Film & Media Studies Major

As a major in film and media studies, you will critically engage with moving images, whether it be cinematic or televisual. You will engage in an in-depth study of film theory, criticism, and history. Students with an interest in directing or screenwriting may choose to take classes to explore the production side of the medium.

sample courses:

Making Movies

This course introduces the core concepts and skills for producing dramatic narrative film and video, building on the Hollywood paradigm. This course teaches students how films are put together to tell stories, negotiating between the possibilities of cinematic language and the practicalities of working with machines and other people. Students will learn the basics of camera operation, lighting, digital video editing, sound design and recording, casting and directing actors, visual composition and art direction, and production planning and organization. These concepts will be put into practice through a series of exercises culminating in a creative, narrative short digital video.

History of Electronic Media: From Radio to Television to Digital

This course traces the history of electronic media as they have become the dominant source for entertainment and information in contemporary culture, starting with over-the-air broadcasting of radio and television through to cable and the "narrowcasting" achieved by digital technologies. The chief focus of the course will be on electronic media in the US to determine the transformative role they have played in the cultural life of the nation. The course will explore the relationship of the electronic media industries to the American film industry, determining how their interactions with the film industry helped mutually shape the productions of both film and electronic media.

our students have gone on to become:

Talent Agents

Archivists

Broadcasters

Film Critics

Filmmakers

Journalists

Screenwriters

Professors

Lawyers