Winter 2012
Shiro Akiyioshi
Office: CDM 455
Phone: 312.362.5934
Summary of the course
This course is one of the two course sequence which the students participating in the CDM Japan Study Abroad program should take. Undergraduate students register for this course (IT 398) in the Fall and another course (ANI 390) in the Winter, for a total of 8 credits. IT 398 satisfies the Junior Year Experiential Learning domain requirement. Graduate students register for only this course (IT 599) in the Fall for 4 credit hours.
The CDM Japan Study Abroad offers students a unique opportunity to learn/observe first-hand the practices of Japanese game and animation development. A 2-week trip to Tokyo and Kyoto/Osaka takes students to visit several gaming and animation companies in Japan. Through touring the studios and meeting with the developers and managers, students will learn the characteristics and practices of Japanese gaming and animation industries. Throughout the trip, students learn about the culture of Japan and how it is reflected in Japanese computer/video games and animation films.
The program is led by Noriko Tomuro (the instructor for IT 398/599) and Shiro Akiyoshi (the instructor for ANI 390).
Textbooks and reading list
There are no required textbooks for this course. Suggested reading materials will be announced later.
Prerequisites
At least one course on gaming or animation. Recommended courses are GAM 224 or 226 (Intro to Game Design), ANI 105 (Intro to Visual Design) and GAM/IT 228 (Ethics in Computer Games and Cinema).
Course Structure
ANI 390 is the post-trip session (4 meetings). In addition to a trip journal, every student creates a final project. The post-trip meetings will be discussions of experiences in the trip and presentations of the final projects.
Students who are in IT 599 will have to meet once after the trip to present his/her final project.
Grading:
Attendance and Participation: 20%
Trip Journal: 20%
Final Project: 60%
Schedule:
1/13 Class Meeting #1
Discussion of our experiences
Discussion final project
1/20 Final project proposal submission (COLWEB)
You will receive feedback on COLWEB
1/27 Finalize your final project idea
You will be assigned a faculty advisor (Akiyoshi, Tomuro, or Zagal)
2/10 Class Meeting #2
Group critique on final project in progress
Exchanging photos, slide show, etc.
2/24 Optional Meeting
3/9 Class Meeting #3
Final Project Presentation #1
3/16 Class Meeting #4
Final Project Presentation #2