UFVA Panel Presentation

Helping Students Discover the Central Organizing Principle for their Films: An Empirical Study to Determine Creative Self-Efficacy
Lisa Mills, Ph.D.
Randy Finch, J.D.
University of Central Florida

Research Problems
Too many students are making films that are at best, derivative and at worst, shallow or superficial.
Students do not work hard enough or long enough developing the premise or Central Organizing Principle of their films.
Students do not consider whether their films have something meaningful to say.

Research Questions
What are faculty doing to encourage meaning and creativity?
How can we teach students about film making while encouraging original insights?
Are we enhancing potential or simply providing tools for conformity?

More Research Questions
Is it even possible to teach students to be more creative?
Do exercises exist which give students real experience with the process of original thought?
If so, is it possible to design a study that measures the effectiveness of such creativity exercises?

Background for Our Study
UCF’s narrative and documentary BFA aims to guide students toward the indy film genre and away from the industrial model
This study is supported by UCF’s “Scholarship of Teaching and Learning” program
Lisa Mills teaches documentary film, Randy Finch teaches narrative film. (Both teach in the Entrepreneurial Digital Cinema MFA program as well).

Recent Studies in Film Pedagogy
Jon Stahl (2002) used the Hollywood model to develop his model for a Media Writing course but collected no data to determine its effectiveness
David Franklin (2001) explored the effects of “professor censorship” as creative limitation for student films but collected only anecdotal evidence in his classroom.
Frank Tomasulo (2008) quantified artistic learning outcomes for assessment purposes at FSU

Relevant Studies in Education and Social Psychology
Jean Piaget (educator) connected creativity to the process of discovery
Theresa Amabile (social psychologist) found evidence that intrinsic motivation brought a more creative outcome than extrinsic (reward)
Most educational and psychological studies have been conducted on small children
Creativity in the form of “problem solving” and “critical thinking” has been studied in adult workplaces.

Philosophical Foundations
Aristotle, Kant, Schiller, Jung
The ability to conceptualize the imaginary is the basis of the human creative experience
There is an “unconscious element” that must be harvested in the creative process
There is a psychological need to satisfy the Ego

Lajos Egri
Connected storytelling with “its basis in the creative interpretation of human motives”
A story’s premise can be written in one simple, declarative sentence (Central Organizing Principle)
“Something (main character trait) leads to something (a universal truth realized by the character through the dialectic)”

Methodological Concerns
Discomfort with evaluation of students’ creativity
SOtL requires approval by the Institutional Review Board, thus limiting the kind of data would could collect in small production classes
What could we really measure?

Our Study Design
Create exercises to help students develop their COP
Collect student responses to exercises (immediately following and 24 hours after)
Pretest/Post-test/Control design to test for a significant difference in creative self-efficacy at the beginning and end of the term

We invite you to join us
We need data from a variety of programs and students
We provide you the exercises and student response instruments (we also need control groups who do not receive exercises)
We support your efforts to get the data to us for analysis
We’ll do everything we can to make it easy for you!

Study Timeframe
Early Fall 2009 receive IRB approval
Mid-Late Fall 2009 pilot tests (are we measuring what we think we’re measuring?)
Spring 2010 first data collection series
Fall 2010 second data collection series
Spring 2011 data analysis
Summer 2011 report results at UFVA
Goal is to produce a publishable paper

Contact Information
Lisa Mills (407) 823-3606 lmills@mail.ucf.edu
Randy Finch (407) 823-6111 rfinch@mail.ucf.edu

Experimental Design, Draft 1

Group 1: Doc with exercises (Doc stimulus or DS)
Group 2: Narrative with exercises Narrative stimulus or NS)
Group 3: Doc without exercises (Doc control or DC)
Group 4: Narrative without exercises (Narrative control or NC)


Fall 09: Doc and Narrative control groups (DC1, NC1)
Spring 10: Doc and Narrative stimulus groups (DS1, NS1)
Fall 10: Doc and Narrative control groups (DC2, NC2)
Fall 11: Doc and Narrative stimulus groups (DS2, NS2)

Proposed Locations:
Orlando, Pittsburgh, Utah, North Carolina
We will need letters of support from these institutions for IRB approval


