Course coordinator
Associate Professor Eve Klein
Course overview
- Study period
- Semester 1, 2025 (24/02/2025 - 21/06/2025)
- Study level
- Undergraduate
- Location
- St Lucia
- Attendance mode
- In Person
- Units
- 2
- Administrative campus
- St Lucia
- Coordinating unit
- Music School
To write impactful music for film, TV and games, composers need to understand the conventions of music genres on screen. This course provides a practical and theoretical foundation for crafting music for action, adventure, romance, thrillers, drama and fantasy genres. Each week students will work on crafting music for a different screen example, learning the musical ingredients for different genres and how to vary them to enhance screen action. This course will focus on ideas of melody, harmony, tempo. instrumentation and orchestration for short screen sequences. Lectures will unpack screen music by composers like John Williams, Koji Kondo, Wendy Carlos, Hildur Guðnadóttir, Alan Silvestri, Hans Zimmer, Lena Raine, Yoko Shimomura, and Amanda Brown. The course assumes students will have some familiarity with music composition, music notation and music technology.
Course requirements
Prerequisites
You'll need to complete the following courses before enrolling in this one:
MUSC1010
Course contact
Course staff
Lecturer
Associate Professor Eve Klein
Tutor
Associate Professor Eve Klein
Mr Caleb Colledge
Timetable
The timetable for this course is available on the UQ Public Timetable.
Aims and outcomes
In this course, students will learn how to listen and interpret music from various commercial screen genres and composers and demonstrate their understanding of screen music genres by composing music for screen sequences. Students will also demonstrate their understanding of music technology for composing screen music and gain experience evaluating screen music composed by themselves and others.
Learning outcomes
After successfully completing this course you should be able to:
LO1.
Understand the conventions of composing music for action, adventure, romance, thrillers, drama and fantasy screen genres.
LO2.
Maintain practical experience composing music for action, adventure, romance, thrillers, drama and fantasy screen genres.
LO3.
Be familiar with genre music by notable screen composers.
LO4.
Understand how to plan and execute a screen composition using music technology software like digital audio workstations and music notation software.
Assessment
Assessment summary
| Category | Assessment task | Weight | Due date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Creative Production/ Exhibition, Participation/ Student contribution, Presentation |
Weekly Exercises
|
40% |
Submit files before the start of your scheduled tutorial class as per the schedule in Blackboard. |
| Quiz |
In-Class Quiz
|
30% |
Completed in your Week 11 tutorial. |
| Creative Production/ Exhibition, Presentation, Project |
Major Composition Project and Presentation
|
30% |
Submit files before the start of your scheduled Week 13 tutorial class as per the details in Blackboard. |
A hurdle is an assessment requirement that must be satisfied in order to receive a specific grade for the course. Check the assessment details for more information about hurdle requirements.
Assessment details
Weekly Exercises
- Hurdle
- In-person
- Mode
- Activity/ Performance, Oral, Product/ Artefact/ Multimedia
- Category
- Creative Production/ Exhibition, Participation/ Student contribution, Presentation
- Weight
- 40%
- Due date
Submit files before the start of your scheduled tutorial class as per the schedule in Blackboard.
- Other conditions
- Student specific, Time limited, Peer assessment factor.
Task description
Complete eight short composition exercises for different screen genres and present them in class for peer feedback. Tasks must be completed independently at home, with files submitted to Blackboard before your weekly tutorial.
The exercises take place between Weeks 3 and 11. See Blackboard for details.
NB: This assessment incorporates peer feedback into its marking constituting 50% of marks awarded for each weekly exercise. Peer marks will be moderated and adjusted by your tutor to ensure fairness of feedback received. Your tutor will award the remaining 50% of marks for each weekly exercise.
Hurdle requirements
Students must pass this assessment to pass the course.Submission guidelines
You must present your work in class to receive marks for this assessment. Files must be submitted before the start of your scheduled tutorial class.
Deferral or extension
You may be able to apply for an extension.
The maximum extension allowed is 28 days. Extensions are given in multiples of 24 hours.
Due to the presentation requirements, no extensions will be granted beyond Week 12 of the semester.
Extension requests must be received on or before the due date. No extensions will be granted afterwards.
Late submission
You will receive a mark of 0 if this assessment is submitted late.
In-Class Quiz
- Identity Verified
- In-person
- Mode
- Activity/ Performance, Written
- Category
- Quiz
- Weight
- 30%
- Due date
Completed in your Week 11 tutorial.
Task description
During your Week 11 tutorial, you complete an in-class quiz lasting 60 minutes.
The quiz will test your knowledge of the course lectures, readings and tutorial activities up to and including content for Week 11.
Submission guidelines
Submission is during class time, in person.
Deferral or extension
You may be able to apply for an extension.
The maximum extension allowed is 28 days. Extensions are given in multiples of 24 hours.
Extension requests must be received on or before the due date. No extensions will be granted afterwards.
Late submission
You will receive a mark of 0 if this assessment is submitted late.
