Tales of the Bat
Assignment Description:
Terry Gilliam’s 2014 sci-fi film The Zero Theorem is set in a near-future techno-world where the Batman mythology has spawned The Church of Batman the Redeemer. Though we may not worship at the altar of the Dark Knight, consumers have fostered the resonance of Batman across a wide array of media over the last 75 years. Since we are only scratching the surface of the Batman mythos in our course materials, for this assignment you will research a Batman text and create a five-minute video review of the materials.
Please e-mail me a proposal for the text you want to research as soon as possible. You must receive approval for your project before class on Tuesday, January 20th. No two presentations may be about the same primary text, so it is in your best interest to stake your claims well before the deadline, particularly if you want to report on a well-known text.
Primary texts may include– but are not limited to– graphic novels, films, television series, radio serials, novels, and video games. Any text that offers a narrative about Batman or the Batman mythos is fair game. You must also include quotations from at least two secondary texts (reviews, scholarly articles, adaptations, commentary, etc.).
A successful video presentation will:
- Be uploaded directly to the course Tumblr as an embedded video file before class on Thursday, February 5th.
- Provide a brief overview of the narrative presented in/by the primary text.
- Situate the text within a context. (For instance, if you chose to present on Alan Moore and Brian Bolland’s The Killing Joke, you would want to tell us about the historical context in which the text originally appeared, how it has been received by scholars and critics, and how other texts have responded to it.)
- Offer the perspective/commentary from at least two secondary texts
- Give a brief account of how and why you think this text resonates through the Batman mythos
- Use audio and video editing techniques learned in class workshops to create a dynamic narrative about your source materials
A few suggestions for topics:
- Films: Batman (1966), Batman (1989), Batman Begins (2005), Justice League:War (2014)
- Television: Batman (1966-1968), Gotham (2014-), Super Friends (1973-1986), Batman: The Animated Series (1992-1995), Young Justice (2010-2013)
- Video Games: Lego Batman (2008), Batman: Arkham Asylum (2009), Batman: Arkham City (2011)
- Graphic Novels: Batman: A Death in the Family (Starlin and Aparo), Batman:Knightfall (various), Batman: Black and White (various), Batman: Gotham by Gaslight (Augustyn and Mignola), Batman: Hush (Loeb and Lee), Batman: The Long Halloween (Loeb and Sale), Batman: The Killing Joke (Moore and Bolland), Batman: Arkham Asylum (Morrison and McKean), Batman and Son (Morrison and various)
A sample student video for your consideration:
Your video presentation will be graded according to the following rubric:
| Requirements |
Points |
Comments |
| The video provides a brief, dynamic overview of the narrative presented in the primary text
|
25 | |
| The video offers critical analysis, historical context, or commentary from at least two secondary sources. | 20 | |
| You provide a brief account of how and why you think this text resonates through the Batman mythos
|
20 |
|
| You use audio/video editing techniques learned in class workshops
Expectations: (highlighted elements are present) · Video incorporates audio voice-over · Video uses scrolling effects to present at least five still images · Video uses footage from at least two other video sources · Video is synced to voice-over
|
25 | |
| Speaker in video is clear, precise, and engaging.
|
10 | |
| Total | 100 |