Barrett, The Honors College Thesis/Creative Project Collection
Barrett, The Honors College at Arizona State University proudly showcases the work of undergraduate honors students by sharing this collection exclusively with the ASU community.
Barrett accepts high performing, academically engaged undergraduate students and works with them in collaboration with all of the other academic units at Arizona State University. All Barrett students complete a thesis or creative project which is an opportunity to explore an intellectual interest and produce an original piece of scholarly research. The thesis or creative project is supervised and defended in front of a faculty committee. Students are able to engage with professors who are nationally recognized in their fields and committed to working with honors students. Completing a Barrett thesis or creative project is an opportunity for undergraduate honors students to contribute to the ASU academic community in a meaningful way.
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- Creators: Maday, Gregory
Description
This paper discusses the parameters of my creative project, which utilizes a staged reading of scenes from John Cariani’s Almost, Maine as a means of investigating the representation of queer individuals and relationships in theatre, film, and television. The first section provides background information on Almost, Maine itself, while the second section explains the details of the project and what to expect on the day of my defense. The next section explains my purpose in developing a project centralized around queer representation, and the last two sections are personal reflections of the both my growth throughout the creative process, and the final product: the performance and talkback.
ContributorsThompson, Savannah Blake (Author) / Maday, Gregory (Thesis director) / Rohd, Michael (Committee member) / Dean, Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts (Contributor) / School of Film, Dance and Theatre (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2019-05
Description
BETTA, a narrative music video short film was produced by Kaitlyn Baucke and directed by June Hucko, and written by both filmmakers. By employing the knowledge and experiences gained in their academic careers, they were able to create a compelling yet experimental film that challenges the idea of whether or not people are simply compilations of their memories, and experiences. Sparked by an interest in music media, this project is in the visual style of a music video, but with a 10-minute narrative. This film lightheartedly tells the story of a young woman whose most cherished memories are always accompanied by a meal of tacos. Each memory is memorialized through the collection and personalization of receipts from the taco shop. After collecting hundreds and hundreds of these receipts, she reaches a turning point in her life where she finds herself overrun by her past memories, both positive and negative. She is faced with a decision in which she must choose to dwell in her past, or leave behind memories in order to move forward. The film is scored entirely by original songs of local, ASU affiliated musicians and bands. Producing this film required an extensive pre-production phase of writing, revisions, casting, securing crew, locations, equipment, funding, scheduling, and more. Setting deadlines, sticking to budget, and ensuring smooth production was key to success. From inception, to pre-production, to reflection, this project has allowed the filmmakers to experience evolution, challenges, failures, and immense creative development.
ContributorsBaucke, Kaitlyn (Co-author) / Hucko, Jennifer (June) (Co-author) / Maday, Gregory (Thesis director) / Klucsarits, Philip (Committee member) / School of Film, Dance and Theatre (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2018-12
Description
For the creative project portion of the Barrett Honors Thesis Requirement, “The Author’s Daughter: A Series Concept and Pilot Pitch” was developed to further explore a television series idea based upon a senior capstone film. The story follows a young Author who, in a future where fictional content is censored and illegal, has the power to create and bring stories to life in another realm, known as the Narrative. What’s more, she can bring these characters and stories to life in Reality, though many dangerous consequences face her because of it.
The creative project explores the concept much more in depth than its capstone counterpart; where as the capstone film serves as a concept, prequel film to the series, for the creative project the pilot script was developed, spanning over twice the length of the first script. What’s more, along with the pilot a pitch bible was developed, outlining series and franchise potential as well as an in-depth look at characters, rules of the world, and formatting styles. Finally along with the written portion came the pitch, where the series was presented to a “buyer” in this case the jury of the defense, and paired with marketing and distribution strategies to help simulate an industry style pitch and packaging demonstration.
The purpose of the honors creative project was to explore the conceptual challenges of world and series creation, as well as the execution of the serialized narrative. What’s more the project’s purpose was to research the execution of selling an idea and the business side of television, specifically in terms of the sales, marketing, and distribution of a series idea.
The creative project explores the concept much more in depth than its capstone counterpart; where as the capstone film serves as a concept, prequel film to the series, for the creative project the pilot script was developed, spanning over twice the length of the first script. What’s more, along with the pilot a pitch bible was developed, outlining series and franchise potential as well as an in-depth look at characters, rules of the world, and formatting styles. Finally along with the written portion came the pitch, where the series was presented to a “buyer” in this case the jury of the defense, and paired with marketing and distribution strategies to help simulate an industry style pitch and packaging demonstration.
The purpose of the honors creative project was to explore the conceptual challenges of world and series creation, as well as the execution of the serialized narrative. What’s more the project’s purpose was to research the execution of selling an idea and the business side of television, specifically in terms of the sales, marketing, and distribution of a series idea.