Major Composition Project and Presentation
- Hurdle
- In-person
- Mode
- Activity/ Performance, Oral, Product/ Artefact/ Multimedia
- Category
- Creative Production/ Exhibition, Presentation, Project
- Weight
- 30%
- Due date
Submit files before the start of your scheduled Week 13 tutorial class as per the details in Blackboard.
- Other conditions
- Student specific, Peer assessment factor, Longitudinal.
Task description
For the Major Composition Project, you will create original music for a game, film, or television sequence, working independently outside of class. You will then present your composition informally to your tutorial group for feedback. See Blackboard for requirements.
NB: This assessment incorporates peer feedback into its marking constituting 25% of marks awarded. Peer marks will be moderated and adjusted by your tutor to ensure fairness of feedback received. Your tutor will award the remaining 75% of marks.
Hurdle requirements
Students must pass this assessment to pass the course.Submission guidelines
You must present your work in class to receive marks for this assessment. Files must be submitted before the start of your scheduled tutorial class.
Deferral or extension
You may be able to apply for an extension.
The maximum extension allowed is 28 days. Extensions are given in multiples of 24 hours.
Extension requests must be received on or before the due date. No extensions will be granted afterwards.
Late submission
You will receive a mark of 0 if this assessment is submitted late.
Course grading
Full criteria for each grade is available in the Assessment Procedure.
| Grade | Cut off Percent | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 1 (Low Fail) | 1 - |
Absence of evidence of achievement of course learning outcomes. Course grade description: Work does not satisfy any basic requirements of this course. |
| 2 (Fail) | 25 - |
Minimal evidence of achievement of course learning outcomes. Course grade description: Work does not satisfy all basic requirements of this course. |
| 3 (Marginal Fail) | 45 - |
Demonstrated evidence of developing achievement of course learning outcomes Course grade description: Work demonstrates an adequate grasp of fundamental concepts and skills as required in assessment activities, although it also shows significant room for improvement in fluency and accuracy. Understanding of concepts, while evident, lacks sophistication. |
| 4 (Pass) | 50 - |
Demonstrated evidence of functional achievement of course learning outcomes. Course grade description: Work demonstrates an adequate grasp of fundamental concepts and skills as required in assessment activities, although it also shows significant room for improvement in fluency and accuracy. Understanding of concepts, while evident, lacks sophistication. |
| 5 (Credit) | 65 - |
Demonstrated evidence of proficient achievement of course learning outcomes. Course grade description: Work demonstrates a commendable understanding of main concepts, and acquired skills are used appropriately in contextual tasks. There is still room for improvement in a number of areas. |
| 6 (Distinction) | 75 - |
Demonstrated evidence of advanced achievement of course learning outcomes. Course grade description: Work demonstrates insight into deeper aspects of the subject and proficiency in all associated skills which are integrated fully in writing and performance and other tasks. |
| 7 (High Distinction) | 85 - |
Demonstrated evidence of exceptional achievement of course learning outcomes. Course grade description: Work demonstrates an exceptional understanding and a high level of proficiency in all aspects of the subject and an imaginative flair in writing and aural tasks. |
Additional course grading information
Marking criteria and/or marking rubrics are available in the ‘Assessment’ folder in Blackboard for this course.
Supplementary assessment
Supplementary assessment is available for this course.
Additional assessment information
You must follow assessment instructions in Blackboard, including any stated requirements for your work to be marked. All assessments in this course contain components which require you to attend and participate in your weekly tutorial class. Assessments cannot be marked without this in-class component.
This course evaluates student’s abilities, skills and knowledge without the aid of Artificial Intelligence (AI). Students are advised that the use of AI technologies to develop responses is strictly prohibited and may constitute student misconduct under the Student Code of Conduct.
Learning resources
You'll need the following resources to successfully complete the course. We've indicated below if you need a personal copy of the reading materials or your own item.
Library resources
Find the required and recommended resources for this course on the UQ Library website.
Other course materials
If we've listed something under further requirement, you'll need to provide your own.
Required
| Item | Description | Further Requirement |
|---|---|---|
| Stereo Headphones | Please bring your own headphones to your weekly tutorial. | own item needed |
Learning activities
The learning activities for this course are outlined below. Learn more about the learning outcomes that apply to this course.
Filter activity type by
Please select
| Learning period | Activity type | Topic |
|---|---|---|
Multiple weeks From Week 1 To Week 13 |
Lecture |
Lecture Series You attend a weekly Lecture which develops your conceptual understanding of sound and music production. Your attendance is a requirement of this course. NB: There is no lecture during Project Week. See Blackboard for details. |
Tutorial |
Tutorials NB: There is no lecture during Project Week. See Blackboard for details. |
Additional learning activity information
Tutorials and lectures do not run during Project Week. See Blackboard for details.
Policies and procedures
University policies and procedures apply to all aspects of student life. As a UQ student, you must comply with University-wide and program-specific requirements, including the:
- Student Code of Conduct Policy
- Student Integrity and Misconduct Policy and Procedure
- Assessment Procedure
- Examinations Procedure
- Reasonable Adjustments for Students Policy and Procedure
Learn more about UQ policies on my.UQ and the Policy and Procedure Library.