Filmmaking MFA Track

A Collaborative With the Film Studies Department

The Graduate MFA degree in film studies is a filmmaking track integrated into the Art and Art History MFA program in much the same way as the tracks in painting and drawing, ceramics, sculpture, media arts, the IAP, and printmaking. The filmmaking track prepares students for professional artistic careers in filmmaking from the perspective of innovative image making. The aim of the MFA Film program is to aid in the advancement of the practice and understanding of art, with the emphasis on the moving image and its role in this advancement. The MFA will, therefore, prepare our graduates to assume creative leadership roles in filmmaking.

The interdisciplinary nature of our MFA program allows graduate students to work in various areas, in addition to their area of specialization. The MFA guidelines include a second area of the student's choice as a requirement. The thesis project is two-fold, involving the student's creative work, displayed at the MFA exhibition, and a written thesis that eventually goes to our library.

Admissions

The students entering the specialization in filmmaking are selected on the basis of their artistic achievement in moving image art and their skills and competency demonstrated by their admissions portfolio. Successful applicants are expected to clearly articulate their goals and objectives for graduate study. For for information, see Application Information and MFA Degree Requirements.

Prerequisites

The following are required for admission to the graduate program:

• Bachelor's degree from an approved college or school of art with a minimum grade point average of 2.75.
• Minimum of 34 credit hours of acceptable work in art; 12 credits in fine arts history is preferred.
• Submission of a film or other examples representing creative work. Electronic media students should submit a portfolio of creative work to include video and/or audiotapes, film, etc., as appropriate (especially for documentation of performance and/or installations) for screening by the electronic media committee.

Faculty

Ernesto Acevedo-Munoz, Associate Professor
Melinda Barlow, Associate Professor
Daniel Boord, Professor and Director of the Film Studies Program
Clark Farmer, Assistant Professor
Suranjan Ganguly, Associate Professor
James Palmer, Professor
Jennifer Peterson, Assistant Professor
Philip Solomon, Professor and Associate Chair
Travis Wilkerson, Assistant Professor
Donald Yannacito, Senior Instructor

Courses

ARTF 5000 Film/Theatre Practicum
ARTF 5003 Film and Fiction
ARTF 5010 Topics in Film studies
ARTF 5015 Advanced Digital Postproduction
ARTF 5023 Topics in International Cinema
ARTF 5030 Visiting Filmmakers Seminar
ARTF 5105 Advanced Screenwriting
ARTF 5453 Elective Affinities: Avant-Guard Film & Other Arts
ARTF 5500 Advanced Filmmaking
ARTF 5600 Creative Digital Cinematography
ARTF 5004 Film Theory
ARTF 5013 Film, Photography and Modernism
ARTF 5024 Advanced Research Seminar
ARTF 5604 Colloquium in Film Aesthetics