Capstone Syllabus

• Ship the Capstone: Design, build, and present a substantial, public-ready work (or MVP) by the end of Winter quarter, with documentation suitable for portfolio and exhibition.
• Develop an Iterative, Industry-Literate Process: Students will explore various research, ideation and production methodologies to develop their own personalized approach to creative project development, adapting techniques that best fit their project goals and process. In the process they'll learn both the practices and the terminology/expectations of creative industries
• Create a Detailed Project Plan: By the end of the Autumn quarter, students will have a comprehensive, actionable plan that outlines the design, scope, timeline and execution strategy for their capstone project which will be completed by the end of the Winter quarter
• Communicate and Advocate: Students will refine the language around their project goals and objectives, gaining the ability to effectively pitch and communicate their ideas to target audiences and stakeholders.

The ultimate goal this year is the completion and release (ship, exhibit, publish, perform, etc) of your Capstone Project, everything we do the next two quarters in this sequence will be in service of that goal. To that end, there will be four documents which you will need to produce as early as you are ready (no later than the end of the Autumn quarter), a couple of which you will be regularly revising throughout both quarters, these include:

• A Creative Brief is a core document that guides both you and any collaborators or stakeholders, ensuring clarity in the purpose, audience, and conceptual direction of your work. It's less about execution and more about setting the conceptual groundwork for your creative process.
• The Design Doc is a detailed plan which describes how your software, game, installation or other media experience works. It translates the Creative Brief's intent into concrete notes with diagrams and checklists that a collaborator (and yourself) could prototype from. It's a living document (updated alongside prototypes) with clear success criteria you can test for. Keep your writing tight, your diagrams detailed and your checklists comprehensive.
• The Production Plan is your execution roadmap: what you’ll ship, when, and with which resources. It complements the Design Doc by translating your concepts/designs into a feasible plan with dated milestones and iterative sprints with scheduled production time, test sessions, and analysis. Treat it as a living document to keep scope aligned with time, resources, facilities, and budget. Just as you might imagine a creative collaborator as the audience for your Design Doc (even if you're working solo), imagine a project manager when writing this one.
• Your Pitch Deck is a concise, visual narrative used to win support, but before you ask for help, your prospective patrons should understand what the project is, who it's for, why it matters now, what you've got planned and what you've accomplished so far (the proof it works). You'll have the opportunity to pitch your work to a panel of MADD faculty week 9 of the Autumn quarter with the chance to be awared a micro-grant.

Capstone does not have a traditional class structure, where we meet at the same time every week for lectures or workshops. While there will be key dates (see below) where we will meet as a group in the designated classroom, a large portion of "class time" will be spent testing prototypes and having 1-on-1 advising meetings.

In-Person Class Meetings

MADD Faculty Panel Pitches

MADD Expo

Sprints (prototypes and test sessions)

We will be developing our capstones using an interative design process, this means we'll be creating and testing prototypes in "sprints" throughout the next two quarters which will iteratively evolve into our final capstone. While everyone's timelines will be different, as a general recommendation aim to schedule ~5 of sprints over the next two quarters, each will end with a testable prototype shared in some sort of test session (play test, critique, focus group, etc) which you will be responsible for scheduling and organizing.

For some, your peers in class may not be representative of your target audience, but for many of us they will. For this reason it's required that you volenteer to attend as many of your peers test sessions as you can (attend a minimum of 11 sessions). In order to avoid scheduling conflicts it's recommended that you schedule test sessions during our designated class time:

1-on-1 Advising Meetings

Throughout the start of the Autumn quarter you will be producing 3 key documents, the Creative Brief, Design Doc, and Production Plan. You must schedule a meeting with me to discuss each document after completing and submitting the first version of each so we can review these in person (or over zoom).

