Visualizing Resistance: Experimental Illustration and Motion Graphics

In this experimental illustration and motion class, students will design an animated and web-based narrative to retell the story of the first documented anti-slavery rebellion which took place in 1521 at a Dominican Republic sugar plantation. Working from a provided script, students will begin with illustrated responses and storyboards before producing a collaborative website incorporating motion graphics, animation, information design, and sound to convey the historical, emotional, and social impacts of this uprising. Throughout the semester, students will have access to experts from the CCNY Dominican Studies Institute and will collaborate with Sonic Arts students in sound design, dialogue editing, and audio mixing. The collaborative project, in remembrance of the rebellion’s 500th anniversary, will bring this forgotten event to a wider audience and public consciousness. Students’ work will be featured on the CUNY Dominican Studies Institute’s website, First Blacks in the Americas / Los Primeros Negros en Las Américas, an internationally recognized and one-of-a-kind digital site, also the product of a collaboration among experts, students, and others. This Special Topics class is in partnership with the CCNY Dominican Studies Institute. Prerequisites: ART 39528 (2D Animation Principles) or ART 39560 (Digital Video 1) and ART 39540 (Web Design 1). Instructor permission is required for students not meeting the prerequisites.

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