Fall 09 Spring 10 Fall 10 Spring 11
DC1, NC1 DS1, NS1 DC2, NC2 DS2, NS2
Pretest/Post-test Pretest/Post-test Pretest/Post-test Pretest/Post-

Tierney and Farmer Study: CS-E Determinants

Reading the Tierney and Farmer (2002) study on the plane back to Orlando gave me some ideas about setting up our survey instrument. The article explains more about how Bandura’s creativity-specific self-efficacy is different from general self-efficacy. They used Gist and Mitchell’s (1992) model to guide them in the selection of several creative self-efficacy (CS-E) determinants. In their investigation of blue collar and white collar workers they studied both personal and contextual sources. The personal sources of CS-E were job knowledge and job self-efficacy. The two contextual sources of CS-E were supervisor behavior and job complexity. Thus, there were a total four specific independent variables for which they wanted to test. I got to thinking about our study and felt we could study some very similar variables among narrative and documentary students. I have outlined them in the table below:

Items for survey instruments, draft 1.
(7-point Likert scale: strongly disagree, disagree, not sure, agree, strongly agree)

Independent Variable Item

Knowledge/Experience I have directed at least one short narrative (documentary).
Knowledge/Experience I have written at least one short script.
Knowledge/Experience I can define the Central Organizing Principle of a narrative film or documentary.
Knowledge/Experience I could easily explain the relationship between character, conflict and resolution in a narrative film or documentary.

Learning self-efficacy I’ve always done well in school.
Learning self-efficacy I am a good student.
Learning self-efficacy I am confident in my ability to complete my degree.
Learning self-efficacy I am a quick learner.
Learning self-efficacy I work hard and make good grades.
Learning self-efficacy I enjoy learning new things.
Learning self-efficacy I have confidence in my ability to solve problems creatively.

Creative self-efficacy I am good at coming up with new ideas:
Creative self-efficacy I have a lot of good ideas:
Creative self-efficacy I have a good imagination:
Creative self-efficacy In the future, I can write meaningful original stories:

Modeling/Persuasive Teacher My teacher bolsters my confidence in my creative ability.
(add more items from Tierney and Farmer study)

Demographics Age
Demographics Gender
Demographics Course (doc or narrative)
Demographics Status (transfer or 4-year)

Exercise: Does "Personal Connection to COP" Affect Positive Feelings About Future Creativity?

Introduction (provided to both Control Group and Randomly Selected Subject Group)

Lajos Egri believed all good dramatic writing hinges on people and their relationships, which serve to move the story forward and give it life. Egri wrote that character and specifically the changes caused by character were a key part of the human experience. And Egri thought that all dramatic writing required strong characters who were in conflict. Egri went on to say that all successful dramas shared another key trait: They all had a point, a central meaning, they were all organized around one central organizing principle that he called a premise. For Egri, the premise of any work of dramatic literature could be expressed in a single sentence that is a clear statement that suggests character, conflict and resolution.

Here's a recipe for writing a one sentence statement of premise:
1) The first part of what Egri called the premise should represent character. Usually if you think about the protagonist and his or her defining character trait, you have the beginning of a premise. So, if you know your protagonist's defining trait (e.g., honesty, dishonesty, selfishness, ruthlessness, ambition, false pride, or whatever else sets the protagonist into action), try writing a single sentence statement of theme that uses that defining trait as the subject.
2) The second part of the premise (typically the verb in the premise sentence) should indicate where the dramatic conflict will come from. Think about the protagonist’s character and his or her goal and what stands in the way of that goal. For example: If the protagonist is in love and insists on seeing his love, even though forbidden to see his beloved at the risk of death, the second part of the premise might be “defies” as in: Great love defies even death.
If the protagonist is a liar and is caught in a lie, the second part might connect the trait of dishonesty to the result: Dishonesty leads to exposure.
3) The third part of the C.O.P. (the object) should indicate the resolution of the story.

To practice Egri's ideas about writing a premise, today we're going to do an exercise that will require you to analyze the movie we've just seen in class that is thematically about "greed." In Egri's view, a filmmaker making a film about greed needs to know what he or she wants to say about greed. The filmmaker shouldn't just make a film "about greed." According to Egri, the filmmakers needs to know what direction the story will go. For example, a filmmaker might crystallize the premise of their story about greed from a vast world of one sentence statements of theme or premise:
Greed leads to destruction.
Greed leads to loss of love.
Greed leads to isolation.
Greed leads to humiliation.

