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DIVISION OF CINEMA-TELEVISION

Associate Professor Rick Worland, Division Chair

Associate Professors: Pamela Elder, Sean Griffin, Kevin Heffernan, David Sedman; Assistant Professors: Carolyn Macartney, Derek Kompare, Mark Kerins; Lecturer: Kelli Herd.

Facilities

The Division of Cinema-Television is located in the Umphrey Lee Center, which houses faculty offices, audio and video production areas, and media support areas. These include basic video/audio modules; video logging rooms; off-line editing rooms; nonlinear editing labs; film editing suites; storage and equipment checkout; digital audio rooms; editing labs; seminar room; graphics lab; viewing rooms; TV studio; and production classrooms. Two additional screening classrooms equipped for film, video, and DVD projection are located in the Greer Garson Theatre.

Admission and Financial Aid

To be admitted to the graduate studies program in Cinema/Television, an applicant must have obtained a Bachelor's degree from a four-year accredited college or university; must have achieved a B average (3.00 on a 4.00 scale) in her or his major during the last two years of undergraduate coursework; must submit recent GRE scores with verbal score achievement of 450; and must have the approval of the graduate faculty in Cinema/Television. An applicant whose G.P.A. or GRE score is below the required level may be admitted conditionally at the discretion of the graduate faculty in Cinema/Television. If a student applies with a degree from a field other than television-film, broadcasting, or telecommunications, he or she must complete two undergraduate courses: CTV 2304, Basic Video and Audio Production, and CTV 1320, Survey of Television and Media, or equivalent transfer courses approved by the Cinema/Television faculty. These two courses do not count toward graduate credit and must be passed with a grade of C or better.

Several types of financial assistance are available to help meet the needs of students admitted to the graduate program in Cinema/Television. In addition, Guaranteed Student Loans and some grants may be available to students with demonstrated need.

Degree Programs

The impact of television and film in our society is ongoing and impressive. The average viewer spends almost seven hours a day watching television. We are in the midst of a vital information-seeking age with increased leisure time and a loyalty to using that time with television. The importance of studying the phenomena of the television and film industries and their products is recognized by major educational institutions, the United States government, and even the media themselves.

The Master of Arts and Master of Fine Arts programs will provide a base for the emerging scholar and practitioner in television and film. The blending of theory and practice is vital to an understanding of the production process that leads to entertainment and educational/informational programs. Further, this program is designed to place the media in a historical and cultural context, and to give the student important critical perspectives on programming produced for television and film. This degree will provide a basis for careers in television or film and a sound grounding for the student who wishes to go on to a Ph.D. program.

The M.A. program in Cinema-Television requires two academic years of full-time study. Students select either the Research Track or the Professional Track. The Research Track culminates with a thesis and the Professional Track with a project.

M.A. Course Requirements

Core Courses (6 credit hours):

Cognate Areas (18 credit hours):

Research or Professional Track Work (12 credit hours):

Research Track

Professional Track

Total credit hours -- 36

* An internship is acceptable within these six credit hours.

The M.F.A. program in Cinema-Television is considered a terminal degree requiring two academic years of full-time study, plus a creative thesis. Students enrolling in the M.F.A. program will choose a course of study dealing specifically with their creative area of interest. The student will complete a thesis production under the direction of a faculty member, present the project before a faculty committee along with an essay detailing the concepts involved, the research necessary for the production, a production book and a post-production critique. In addition, the student will be required to take the core graduate courses and to develop a program of study in consultation with an adviser. In addition to the two years generally required for coursework completion, the M.F.A. student should allow one to two terms for the thesis project.

M.F.A. Course Requirements

Credit Hours

Total -- 36

Total credit hours -- 60

The Courses

The Division exists not only to educate professionals for the fields represented within its scope, but also to prepare any student to be a more discerning and appreciative consumer of mass communications. In this light, the Division offers graduate-level courses to students in any University graduate program.

General (CTV)

5301-5304. Topics in Mass Media. Courses for the study of timely issues.

5318-5321. Advanced Television Workshop. The workshop is a class that through various exercises and a final project, students share in varied production experiences.

5355. Graphics of Communications. Principles and practices of graphics as used in advertising and public relations primarily, and in editorial secondarily. Course covers typography, paste-up, layout, design, headline writing, and supplies to graphics industry.

5397. Mass Media and National Development. Analysis and evaluation of communications planning and policy for development and social change. Emphasis is placed on the influences acting on mass communication systems in developing countries and societies.

