Film B.A.

Overview

The Film Bachelor of Arts is a restricted major that focuses on building the production and collaborative skills necessary to succeed in film, video and adjacent content creation industries. It offers skills-based technical courses a well as film theory, history and criticism. The aim of the major is to give students a broad, in-depth knowledge of these areas, with a focus on building a comprehensive understanding of media and entertainment technologies. Students in the Film BA are encouraged to work as crew on as many student film projects as their schedules permit as these repetitions are the best way to hone skills that will be necessary in the working world.

The initial years of the program provide GEP and introductory film courses. In the later years, the program concentrates on specific film practices such as editing, color, sound, staging, cinematography, narrative form, theory and historical perspectives. Courses are sequenced and coordinated, enabling students to build on their learning in a progressive and coherent manner.

As part of their degree requirements, Film BA students are required to complete a minor or an equivalent 18-credit Area of Concentration outside of the Film Department. This is an opportunity to explore subject matter that could be complimentary to the major or completely different, both of which can expand individual skills and knowledge, making the student more valuable in the workplace after graduation.

Admission Process

All students interested in majoring in Film at UCF start as Film BA-Pending students. Students apply through Undergraduate Admissions and select Film BA-Pending as their prospective major.

Students in Film BA-Pending take four gateway film courses. If a student achieves the required GPA for those gateway courses, they automatically move into the Film BA. Students can complete the gateway courses at either UCF or an accredited institution that offers equivalent course content.

The gateway courses are:

• FIL 1007 Foundations of Story
• FIL 2030 History of Motion Pictures
• FIL 2424 Intro to Film Production
• FIL 2107 Script Analysis

Students must achieve a combined GPA of 3.75 across these four gateway courses with a grade of at least “A-” (3.75) in FIL 2030 and FIL 2424, a grade of at least a “B” (3.0) in FIL 1007 and FIL 2107. Film BA-Pending students who fail to achieve the required GPA in the gateway courses can repeat those courses or work with their assigned Academic Success Coach to proceed to another major.