Exercise:

Answer the following questions considering the movie we've just seen that is about "greed."
Who is the protagonist?
What is the protagonist's goal?
What stands in the way of achieving that goal (what is the source of conflict)?
Write a one-sentence statement of premise.

For our research:

Control group gets no further instruction.

Randomly Selected Subject group gets the additional instructions:

"Egri also recommended that the one sentence statement of theme should be something the creator personally believes.

Do you think the filmmaker of the film selected for today's exercise (a movie about greed) actually PERSONALLY believed the premise, or did they just make a movie about greed that didn't necessarily reflect their personal feelings about greed?

Do you agree with Egri that the best work will result when the premise statement summarizes the theme of the film AND the author's own feelings?

Does it make sense that your work as a filmmaker will be stronger when you PERSONALLY believe in your premise?"

Metric:

Before and after the exercise ask both the Control Group and the Randomly Selected Subjects to Respond to Prompts about Creativity (presented in a Likert Scale fashion). Note: we might actually use some prompts based on Beghetto (2006):

I am good at coming up with new ideas:

I have a lot of good ideas:

I have a good imagination:

In the future, I can write meaningful original stories:


Likert, R. (1932). A Technique for the Measurement of Attitudes, Archives of Psychology, No.140

Beghetto (2006)

see also, Kaufman and Baer (2004)

Exercise Assessment Surveys

I feel strongly these ought to be brief and it would be very interesting to give them twice: immediately following the exercise on paper, and then we could have students complete a "second survey" electronically 24 hours after the exercise. It would be interesting to compare the results. Here are some possible Likert statements:

1). This exercise was fun.
LIKERT CHOICES: (strongly disagree) (disagree) (not sure) (agree) (strongly agree)
2). This exercise was relevant to the course.
3). By completing this exercise, I learned something new.
4). This exercise helped me think differently about my film.
5). This exercise will result in me changing something about my film.

Some Exercises

Couldn't sleep, so typed up these four exercises. Mine are "L1-L4," so Randy yours could be "R1-R4" or however many you would like to consider. Of these four I'm submitting only the first and third are original. The second comes from Rabiger and Randy I believe you've done the fourth one in your classes and I borrowed it after a conversation with you last year (?) It would be very interesting to talk to other teachers about what they do to help their students find focus in their art projects. For example, how does Stella Sung help her composition students narrow down their musical ideas to one major melody or motif?

Exercises, listed in the particular order they will be administered in class during the term. None of these exercises involve work outside of class. All of these are in addition to regular course assignments such as writing a treatment, proposal, screenplay, etc.

L1: Target (2nd class meeting)

Objective: Students understand they will make deliberate choices when constructing their film; that those choices ought to be based on a combination of information and instinct; that each student approaches their film from a different place in their lives; that their peers are important resources upon which they ought to rely for help and guidance; that each film must aim for a central organizing principle and that this COP may be difficult, but not impossible to “target.”

Procedure: Before students enter the classroom the teacher obtains a stack of paper from which the students will be making paper airplanes. The paper sheets should be a variety of colors and sizes. The teacher will also need a chalkboard or erase board for the end of the exercise.
1). Students are asked if they are comfortable where they are seated on this day and given the choice to move to another seat if they would like. They will not be given any other chances to move (they are not told why). Students are asked to pause and think about why they chose this particular location to sit in the classroom.
2). Students are then told they will be making a paper airplane and there are no rules about the object’s size, color, etc. Students are asked to come forward and choose the paper they want for their airplane. As students walk back to their desks they are asked to pause and think about why they chose the particular piece of paper they picked up.
3). Students are then told to make their paper airplane. They are advised that they may ask a classmate for help at any time. Students are asked to pause and think about why they are making the plane in this way. Did someone show them how to do it this way when they were a child? Did they figure it out on their own in their room one day? They should stop and think about how they usually learn the way to do things.
4). When students have all made their planes the teacher then draws a target on the board. The center of the target is labeled as the central organizing principle. At this time the teacher explains what a COP is and its relevance to the course and to the students’ films. This may take 10-30 minutes. At the end of the explanation, students are invited to stand at their desk and try to hit the target with their airplane. The planes fall to the ground in front of the blackboard.
5). Students are asked to think about whether their chances of hitting the target would have been better had they decided to move to a different place in the classroom. They are invited to pick up their planes and move to a different place in the classroom if they think it will improve their chances of hitting the target. They are asked to pause and think about how allowing themselves to move into a different state of mind or workflow could improve their ability to make important choices for their films. They are allowed to throw their planes at the target again.
6). Classroom discussion follows
7). Exercise assessment survey follows

