Description
The Department of Film & Moving Image educates its students to be adaptable lifelong artists, craftspeople, and learners who are capable of maintaining focus, resilience, self-control, and motivation through both success and failure. Graduates must be able to navigate the ever-changing technological landscape while developing and maintaining an original and personal aesthetic vision and be able to effectively communicate this vision to others. The Department focuses on teaching a wide array of equipment and software to complement its commitment to teaching film and moving image theory, history and technique.
Graduates of the department emerge as flexible and capable practitioners of filmmaking – be it on film, digital media, or the next emerging format – who can work both alone as self-starters or collaboratively in groups, and be directors, writers, producers, cinematographers, editors, motion graphics artists, sound designers, some combination of all of these or a specialist of their own design.
Film & Moving Image students demonstrate the skills acquired in their chosen area of expertise by creating, beginning in their second year, a portfolio of work for distribution to a variety of current media outlets, and in their final year, a capstone project.
Cinematography/Editing Track Description
The Cinematography/Editing Track provides additional focused study in the art, craft, technologies and changing practices of moving-image capturing and editing. Students learn the skills necessary to enter into careers as professional cinematographers and/or editors.
Producing/Writing Track Description
The Producing/Writing Track provides additional focused study in the art, craft, technologies and changing practices of moving-image production and writing. Students learn the skills necessary to enter into careers as professional producers and/or writers.
Outcomes
Upon completion of the Bachelor of Science in Film and Moving Image, graduates will be able to:
- Create films and other moving image projects, using current crafts and emerging technologies and grounded in a strong sense of personal style.
- Write film and moving image proposals and screenplays.
- Think and write critically about film and moving image history, aesthetics, global perspectives and production techniques.
- Navigate the business of film and moving image production and distribution.
Cinematography/Editing Track Outcomes
The cinematography/editing track provides additional focused study in the art, craft, technologies and changing practices of moving-image capturing and editing. Students learn the skills necessary to enter into careers as professional cinematographers and/or editors.
Upon completion of the film & moving image cinematography/editing track, graduates will be able to:
- Operate professional cameras with proficiency.
- Demonstrate the ability to capture moving images in studio and field environments using both ambient and artificial light.
- Produce professional-quality moving-image content using current editing and motion-graphics software.
- Employ industry-standard moving-image terminology when presenting, discussing and critiquing their work.
- Work independently and/or as part of a crew to achieve clearly articulated artistic outcomes.
- Produce industry-standard deliverables using current and emerging production and post-production processes.
Producing/Writing Track Outcomes
The producing/writing track provides additional focused study in the art, craft, technologies and changing practices of moving-image production and writing. Students learn the skills necessary to enter into careers as professional producers and/or writers. Upon completion of the film & moving image producing/writing track, graduates will be able to:
- Write film and television scripts according to industry-standard formats.
- Analyze and organize the story and financial needs of scripts using professional terminology.
- Evaluate and critique moving-image storytelling, in a variety of genres, considering professional requirements
- Work independently and/or as part of a crew to create efficiently-run productions, achieving clearly articulated artistic and distribution outcomes.
- Develop effective fundraising and marketing strategies for film and moving-image projects, applying appropriate legal and financial frameworks.
Policies
Students must earn a minimum GPA of 2.00 in the major. The lowest acceptable grade is a "C" in all courses listed in the catalog under "Program Requirements" for the major, including both courses in the major and SEE courses required by the major. No student, regardless of major, will be permitted to advance to the next course without earning a grade of "C" or better in the prerequisite course(s). When a grade below "C" is earned in a major course, the student must repeat that course.
In their second and third years, students participate in portfolio reviews. At the end of the second year, faculty review portfolios. In the third year, Film and Moving Image Advisory Board members review portfolios.
Requirements
The courses listed below are required for completion of the bachelor’s degree in film and moving image. Students must also complete the requirements for the Stevenson Educational Experience (SEE). Specific pre- and co-requisites for each course are listed in the course descriptions.
Major Requirements (all students):
| FYS 100 | First Year Seminar | 1 credit |
| FMI 101 | Cinema I: Storytelling | 3 credits |
| FMI 102 | Cinema II: Continuity | 3 credits |
| FMI 201 | Cinematography I: Black & White | 3 credits |
| FMI 202 | Cinematography II: Color | 3 credits |
| FMI 204 | Broadcast Production | 3 credits |
| FMI 211 | Basic Screenwriting | 3 credits |
| FMI 221 | Art and Craft of Editing I | 3 credits |
| FMI 222 | Art and Craft of Editing II | 3 credits |
| FMI 231 | Film and Moving Image History | 3 credits |
| FMI 290 | Internship Preparation | 1 credit |
| FMI 301 | Documentary/Promo Production | 3 credits |
| FMI 302 | Narrative Production | 3 credits |
| FMI 304 | Directing the Actor | 3 credits |
| FMI 331 | Special Topics in Moving-Image Media | 3 credits |
| FMI 341 | Sound Design | 3 credits |
| FMI 401 | Senior Project: Pre-Production | 3 credits |
| FMI 402 | Senior Project: Production | 3 credits |
| GDES 125 | Fundamentals of Digital Media | 3 credits |
| SOD 390 | Internship | Variable credits |
Students must also complete the courses for one of the tracks listed below.
Cinematography/Editing Track - 15 credits
Producing/Writing Track - 15 credits
| FMI 311 | Advanced Screenwriting | 3 credits |
| FMI 315 | Writing About Film and Media | 3 credits |
| FMI 352 | Grant Writing | 3 credits |
| FMI 355 | The Business of Filmmaking | 3 credits |
| FMI 451 | Film Distribution and Intellectual Property | 3 credits |
Suggested Course Sequence
2024-25 SCS FMI Cinematography and Editing
2024-25 SCS FMI Producing and Writing
Minor in Film and Moving Image
The minor in film and moving image requires successful completion of a minimum of six courses and 18 credits with an FMI prefix. SOD 395 can count as one of the courses for the minor. All course prerequisites must be met to be eligible to take the selected course for a minor. Please see an academic advisor for more information. General guidelines regarding minors may be found in the Minors section of the catalog.
Course Descriptions
See Film and Moving Image Course Descriptions