ABOUT FILM STUDIES
WELCOME
Welcome to the Interdepartmental Program in Film Studies at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. Since its inception in 1991, Film Studies has become a dynamic center of interdepartmental and interdisciplinary activity. With active participation from a solid core of faculty members representing fifteen departments from the College of Humanities and Fine Arts, the School of Behavioral and Social Sciences, and the School of Education, the Program offers both an Undergraduate and a Graduate Certificate in Film Studies.
Programs
The Undergraduate Certificate Program enrolls over 250 undergraduate students from twenty-eight different majors, with over a thousand students successfully completing the program since 1991. The Program has received national recognition from independent sources such as the Eastman-Kodak Corporation (1993, 1995, and 1999) for "academic excellence in support of the future generation of filmmakers." The fall of 2008 saw the inauguration of the Graduate Certificate Program, with students from a broad range of disciplines in the humanities and social sciences accepted into the program and doctoral students graduating with the certificate.
Our graduates, both those earning the undergraduate certificate in film studies and those with the graduate certificate, go on to distinguish themselves as scholars, artists, and professionals in the demanding and competitive areas of film and video. Recently, members of our faculty have received grants from foundations such as the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Massachusetts Foundation for the Humanities, the Getty Foundation and AMC Cinemas, as well as numerous Faculty Research Grants, Distinguished Teaching Awards, and other distinctions.
Film Activities and Resources
The Interdepartmental Program in Film Studies engages in a variety of film and video-related activities that benefit students and the larger academic community, including:
- Coordination and description of film courses on campus and the five colleges, offering approximately 80 courses at UMass and 70-80 at the other 4 colleges per year
- Regular film and video screenings
- Speakers Series colloquia and retrospectives on the work of international filmmakers and videographers
- Availability of filmmaking equipment and facilites for teaching and research on campus
- The Massachusetts Multicultural Film Festival held in the spring semester
- The Michael S. Roif Award in Film Studies: a competitive annual prize awarded to students enrolled in the Undergraduate Certificate Program whose film, video, or moving-image-media work demonstrates exceptional creativity and accomplishment
- A current resource archive of videocassettes and journals, reference materials on film and video programs, institutes, and other educational opportunities in the U.S. and Canada, internships, practica, film festivals and student screenwriting, film and video competitions
We welcome comments, suggestions and questions about the Program and our website. Please e-mail us at filmstudies@hfa.umass.edu
