(180 min.) Why is the color green so important to Alfred Hitchcock's films and why is it used so specifically and sparingly in his films?

Why isn't "sound design" more regularly appreciated for its great artistic potential? Why is sound design regulated to such a "practical" and realistic place in the construction of contemporary cinema? How have master filmmakers like Terrence Malick, Martin Scorsese, Kathryn Bigelow and David Lynch challenged this by using a detailed non-naturalistic orchestration of sound in their films?

What is “metonymy” and why have cinema’s masters worked so hard to establish its use over simply use of “visual metaphors” in cinema?

Why is the production design in Vincente Minnelli's melodramas so much more detailed and creative than his famed musicals?

How has the creative employment of the design elements of cinema enhanced and even singled out the magnificence of the contemporary and diverse cinemas of David Fincher, Todd Haynes, David Cronenberg, the Coen Brothers, Rainer Werner Fassbinder, Roman Polanski and Douglas Sirk?

If cinema constructs meaning primarily through visual and aural signification, why do most emerging filmmakers regulate the artistic influence of the design categories to the sidelines?

In this seminar we'll take a close look at how great filmmakers creatively use the design elements of cinema (color orchestration, sound design, production design, costume design, make-up design etc) to define character and to enrich their story's meanings. Learning how to effectively and creatively employ the primary design elements (even on a severe budget) in your film is an essential (even critical) ingredient to establishing yourself in the crowded independent film arena.

So before you make that next film or even write that next script, take this inspiring, one of a kind seminar in film aesthetics which will help you think more deeply about your images and create an indelible cinema that will certainly help in the advancement of your film career.

Film Consultant Thomas Ethan Harris instructs. Film clips will be used to inspire an open dialogue with the audience. Filmmakers and film lovers welcome!