Outcome: Students will have this experience to remember when they are making choices for their films. The act of actually making something and aiming it at a target gives them a different perspective on the filmmaking process and the difficulty/importance of aiming for a COP and getting each scene in the film as close to the COP as possible.

L2: COP Scene Analysis (assigned 4th class meeting)

Objective: Students identify the central organizing principle of the film; they identify and analyze scenes that support or do not support the film’s COP and argue why they do or do not; students identify parts of the film that may or may not be relevant

Procedure: In class, students are shown a film they likely have never seen before, and this film must have a strong central organizing principle. Before the film is screened they are given a blank template “scene analysis” sheet. They are asked to follow the following instructions:

“You are about to see a film that has a definitive central organizing principle. Your first task in watching the film is to identify what you believe this COP to be, and state in the way you have been instructed (____ leads to _____). (Review notes about this from a previous class). In addition to identifying the film’s COP you are to identify and briefly analyze at least 3 scenes in which the COP is supported, either through dialogue, setting, camera angle, etc. Take a look at the scene analysis sheet you’ve been given and use this sheet during the screening to take notes. At the end of the film we will discuss the COP of the film and the notes you have taken.”
Exercise assessment survey follows.

Outcome: Students will be better able to identify the COP in their own films and understand that the more tightly each scene is woven by the COP, the stronger the premise of their film will be.

L3: Character, Conflict, Resolution (Assigned 6th class)

Objective: Students begin to identify the central characters, conflict and resolution of their own films.

Procedure: Students are asked to write an essay about their film during class. The essay will be divided into five parts:
1). Thesis statement (what I am going to write about and why)
2). Character (major traits that drive or motivate)
3). Conflict (nature of the conflict, i.e. man vs man, man vs himself, man vs nature, etc.)
4). Resolution (how the main character changes to prove the premise)
5). Concluding statement (after writing about these things I have learned…)
Students will initially be given one hour to write their essay. They may need more or less. Students will be asked to volunteer to read their essay in class, but this is optional. A brief class discussion may follow each essay.
Exercise assessment survey follows.

Outcome: Students are given the valuable opportunity to spend quiet time in class organizing their thoughts about the C-C-R and COP for their own films. Writing an essay helps them frame their film in these terms. They may discover they know more or less about their film than they thought.

L4: Scene Card Shuffle (to be administered after students have shot about ¼ to 1/3 of their documentary films or after they have a revised, but not final draft of their screenplay in hand)

Objective: Students envision their film structure in a different, more flexible way because they can easily shuffle and move scenes around.

Procedure: Students are given a small stack of lined note cards, with the following instructions:
1). Write your COP in big letters on the first card.
2). Describe your opening scene on one card and your closing scene on another card.
3). Describe any scenes or interviews you have already shot on individual cards (at least three).
4). After you have made your cards, come forward and get tape or push pins. Find a spot on the wall in this classroom and pin or tape your cards onto the wall. The idea is to see how your film is structured, identify what is still missing, and possibly rearrange some of the scenes to make your film work better. You may add scene cards at will, whether they are shot yet or not, written or not.
5). Take a step back from the wall after you’ve done some rearranging. Does your film prove its premise? Do each of your scenes support your central organizing principle?
6). Class discussion follows the exercise.
Exercise assessment survey follows.

Outcome: Students may realize what’s missing or what needs rearranging in their film. Viewing their scenes on note cards that are easy to rearrange may make them feel more free to make script or story changes that lead to better dramatic structure.