Program Description
The Department of Theatre, Dance, and Motion Pictures is devoted exclusively to the training and education of undergraduate students in the areas of dance, motion pictures, and theatre. These programs lead to the Bachelor of Arts and the Bachelor of Fine Arts degrees.
The Department of Theatre, Dance, and Motion Pictures is empowered by the Ohio Revised Code to require particular preliminary training or talent for admission to specific programs, and each of the five B.F.A. degree programs has specific criteria for admission to each level of training. Students who wish to be admitted as majors in Acting, Acting/Musical Theatre, or Dance must successfully pass an audition or interview. The department has an open admissions policy for first-term students wishing to major in the B.A. programs in Theatre Studies and Motion Pictures History, Theory, and Criticism, and the B.F.A. programs in Design/Technology/Stage Management and Motion Pictures Production. Transfer students are admitted into B.F.A. programs on the basis of a successful audition, interview, or portfolio presentation.
Each B.F.A. program has set criteria for selectively retaining students in the programs. These include a requirement that students earn a GPA of at least 2.0 to continue in the B.F.A. programs; most of the programs require a higher minimum GPA for graduation. The policies are spelled out in the curriculum sections of the department web page. Students are required to consult regularly with an academic adviser. All students who return after an absence of three or more consecutive semesters must reapply to the faculty for readmission to the program, and at the discretion of the faculty they may be required to satisfy program requirements in effect at the time of readmission.
Motion Pictures
The program in motion pictures provides a study of film as a fine art. The curriculum offers two options: the Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in theatre with a concentration in Motion Pictures Production and the Bachelor of Arts degree in theatre with a concentration in Motion Pictures History, Theory, and Criticism.
Program Learning Outcomes
- Proficiency in the techniques of motion picture production, including the practice of independent filmmaking.
- Understanding of motion pictures history, theory, and criticism, including the concepts of authorship and genre.
- Understanding of national and international cinemas.
- Knowledge of the trends in the contemporary cinema.
- Knowledge of employment and/or graduate school opportunities.
The B.F.A. Program
The Bachelor of Fine Arts degree is designed to give students pre-professional training for vocations closely related to film and video production, while simultaneously giving them an opportunity to develop their creativity. The B.F.A. program follows an open admission policy for only the first semester; thereafter, students must progress according to department guidelines in order to continue. Prospective motion pictures B.F.A. students must take MP 1310 the fall semester of their freshman year and receive an A or B in order to proceed to any other classes as a major. Students successful in MP 1310 should register for MP 2310 in the spring semester. In order to be eligible to take MP 2320 in the fall semester of sophomore year, students must have completed 24 university credit hours, received a C or higher in MP 2310 , and achieved an overall minimum GPA of 2.25 by the end of freshman year. After completion of the spring semester of the freshman year, prospective B.F.A. students must submit a Sophomore Audition Application and be officially accepted as a film major in order to continue into the sophomore year. Note that a limited number of students will be invited to enroll into the second year and become B.F.A. majors.
At the end of the sophomore year, B.F.A. students must audition successfully for entrance into the junior and senior years of the program. This process, called the Junior Audition, is a comprehensive process involving multiple meetings with faculty and review of all work done in the program. Before students are accepted into the junior year, they must have a minimum 2.5 GPA in all film history/theory classes and a 2.25 overall GPA. Students must also have completed six film history/ theory courses, not including MP 1310 , and including MP 2320 and 2330, and have earned at least 56 credit hours. Students are required to submit original media work for faculty evaluation. To be accepted to the third year, students must show promise of benefitting from continuing education. In their third year, all production students are expected to demonstrate growth in film technique and earn additional credits in film history, theory, and criticism, as well as credits in General Education classes and electives.
Motion Pictures Honors Program
The honors program in motion pictures provides students of superior academic ability with the opportunity to broaden and demonstrate their skills. To earn a degree with honors, students must complete the departmental major requirements, maintain a superior GPA throughout their course of studies, and successfully complete a senior honors project, MP 4990 , sometime in their senior year. To be admitted to the honors program, students must have a cumulative GPA of at least 3.5 in their major and an overall GPA of 3.25. Both B.A. and B.F.A. students should contact the coordinator of the motion pictures area or the department chair for further details.
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