Author: Laura Muñoz
Peer-Reviewers: Kathryn McClain and James Fleury
Website Developer: Kristen Figgins

Assignment Overview

Summary: The final project for this course asked the students to create audiovisual adaptations of some aspect of the novel. For this assignment, “audiovisual” simply required students to pair sound and video in any combination they preferred, without requiring them to script and record a full short film. The goal for the students was to showcase both their understanding of the novel and their understanding of the process of filmmaking by applying the latter to demonstrate the former. Given the complexity of creating audiovisual material, this assignment was highly scaffolded with several in-class work sessions and various types of feedback. As was the case with the Adaptation Exercises assignment, students took on this project in an interesting variety of ways, including:

• Filming a gender-swapped ballet variation from the Don Quixote ballet
• Creating an animation of a windmill with Tim Burton aesthetics and audio from Orson Welles’s unfinished Quixote film
• Adapting a scene from the novel with a new framework

Again, the sophistication of the audiovisual projects varied between students, yet even with projects that were less successful in execution, it was clear when assessing their interpretations that students had gained enough insight into the novel to transfer their understanding into their chosen medium. One thing that was surprising in reading the reflections was how proud students were of the work they had done, even when they recognized the flaws in their final adaptations. Focusing on only one or two elements of the adaptation process deepened their understanding of the movement from one medium to another, and that, in addition to a newfound love of the characters in the novel, were the biggest takeaways from the students across the board.

Assignment Description for Students:

Each student will prepare and present an original short audiovisual adaptation inspired by Don Quixote de la Mancha. The video should be between 2-5 minutes in length and should engage a theme, topic, episode, character etc. inspired by Parts I and/or II of Don Quixote. Each student will also submit any process materials (script, storyboard, scene breakdown) for their video, and a 1-2 page explanation of the production: the concept and argument (thesis) of the video, the goals, messages, strategies, and techniques involved in the adaptation, as well as the relationship to Cervantes’ novel. The video projects may be narrative, documentary, experimental, or animated.  While each student is responsible for his/her own short video, other individuals may be recruited to assist in the video production process. You will not be judged on the production values of the video but rather on how effectively you engage course materials.

Instructions:

1. Project Proposal: Write a short description of your idea for the final project. Address the following questions as you think through your ideas:
   1. What aspect of the novel do you want to recreate/reimagine/remix? (character; scene; theme/topic; setting)
   2. What kind of audiovisual project do you want to create? (short film; single scene; TikTok; book/movie trailer; mockumentary style interview; video essay; etc.)
   3. If you’re creating original fiction, what is your world and setting? (past, present, future; characters; scenes)
   4. If you’re creating a realistic video, what/who is your subject?

Submit to Discussion Forum April 1^st

2. Project Presentation: Students will present on the progress of their audiovisual projects, including the following information:
   1. What aspect of the novel inspired your adaptation?
   2. How does this adapted work showcase your interpretation?
   3. How is the process going? 

In-class Presentation Week 15

3. Final Submission: 
   1. Video: Create a shareable link to your project and submit to Blackboard. 
   2. Explanation: Write a short description (1-2 pages) of your project which explains the following: What aspect of the novel inspired your adaptation? How does this adapted work showcase your interpretation? What was the process of creation?

Submit to Blackboard May 9^th

Author Bio

Laura Muñoz is an Assistant Professor of Spanish at Colorado Mesa University whose teaching spans introductory language instruction, literary survey courses for medieval and early modern Spanish literature, and Spanish for the professions, especially translation and interpreting. Her research focuses on sixteenth and seventeenth-century Spanish theater with specializations in bilingual theater, translation studies, and adaptation studies. As a member of the Diversifying the Classics initiative at UCLA she has collaborated with theater artists on pedagogical materials introducing K-12 students to early modern Spanish literature, creating everything from theater games about Spanish history to a 12 week curriculum for high school students to work with Guillén de Castro’s The Force of Habit [La fuerza de la costumbre]. These pedagogical materials are available as open-access resources as part of Classics in the Classroom.

About the Adaptation Today Pedagogy Series

Adaptation Today is a free, accessible resource for all academics and students who are interested in adaptation, especially graduate students, contingent scholars, and early career researchers. The pedagogy series creates a space of community and resource-sharing, with rolling deadlines for submission. See our CFP page to see how you can submit your own syllabi, lesson plans, assessments, and blog posts for publication.