ContributorsOwens, Krystina Diane (Author) / Maday, Gregory (Thesis director) / Scott, Jason (Committee member) / School of Film, Dance and Theatre (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2019-05
Description
The thesis I completed for Barrett, The Honors College was created as a method to develop and strengthen my long-form storytelling abilities. The goal of my creative project was to create the first draft of a stage musical and mount it in a reading or workshop of some kind. I reached this goal and then some with the help of my directors and two wonderful Barrett students that helped me along the way: Mallory Smith and Ethan Fox. We completed the first draft of the show and then held a read-through with a full cast of actors, with almost twenty people attending.
Then, I went back and used some of the feedback from the read-through to write another draft of the show. However, along the way, I took a few major creative turns and ended up with a story that was similar to the first draft in many ways but was ultimately a larger divergence than I originally anticipated. This was a blessing, as it forced me to re-evaluate multiple creative decisions I’d made and gave me two long-form stories with great potential to work with rather than just one. It also presented multiple opportunities to combine and enhance both ideas in order to write one strong story using both concepts. The beauty of this Creative Project is that my portfolio is much stronger for having completed it and I now have multiple paths to choose from to move this project forward in the future.
In the defense, I discussed the grueling process of actually writing these scripts, hosting a read-through as well as the possibilities for both stories in the future. We also discussed the possibility of taking these scripts and pitching them to companies like Samuel French and in hopes that they’re sold, licensed and performed in perpetuity. I’m grateful to my directors, Professors Jason Scott and Gregory Maday, for always pushing me and cutting me slack when I fell behind and to my friends and the wonderful support the Honors College has given me throughout the last four years.
Then, I went back and used some of the feedback from the read-through to write another draft of the show. However, along the way, I took a few major creative turns and ended up with a story that was similar to the first draft in many ways but was ultimately a larger divergence than I originally anticipated. This was a blessing, as it forced me to re-evaluate multiple creative decisions I’d made and gave me two long-form stories with great potential to work with rather than just one. It also presented multiple opportunities to combine and enhance both ideas in order to write one strong story using both concepts. The beauty of this Creative Project is that my portfolio is much stronger for having completed it and I now have multiple paths to choose from to move this project forward in the future.
In the defense, I discussed the grueling process of actually writing these scripts, hosting a read-through as well as the possibilities for both stories in the future. We also discussed the possibility of taking these scripts and pitching them to companies like Samuel French and in hopes that they’re sold, licensed and performed in perpetuity. I’m grateful to my directors, Professors Jason Scott and Gregory Maday, for always pushing me and cutting me slack when I fell behind and to my friends and the wonderful support the Honors College has given me throughout the last four years.
ContributorsWright, Andrew John (Author) / Scott, Jason (Thesis director) / Maday, Gregory (Committee member) / School of Film, Dance and Theatre (Contributor) / Dean, W.P. Carey School of Business (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2019-05
Description
Educated is a single camera comedy developed as an adaptation of my and my friend Mazhar’s actual friendship through college into a 30 minute single-camera comedy show that attempts to portray a representative college experience in a way that has not been done before on television. I created a multi-faceted survey about the state of current content set on a college campus as well as elements of what respondents define as representative of a true college experience. My survey featured sections assessing demographic information, collegiate involvement, ability to recall films and TV shows set on a college campus, evaluation of the reality level of existing college films and TV shows, and viewership preferences. Those that took the survey believed that college as currently presented in film and TV is inaccurate and focuses on aspects like party culture over the true complexity of life at a university. In addition, respondents could recall significantly fewer college TV shows than films, and consistently rated that they did not feel represented by the university-set content that they had dealt with. Based upon this information and my own experiences throughout my four years at a university, I developed the concept for my show and wrote concept paragraphs for three 10-episode seasons of the show, with each season representing one academic year at the university. The show focuses equally on the lives of Mazhar and Eli, two high school best friends going to their state university and capturing their experiences with a diverse cast of friends, romantic interests, and professors.
