Students at Northwestern University in Qatar (NU-Q) are being introduced to technical aspects of entertainment media by three visiting faculty members from Northwestern’s Radio/TV/Film Department. 
The course, Media Performance Technologies, is being presented in three parts, all unified around the common theme of live media performance. 
“NU-Q’s programmes and curriculum are complemented by the knowledge and resources of its home campus in the U S,” said Everette E Dennis, dean and CEO at NU-Q. 
“Our cross-campus collaboration efforts have made this course possible and will have reciprocal academic benefits for both schools.” 
The tripartite course augments NU-Q’s other entertainment media offerings in documentary and narrative film as well as screenwriting and acting. “The new course responds to student requests to cover important topics that are not part of the school’s regular course offerings,” said Dennis.
With topics ranging from live video performance to strategies for sound and music as well the use of alternate screens, NU-Q students will “benefit from three master teachers who are steeped in entertainment industries,” according to dean Dennis.
The first section, taught by Prof Eric Patrick introduces students to live video performance through software for creating live video mixes that can be performed in different settings, including the veejay culture where projection mapping is projected onto various complex surfaces, along with the creation and curation of motion graphics. Patrick is an associate professor at Northwestern and teaches courses in animation and data visualisation. 
A second five-week module will be led by Northwestern lecturer Stephan More and will focus on strategies and software for the live creation and performance of electronic sound and music. Topics covered will include sampling, beat programming, basic audio effects manipulation and creation, basic algorithmic composition, live audio production concepts, performance techniques, and collaborative performance. 
The last section of the course will be taught by Chaz Evans. During this section, students will explore the relationship between screens, the spaces around screens, and human performance. 
Evans will also teach students to use a range of creative approaches to initiate playful situations of live performance. 
Evans is also a lecturer at Northwestern’s School of Communication, where he teaches software, performance, and histories of art and technology.

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