Press Release Photo ASU to offer Film and Media degree program

Tempe, AZ – Arizona State University is initiating a Bachelor of Arts degree program in Film with study concentrations in both film and media production and film and media studies. This new degree program, which will be fully operational in fall 2006, recognizes both a long-standing and clearly articulated need by students and the importance of linking to the West Coast film industry.

The multidisciplinary B.A. in Film will be offered by the Herberger College of Fine Arts and the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences and will include a shared core of classes in each. There will be two distinctly different concentrations: a Film and Media Studies concentration provided by the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, which began this fall, and a Film and Media Production concentration provided by the Herberger College Department of Theatre. That program will begin in fall, 2006.

The digital revolution and broadening media industry offer significant career opportunities.

“ASU film students now will be able to enter the workplace with a sophisticated grasp of national, popular and new media,” explained Linda Essig, chair of the Herberger College Department of Theatre. “The production concentration will train undergraduate students for careers in the entertainment industry as screenwriters, directors, cinematographers, editors and producers.”

The curriculum in both colleges will provide students with the high level of visual literacy necessary to understand and actively contribute to the media-saturated world in which they live and work.

Interest in developing a film degree program at ASU has been growing over the past few years. The ASU Filmmakers Association, a student film production group on the ASU Tempe campus, has more than 200 members.

To emphasize the importance of the program, Herberger College is proposing that its Department of Theatre be reorganized as the School of Theatre and Film. That proposed change must be adopted by Arizona Board of Regents and is expected to be submitted this fall.

Examples of classes in the Film and Media Production concentration include: Principles of Dramatic Analysis; Directing for Film; Sex and Violence in Film and Television (Ethics in Entertainment); and Screenwriting and Film Post-Production.

The Herberger College of Fine Arts Department of Theatre provides a comprehensive range of courses in performance and directing; design and production; new work development; theatre and performance studies; film; and theatre for youth. Its Theatre for Youth program is nationally ranked in the top three and the creative writing/playwriting program is ranked 15th among public institutions by U.S.News & World Report. To learn more about the Department of Theatre, visit http://theatre.asu.edu.

Media Contact:
Mica Matsoff
(480) 965-0478
Mica.Matsoff@asu.edu