ContributorsBliman, Eli Joshua (Author) / Maday, Gregory (Thesis director) / Sopha, Matthew (Committee member) / Department of Marketing (Contributor) / School of Film, Dance and Theatre (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2019-05
Description
In June of 2016, the United Kingdom held a referendum for its citizens to decide whether to remain a part of the European Union or take their leave. The vote was close but ultimately the U.K. decided to leave, triggering the two-year process of negotiations that would shape the U.K.’s departure (Brexit). The question of what will become of the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland is heavy with implications for the national identity of people living on either side of the border, and this makes it one of the more pressing concerns in Brexit discourse. This research analyzes how national identity is used as a rhetorical tactic in media to influence and persuade readers to vote in accordance with the author’s political goals. It does so by evaluating how borders shape national identity and analyzing newspaper articles from the two highest circulating Northern Irish daily newspapers (The Irish News and the Belfast Telegraph) during the week leading up to the June 23rd, 2016 referendum. In analyzing news articles relating to the Irish border issue of Brexit from The Irish News and the Belfast Telegraph during the time frame of June 16th-23rd, 2016, four analytical categories of how identity-related rhetoric was used were discovered: fear, self-interest, Irish Nationalism, and a negative association of the past. Further, it was hypothesized and confirmed the political leanings of the papers influenced which type of rhetorical tactic was used. In the broad realm of Brexit and media related discussion, this research could help strengthen understanding of how traditional media uses national identity to persuade readers to and influence voting behavior in the midst of such a divisive referendum.
Key Words: Brexit, Irish border, national identity, rhetoric, newspapers
Key Words: Brexit, Irish border, national identity, rhetoric, newspapers
ContributorsCaldwell, Tara (Author) / O'Flaherty, Katherine (Thesis director) / Ripley, Charles (Committee member) / School of Social Transformation (Contributor) / School of Politics and Global Studies (Contributor, Contributor, Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2019-05
Description
This creative piece aims to blend theatre writing with my father’s career of professional golf. Research was conducted through interviews, scholarly articles, and conversations between my thesis director and second reader. In the search for information and answers, I found the connection between my written style and personal experiences. This is important to me as a writer and any other aspiring writer, because it helps analyze strengths and create a more impactful story.
This entire creative piece is a testament to pursue writing in the film and theatre industry, and acts as a student’s own personal take on how creative writing can be developed, analyzed, and improved. The scope of this project was to better understand modern writing and playwrights by creating my own piece. The general findings in this project demonstrated the high difficulty that storytelling demands. Specifically, linking dialogue in plays to meaningful character development.
As such, a major conclusion indicates that masterful script writing falls on each character being fully developed so that they may move through scenes and the plot with the proper emotional stakes.
This entire creative piece is a testament to pursue writing in the film and theatre industry, and acts as a student’s own personal take on how creative writing can be developed, analyzed, and improved. The scope of this project was to better understand modern writing and playwrights by creating my own piece. The general findings in this project demonstrated the high difficulty that storytelling demands. Specifically, linking dialogue in plays to meaningful character development.
As such, a major conclusion indicates that masterful script writing falls on each character being fully developed so that they may move through scenes and the plot with the proper emotional stakes.
ContributorsCarter, Race (Author) / Maday, Gregory (Thesis director) / Messersmith, Randy (Committee member) / Department of Management and Entrepreneurship (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2019-05
Description
“The Evil Box spilled, and someone has to clean it up. That someone rolls into a nothing town in search of an Evil driving possessed Mortals to violence. In saving the target of the attack, she finds a team of wannabe do-gooders intent on saving the world – or, at least, keeping it from becoming worse. Armed with apparent eons of experience, cynicism, and a not insignificant amount of Divine Intervention, they set out to contain the mythological Evils and their detriment to the world.”
In a world not unlike our own, Pandora opened the world to malicious Evils. With the world, as it is, the last thing it needs is additional evil. Enter: a group of people who are not responsible for the situation. Their only stake in the game is that it affects the world in which they live, and they’d really like to save it.
Following in the tradition of great female-led television dramas and rife with questions about the difference between culpability and responsibility, this modern continuation of the myth of Pandora –an attempt at a generational allegory - finds its form in a 60-minute single camera drama.
This Barrett, The Honors College Creative Thesis Project, consists of the first draft of a pilot screenplay, a corresponding “bible” (a compilation of information regarding the concept, story, and characters so as to facilitate its writing), and a reflection on the process undergone.
In a world not unlike our own, Pandora opened the world to malicious Evils. With the world, as it is, the last thing it needs is additional evil. Enter: a group of people who are not responsible for the situation. Their only stake in the game is that it affects the world in which they live, and they’d really like to save it.
Following in the tradition of great female-led television dramas and rife with questions about the difference between culpability and responsibility, this modern continuation of the myth of Pandora –an attempt at a generational allegory - finds its form in a 60-minute single camera drama.
This Barrett, The Honors College Creative Thesis Project, consists of the first draft of a pilot screenplay, a corresponding “bible” (a compilation of information regarding the concept, story, and characters so as to facilitate its writing), and a reflection on the process undergone.
ContributorsGeelhood, Tessa Renee (Author) / Maday, Gregory (Thesis director) / Bernstein, Gregory (Committee member) / School of Film, Dance and Theatre (Contributor) / Department of English (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2019-05