2024 – NMD 100

Task 10: Record a Soundscape 2026

In today’s media-saturated environment, listening can be a lost art. This exercise will familiarize you with some basic digital audio editing, but also require you to step outside your routine to pay attention to the world around you. Find a place, ideally outdoors, where you can stand or sit away from screens and other distractions. Using your phone’s Voice Memo app or another audio capture device, record 5 minutes of ambient sound. You must not check your phone, talk to others, or do anything but listen during this uninterrupted period. (Five minutes may not seem like a long time, but if you’re used to multitasking it can seem like an eternity!) Transfer the recording from your phone to your computer.

Task 11: Generate music with AI 2026

Instructions for Option A: Compare AI and human music Pick one of your favorite music genres, such as trap, folk, country, etc.💡 It’s better to be choose a rather specific style, rather than a generic category like Pop or Classical. Now choose a musical work composed and played by a human that you think exemplifies the best traits of this genre.⚠️ You must be able to find a publicly accessible recording of this song that does not require a login, such as Soundcloud, YouTube or a standalone audio file (eg, MP3) on your harddrive.⚠️ Others cannot listen to a Spotify track without logging in, so don’t use Spotify. Now find an AI tool that generates music. Create a free account

Task 12a: Dig into a digital medium, part 1 2026

Introduction This assignment encourages you to learn more about a digital medium that we touched on earlier in the course. You may choose to explore this medium with pre-AI digital methods, or use generative AI, or use both methods and compare the two. For this initial stage, you’ll just complete a row in the “Dig Deeper” tab of this course’s Class Sheet. It will require some research but no actual media production. Fields to complete Fields to complete include: Medium Choose among: 3D models, Virtual Reality, and Augmented Reality Animation (2D or 3D) Audio (soundscape or music) Gameplay and game programming Research paper Storytelling with text and images Still images (photography or generated illustrations) Video Web and graphic design You

Task 12b: Dig into a medium with AI, part 2 2026

Goal: explore your own interests So far your learning has been determined by your instructors, but this is your chance to experiment with an aspect of new media that interests you most. To ensure you get a chance to explore what you’re truly interested in, you will submit this assignment as an individual. However, you’ll have opportunities in class to compare notes with classmates interested in the same media. Focus: one creative medium, with or without AI While you will write a reflection about your experience, your focus should be on the process of producing digital assets according to methods you researched in your answer to Task 12a. As explained in that task, you may choose create works with AI,

Story Cliché Exercise: sample result

Featured cliché: “Silly Squall, bringing a sword to a gunfight…” No matter what timeframe the game is set in — past, present, or future — the main hero and his antagonist will both use a sword for a weapon. (Therefore, you can identify your antagonist pretty easily right from the start of the game just by looking for the other guy who uses a sword.) These swords will be far more powerful than any gun and often capable of distance attacks . — Console RPG Clichés Example: Star Wars—A New Hope The iconic first movie in the Star Wars franchise features a variety of dazzling technologies of almost unimaginable scale and power, but still features a showdown with suped-up swords

Break a Story Cliché: sample result

Featured cliché: “Silly Squall, bringing a sword to a gunfight…” No matter what timeframe the game is set in — past, present, or future — the main hero and his antagonist will both use a sword for a weapon. (Therefore, you can identify your antagonist pretty easily right from the start of the game just by looking for the other guy who uses a sword.) These swords will be far more powerful than any gun and often capable of distance attacks. — Console RPG Clichés Counterexample: Raiders of the Lost Ark In this scene, Indiana Jones is looking for his friend who has been abducted by enemies. When faced with a perilous sword fight, Indy finds a quick way out of

Task 5: Mary Gonzalez (sample post)

Description I recorded a bird in the rain. I never saw it but I could clearly hear its song above the background. Only after playing back the recording did I notice the occasional sound of a raindrop falling on my mic. Edited audio file Hidden photo Click for recording location

Tag: 2024