FieldYALIT+Lens+2

**17 February, 2011** **Lens 2: A Transmedial Approach __to Monster__, by Walter Dean Myers** __Monster__ by Walter Dean Myers is a perfect book to teach from a transmedial perspective because the story itself is written in a variety of mediums, ranging from a screenplay, complete with camera cues, journal entries, and photos. Considering that much of the novel is already formatted as a screenplay, turning segments of __Monster__ into a video, or a stage production, wouldn’t be much of a stretch. Perhaps in the interest of staying true to the novel, for students to create a video of a scene from the novel, following the camera cues and film direction provided would be the best way to engage with the text in a transmedial format.
 * Susan Field**

Creating a video to illustrate a scene from the novel would give students the opportunity to “get inside” the story and connect with it, and Steve’s character, more personally. The students ‘video-making journey would mirror the journey that Steve went through in doing the same, creating a valuable parallel experience for the students. Though Myers, or should I say, Steve Harmon, already provides the basic blueprint for a video reproduction, there are just the bare essentials of film direction provided (who is speaking, where to direct the camera, lighting, etc.), which gives the students a chance to fill in the rest of the details themselves. Students will have the autonomy to make creative decisions. Whenever decisions have to be made, such as, what an actor should be wearing, what the scenery should look like, what music or special effects would complement the scene, it forces the person, or group of persons in charge, to think more deeply and meaningfully about the text. Making creative decisions about their videos allows students to project what __Monster__ personally means to them: how they feel about it, how they see it, and what they want others to see. Moreover, having the freedom to make decisions about a project gives the students ownership of their work, which is empowering for them as students.

Another positive aspect of the video project is that students will have to work closely with the other students in their group, practicing the dynamics of working in a team to accomplish a common goal. As a teacher, just as we do in our own YA LIT classroom, I’d probably advise the students within each film group to assign roles to each other to ensure that the group works well together in a thorough manner. For each group, there would definitely need to be a director, a videographer (unless they use a tripod) a couple of actors, and someone in charge of artistic details like costumes and props.

Some challenges in translating __Monster__ to video are the logistics. Not everyone knows how to work a video camera well, for one thing. Also, even though my description of the project so far has made it sound like a professional production, I realize that what the video project would essentially be amateur home videos. It can be expected that many aspects of the video will not be as good as they might be if they were professionally done with a big budget, but on the other hand, the home video look would probably fit quite well with __Monster__, considering its raw, rough-around-the- edges qualities. I also understand that the students wouldn’t be able to have real sets, props and costumes, but they can come up with clothes out of their own wardrobes, or from Goodwill, that could add authenticity to their roles. Also, they could paint a mural for a set backdrop, and add a few props that they might be able to scrounge up between them. (It’s amazing what kind of potential props can be found in someone’s attic or basement! Or at a yard sale!)

Throughout the video process, I would have the students keep a journal in which they’d record entries detailing the process from brainstorming to planning and filming. I would be most interested in reading about what scene they chose to recreate from the text and why, what their interpretation of it is, and how they tried to translate that interpretation to film. I’d be interested in knowing their reasons for making certain directorial and creative decisions in their videos, and if they feel that the process helped them to learn something new about __Monster__, or empathize with Steve Harmon more.