These are living documents, meaning you will be revising them throughout the process. Each revision requires a re-submission on canvas so that I can re-review it for approval. In these instances I may request edits asynchronously (via comments on the doc) and in some cases I will request that you schedule a 1-on-1 meeting (when a comment does not suffice). You can schedule as many additional meetings during my office hours as you'd like (pending availbility) using thet same link

Methdologies (Autumn)

• class participation (25%): attend class sessions weeks 1-5, schedule/attend your 3 document review meetings, participate in at least 3 peer test sessions.
• documents (40%): complete a full draft of all 4 documents (Creative Brief, Design Doc, Production Plan and Pitch Deck)
• iterative design (10%): complete at least 1 sprint, this includes completing your first prototype and the scheduling of a corresponding test session.
• pitch panel (25%): present your pitch deck to the MADD faculty panel

Production (Winter)

• class participation (20%): schedule/attend document review meetings (if/when requested), participate in at least 8 peer test sessions.
• min 2 sprints (20%): complete at least 2 sprints which should include iterative prototypes and scheduling corresponding test sessions (this does not include any final sprint culminating in the final deliverables).
• document revisions (10%): Design Doc and Production Plan should be regularly updated and versioned as you iteratively develop your project (each revision submitted for review)
• final deliverable (25%): submit your final deliverables (details will vary for each project) and corresponding reflection (self-evaluation).
• release (25%): publicly release your capstone, this can mean exhibiting it at the MADD Expo and/or other more appropriate channels/context (details will vary for each project)

A Safe && Welcoming Space

We expect our classrooms and the discord server to be safe spaces for all opinions and ideas to be discussed openly and respectfully. Of course, we may have uncomfortable conversations because that is the nature of learning; however, we will not tolerate hatred toward another individual. We are all here to learn and must be kind to each other while thinking critically about the discussed subjects.

Accessibility Statement

The university is committed to creating an accessible and inclusive learning environment consistent with university policy and federal and state law. Please let us know if you experience any barriers to learning so we can work with you to ensure you have equal opportunity to participate fully in this course. If you are a student with a disability, or think you may have a disability, and need accommodations please contact Student Disability Services at 773.702.6000 or disabilities@uchicago.edu. If you are already registered with Student Disability Services, please deliver your Accommodation Letter as early as possible in the quarter so we can discuss your approved accommodations and needs in this course.

Title IX

Our school is committed to fostering a safe, productive learning environment. Title IX and our school policy prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex. Sexual misconduct—including harassment, domestic and dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking—is also prohibited at our school. Our school encourages anyone experiencing sexual misconduct to talk to someone about what happened, so they can get the support they need and our school can respond appropriately. If you wish to speak confidentially about an incident of sexual misconduct, want more information about filing a report, or have questions about school policies and procedures, please contact our Title IX Coordinator, which can be found on our school's website. Our school is legally obligated to investigate reports of sexual misconduct, and therefore it cannot guarantee the confidentiality of a report, but it will consider a request for confidentiality and respect it to the extent possible. As teachers, we are also required by our school to report incidents of sexual misconduct and thus cannot guarantee confidentiality. We must provide our Title IX coordinator with relevant details such as the names of those involved in the incident.

Academic Honesty

Academic integrity is a cornerstone of our institution. Plagiarism and cheating are offenses that undercut the distinctive moral and intellectual character of the University, we take them very seriously. In the realm of digital art, the boundaries of creativity and appropriation often intersect. Artists leverage appropriation for diverse reasons, be it conceptual, political, or aesthetic. This practice differs from plagiarism through the artist's deliberate intention and intervention. Traditional fair use laws attempt to address appropriation by focusing on two main factors: transformation and parody, satire, or critique. Transformation refers to how the original has been changed or altered, while parody, satire, or critique concerns whether the appropriated material functions in the service of comedy or critique in a way that allows the artist to express their opinions on a specific situation. This legal definition attempts to balance the creative liberties of artists with responsible usage.

As Artificial Intelligence (AI) continues to rise in prominence, it becomes increasingly vital to address its multifaceted impact on academic integrity. Advancements in machine learning, particularly in media and language generation, are often driven by training data collected without explicit consent. This underscores the importance of responsible, critical, and creative engagement with automated tools and AI-generated content. In order to learn how these tools will transform society, we encourage students to openly experiment with AI.

Our goal is to nurture creative expression while preserving ethical standards. We encourage responsible use of these tools while adhering to ethical standards and giving proper credit to sources of inspiration, ideas, concepts, and/or content that is incorporated into your work. Whether utilizing artificially intelligent, naturally intelligent, or intentionally unintelligent means, we expect all members of our academic community to uphold these principles and rise to this challenge.