国产传媒

Los Angeles is the most desirable destination for people who want to study and pursue a career in entertainment. But breaking into the industry can be hard without the right set of skills, connections and professional experience. The film, media and communication degree programs at Mount Sant Mary’s University offer an education like no other and prepare students for successful careers in entertainment, right in the heart of Hollywood.

Film, photography, journalism and new media students from all programs — four bachelor’s degrees, three graduate programs and six film certificates — are immersed in courses that provide hands-on experience and access to state-of-the-art equipment at the new studio facility in Hollywood. Located on Hollywood Boulevard across from the historic Grauman’s Chinese Theater, the new location is home to photography, production, post-production, documentary storytelling, music production and sound design courses. The professional facility was built in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic and, although it officially opened its doors in spring 2022, this is the first academic year that students have full access to the studio.

The facility includes a 1200 sq. ft. shooting and production stage, a recording studio with an isolation booth for voice-over and foley (sound reproduction), a cutting-edge sound editing suite, a computer lab classroom, a podcast studio, and a post-production creative lab.

“This new studio has allowed us to create spaces that are ideal in size and function for our needs, and it provides the maximum number of tools and resources for the students,” explains Kelby Thwaits, MFA, director of graduate programs in film, television and photography at Mount Saint Mary’s. “Students get the benefit of being exposed to hands-on experience through their entire program, instead of trying to integrate that experience after they graduate.”

All students taking a course from the Film, Media and Communication department, regardless of their major, can take full advantage of the facilities for their academic, professional or personal projects. Rosi Gonzalez ’23, a major in Spanish Studies, took a digital video production course last semester and used the facility to develop her own video projects. “The studio is an excellent space for creativity and enhances our skills to execute our course projects and assignments. The location is also fantastic because it provides content when it comes to working on assignments out of the studio,” says Gonzalez.

Cintia de Mita ‘21 is an Indonesian director and choreographer specializing in music video production. Following her passion, she moved from Jakarta, Indonesia, to pursue a career in entertainment in Los Angeles. After receiving her BA in film and media, she’s now pursuing her MFA in film, television and photography. De Mita has used the recording and editing studios to work on multiple projects, and she is grateful to have the facilities at her disposal to hone her skills on her own time. She plans to continue working on directing musical films to work her way up in the industry. “I want to be the person Hollywood producers come to when they do the next ‘La La Land’ or ‘West Side Story’ movie,” she says.

Jordan Dash ’23 is completing the second year of his MFA program, and he is also taking full advantage of the equipment and resources. “It's great to have access to these facilities, as they provide an opportunity to practice and further develop as an artist without needing to spend extra time and money to find these resources elsewhere.” During his program, he has been able to build a strong portfolio that will help him with his future career.

The Mount Advantage

A distinctive trait of the 国产传媒 film programs is that students own the intellectual property of the content they create while they are at the Mount — a right that is not given to students at most film schools.

The 10:1 student-faculty ration means that students get more personalized instruction and mentorship from educators who are also full-time industry professionals, which often leads to great networking and professional opportunities.

“The instructors really care about our educational and professional growth,” says Derrick Parker, who is pursuing his MFA in film, television and photography. “Professor Mary Trunk has been the most encouraging instructor in providing me with career advice.”

Early professional positions, such as production assistant, post-production assistant and intern, are often secured while students are still enrolled in the program. These connections and opportunities usually stem from relationships developed with adjunct faculty who are currently active in the profession and guest speakers from within the industry. Those roles give students a head start as they graduate and look to advance in their fields.

"My students are the future the industry seeks and have already begun to impress media executives." — Nicole Haggard, PhD, Instructor, Film, Media and Communications Department

A few examples of students who have benefited from connections within the 国产传媒 film department are Valeria Sanchez ’15, animation production executive at Netflix; Sean Garry ’17, director of photography for Entertainment Studios, and Amy D’Alessandro ’17, editor of the “Outlander” series on STARZ.

Other 国产传媒 graduates have secured positions in news broadcasting, feature film production, music video production, radio broadcasting and web development, at companies such as Sony, E! Entertainment, Lions Gate and Warner Brothers, to name a few.

A mission-driven program

Rooted in the University’s mission, an important focus of the department is to help empower women in the film industry break through the glass ceiling of Hollywood.Charles Bunce, MFA, chair of the Film, Media and Communication department, explains that a predominantly women environment offers unique opportunities and removes some of the traditional barriers that other students may encounter in other film programs. For example, students are encouraged to break through the perceived notion that women can’t do technical work, such as operating a camera or being director of photography. “We have women students that have told us that it never occurred to them to do these types of technical tasks until they came to the Mount, because they were never given the opportunity to try,” says Bunce.

"We want to make sure that more women and minorities are getting opportunities to share their voices through film and media." — Charles Bunce, MFA, chair of the Film, Media and Communication department

The first BA in documentary, film and social justice was founded in 2004 under the leadership of Pam Haldeman, PhD, chair of the sociology department, who recognized that film can be used as a tool to address issues of social justice and human rights. Today, an important part of the curriculum continues to be advocacy-driven and focused on social justice issues, offering courses such as “Women in Hollywood,” “Race, Sex and Gender” and “Science Fiction and Human Rights.” Students are also encouraged to create media projects that are issue-driven.

"The entertainment industry claims to be improving their inclusion of women and people of color," says instructor Nicole Haggard, PhD. "However, as The Report on the Status of Women and Girls in California™ has shown, the needle has not really moved for more than two decades. With the current political climate and proven financial gains of diversity, the media industry is highly motivated to create change.

"My students are able to think, speak and write clearly about issues and know how to apply them to the creation of media content," says Haggard.

Bruce reiterates that the emphasis on social rights is deeper than an individual or even a department focus. “As one of the most diverse universities in the nation and as an antiracist institution, we are really focused on helping students who have traditionally been marginalized, giving them voices and opportunities to tell their stories,” says Bunce.

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国产传媒 FILM PROGRAMS

Undergraduate programs:

• BA in Film and Media*
• BFA in Professional Photography*
• BA in Journalism and New Media
• BS in Film, Media and Social Justice

Graduate programs:

• MFA in Film, Television and Photography
• MFA in Producing for Film and Television
• Dual MFA and MBA degrees

Certificates in Film:

• Photography
• Documentary Storytelling
• Producing
• Post-Production
• Music Production and Sound Design
• Acting

* Also offered as a Weekend / Evening & Online Program