Asynchronous Academy

Following a Theme

Department
ENGLISH

Following a Theme: From Page to Screen

The Art of the Adaptation

Being a great communicator involves more than just speaking clearly; it’s about understanding the "DNA" of a message. For centuries, directors and actors have taken Shakespeare’s Macbeth and reinterpreted it for their own times. Whether it is a gritty film set in modern-day Hamilton or a traditional stage play in Stratford, the themes remain the same, but the techniques change.

In this assignment, you will become the director. You will track a specific theme through the play and experiment with how to communicate that theme to a modern audience using both classic and digital tools.

Step 1: Research with AI

Since Macbeth is a complex text, you will use an AI assistant (like Gemini) as your "Dramaturg" (a professional research consultant for plays).

  • Identify Themes: Ask your AI to identify the major themes in Macbeth (e.g., ambition, guilt, fate vs. free will, or the supernatural).
  • Track Development: Once you find a theme that interests you, ask the AI to show you how that theme develops from the beginning to the end of the play.
  • Analyse Techniques: Look for specific scenes. Then, search YouTube for different performances of those scenes. Notice the writing techniques (like rhyme or foreshadowing) and the vocal techniques (like pacing and tone) the actors use.

Step 2: The Production

Your goal is to create a video (or series of clips) that traces your chosen theme through the play.

  • Creative Freedom: You don't need a cast of thousands! Use friends, record yourself playing multiple roles, or even use "low-fi" options like sock puppets or drawings on toothpicks.
  • The Goal: Aim for 5 to 7 minutes of total footage. Focus on demonstrating the techniques you identified in Step 1.
  • Polish with Canva: Use your Canva account to add simple titles that identify which act and scene we are watching, and perhaps some background music to set the mood. It doesn't have to be Hollywood—it just has to be intentional!

Step 3: The Director’s Reflection

Record a separate video (or a screencast) where you "talk shop" about your creative choices:

  • The "Why": What specific strategies did you use in your production to make the theme clear to your audience?
  • The Growth Loop: Tell me one thing you will start doing, one thing you will stop doing, and one thing you will keep doing in your future video projects.
  • The Toolkit: Which strategies from this unit helped you the most when breaking down the difficult language of the play?

Assessment

Pre-Submission

Before you submit, please complete the Pre-Submission Self-Assessment.

What to Turn In

  • 📤
    Pre-Submission Self-Assessment Google Doc
  • 📤

    A Google Doc or Canva Doc containing your script and AI prompts

  • 📤

    Your theme-based production video(s)

  • 📤

    Your reflection video or screencast

Learning Goals

We are learning to:

  • 🎯

    Identify and analyse the effectiveness of significant elements from printed and media texts

  • 🎯

    Present material verbally using a variety of strategies to engage and influence listeners

Success Criteria

I can:

  • ✅

    identify and analyse effective communication strategies from the play and incorporate them into my own creative work

    Expectations Covered: OC1, MS1
  • ✅

    analyse how oral and media texts use specific techniques to communicate themes to an audience

    Expectations Covered: OC1, MS2
  • ✅

    explain and justify my communication choices and identify clear next steps for my growth as a creator

    Expectations Covered: OC3, MS4

Rubric

Category Level 4 Level 3 Level 2 Level 1
Knowledge/Understanding Identifies a wide and sophisticated range of techniques used to present written material orally Identifies a clear range of techniques used to present written material orally Often identifies techniques used to present written material orally Sometimes identifies techniques used to present written material orally
Thinking/Inquiring Provides an exceptionally insightful analysis of communication strategies from both written and video texts Provides an effective analysis of communication strategies from both written and video texts Provides a basic analysis of communication strategies from written and video texts Provides a limited analysis of communication strategies
Application Integrates identified strategies very effectively to enhance the impact of the production Integrates identified strategies effectively to support the production Integrates identified strategies with some success into the work Integrates identified strategies with limited effectiveness
Communication Incorporates identified strategies into oral communication with a high degree of professional polish and clarity Successfully incorporates identified strategies into oral communication Incorporates identified strategies into communication with some clarity Sometimes incorporates strategies into communication with limited success
Knowledge/Understanding
Level 4

Identifies a wide and sophisticated range of techniques used to present written material orally

Level 3

Identifies a clear range of techniques used to present written material orally

Level 2

Often identifies techniques used to present written material orally

Level 1

Sometimes identifies techniques used to present written material orally

Thinking/Inquiring
Level 4

Provides an exceptionally insightful analysis of communication strategies from both written and video texts

Level 3

Provides an effective analysis of communication strategies from both written and video texts

Level 2

Provides a basic analysis of communication strategies from written and video texts

Level 1

Provides a limited analysis of communication strategies

Application
Level 4

Integrates identified strategies very effectively to enhance the impact of the production

Level 3

Integrates identified strategies effectively to support the production

Level 2

Integrates identified strategies with some success into the work

Level 1

Integrates identified strategies with limited effectiveness

Communication
Level 4

Incorporates identified strategies into oral communication with a high degree of professional polish and clarity

Level 3

Successfully incorporates identified strategies into oral communication

Level 2

Incorporates identified strategies into communication with some clarity

Level 1

Sometimes incorporates strategies into communication with limited success