subtleties of the character is often forgotten. Scenes that involve physical contact are an essential aspect of the dramatic action. My aim is to eventually devise a process that will consistently create fight scenes that maintain the integrity of the fight director‘s work as well as the mastery of the actor‘s character composition. I am aware this is an ambitious project therefore will I approach this endeavor in two stages. This document will cover the first stage of this project: the investigation of the current process of several professionals who have varying experiences with fight choreography. I will propose and explore the significance of a series of questions a director, actor and fight choreographer should answer before embarking upon a fight sequence successfully. Questions such as: How important is the stunt physiologically and psychologically on the character? Does gender play a role in a fight sequence? Do size, age, and race play a role on character choice in a sequence? Why did the character choose that weapon? Where did that character learn to fight and why in that style?

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The problem which concerns this thesis is the directing, designing, and mounting of Woody Allen's Play It Again, Sam under the auspices of the 1974 North Texas State University Summer Repertory Theatre Company. Chapter I contains a detailed examination of the playscript, an analysis of each of the characters, and criticism of Woody Allen's work. Chapter II deals with the chief problems and strategies involved in production. The preparation of the playscript, the cast and production staff, the design process, the front-of-house activities, and rehearsal experience are discussed in detail. Chapter III is the production book itself and includes the script, the blocking, and the light and sound cues. Chapter IV contains a critical summary of the project and recommendations for future study.

Call number: LD2668 .T4 1958 T47

This investigation attempted to answer the following research questions, based upon student participation in "hands on" television production activities: (1) What shifts in the students' perceived acceptance of themselves occurred, (2) what shifts in the students' perceived acceptance of others occurred, and (3) what shifts in the students' perceived acceptance of school occurred? In seeking answers to the above three questions, the investigator located seven volunteers from a high school dropout retrieval program. As it developed, all of them were of Mexican American heritage. This investigation was based upon a theoretical framework drawn from perceptual psychology, education, and television. The framework consisted of television as a perceptual experience tending to effect acceptance of self, others, and school. A small n research design with multiple measures was used during this investigation. Data were collected with a student self-report measure using a modified Likert-type response mode. Qualitative data were collected from student interviews and investigator observations recorded as fieldnotes. The research results indicated no significant patterns in acceptance of self and others as a group. The qualitative data revealed the variety of individual shifts in acceptance of self, others and school. Certain unanticipated results occurred because the participants were Mexican American. These included cultural-related observations. The data indicated that "hands on" television production activities involve "learning in context" processes which might have important implications for dropout retrieval programs. The investigator recommended further "learning in context" TV or video studies with multicultural groups of students.

This written thesis gives an account of the creative production of Two Fingers: Michael's Struggle, a twenty-nine minute documentary video that explores the life of Michael Alan Rasch who suffers from Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy. It explains in detail the process of pre-production, production, and post-production of the documentary. It also discuses the integration of theories applied in the documentary. Two Fingers shows that although Michael has lived with the disease almost his entire life, his perspective and attitude are more about living and enjoying life. Through it, the filmmaker intends the viewer to gain a tremendously important lesson about the human spirit.

This written thesis examines the process of producing Herb and Life: a Chinese Medical Family, a thirty-minute documentary video that explores the producer's family members' relationship with Traditional Chinese Medicine. This documentary uses interviews, narration, music, and observational sequences to display documentary subjects' career choices and their experiences with Traditional Chinese Medicine. This written thesis reveals the development of this documentary, from the pre-production to production and post-production stages. It also incorporates theoretical analysis and self-evaluation of this documentary video.

According to the American Heritage College Dictionary, the word “community” derives from the Latin roots: communitas and communis meaning “fellowship” and “common,” respectively. The word “amateur” derives from the Latin roots: amator meaning “lover.” A community of amateurs, who love to put on plays, exists within the Denton Community Theatre. Their first attempt at classical theatre was the January 2006 production of Romeo and Juliet, directed by Brad Speck. The film follows two actors (through observational shooting) - Kevin Wickersham, a waiter who is trying theatre for the first time, and Jeffrey Johnson, a theatre college student trying Shakespeare for the first time - as they relate to a process and community that is new to them.