6313. Mass Communications Research. Survey of research methods used to assess the effects of print, broadcast, and film communications on audience attitudes, opinion, knowledge, and behavior. Basic concepts of research design and data analysis in communications research. Prerequisite: Graduate standing.

6315. Ethics of Communications. Exploration of ethical issues that are the foundation of all communications fields. Topics include free speech, privacy, government regulation, and censorship. Using a problem-solving approach, this course is designed to help students develop their own philosophical and ethical standards concerning the communications arts.

6316. Law of Communications. Exploration of the historical and philosophical bases for freedom of expression. Practical applications of the law in such areas as libel, censorship, access, privacy, obscenity, copyright, and government regulations affecting broadcasting, advertising, and the press.

6335. Mass Communications Theory. Theories and philosophies of communications systems and their roles in cultural systems; communications phenomena and principles of communicating. Prerequisite: Graduate standing.

6345. Media and Politics. Analysis of news media influence on policy formulation and election outcomes, study of techniques of campaign coverage, and candidates' treatment of the press, uses of political advertising and basic campaign techniques.

6360. Social Effects of Mass Media. Critical analysis of research on the influence of mass media messages on individuals and groups. Attention is focused on communication theory and how society puts such theories into practice in using the media for information, entertainment, and persuasion.

Advertising (CCAD)

5301-5304. Topics in Advertising. This is a series of courses that address special topics in advertising. Examples might be the changing role of cablecasting as an advertising medium, the powers of the Federal Trade Commission, the debate concerning where to advertise controversial products such as tobacco and alcohol, or a comparison of advertising creativity in the United States versus that in other nations. Not offered every term.

6300. Advertising Seminar. An intensive study of advertising, usually via a series of seminars at leading advertising agencies, corporations, and mass media outlets. Students will have the opportunity to interact with senior advertising executives on a one-to-one basis in order to understand advertising's role in society and as a business and artistic function.

6371. Radio and Television Advertising. Students learn how to create and refine film and television commercials. Emphasis is placed on creating television storyboards and writing radio continuity. An effort is made to expose students to hands-on experiences and to introduce them to the professional environment of Dallas.

Journalism (CCJN)

5301-5304. Topics in Journalism. This course is designed to provide a study and discussion setting for an issue or topic of current interest in the journalism profession. Offered on an irregular basis depending on the significance and timeliness of the topics to be studied and discussed.

5326. Broadcast Reporting. Methods of on-air expression required for broadcast news presentation. Students will practice reading on-camera and on-mike, extemporaneous speaking, and memorizing techniques. Techniques in interviewing, news anchoring, and reporting ­ both in studio and on location.

5335. TV News Production. Electronic news gathering and the writing, voicing, producing, and editing of television news stories. Research of various television formats. Students serve as on-camera reporters, writers, narrators, and producers, and use technical skills of shooting, lighting, recording, editing, and post-production.

6384. Advanced Television News. Analysis of the philosophy and ethics of television news, with emphasis on decision making and the impact of television journalism on individuals and institutions. Required of all majors.

Public Affairs and Corporate Communications (CCPA)

5301-5304. Topics in Public Affairs. Considers special topics in public affairs.

Television (CTV)

5110, 5210, 5310. Directed Studies. Opportunity for individual studies by advanced students.

5300. TV-CTV Seminar. Intensive study of an area in television-radio.

5301-5304. Topics in TV-Film. These courses address a specific subject in broadcasting and may be offered in any term.

5301-5304. Topics in Cinema. This graduate-level course focuses on a specific topic pertinent to the cinema. Topics vary from term to term, and may include the areas of film history, critical theory, the film business, etc.

5316. Producers Seminar. Lectures and discussions by both faculty and guest speakers from the industry provide an overview of the basic business and legal aspects of film and television production.

5325. Internship in TV-Cinema.

5328. Broadcast Management. This course explores the relationship between the theory and practice of broadcast and cable management with emphasis on the legal and economic constraints on these media outlets.

5339. Television Criticism. This course examines various contemporary critical methodologies as they apply to mass communications media.

5361. Broadcast Programming. This course provides an analysis of the development of program ideas and the research and strategies involved in programming media outlets.

5374. TV Production Process. This course examines the process of program production from conception to completion with an emphasis on the various elements that affect the process: staff, genre, format, and technology. A field study of a production is a required part of the course.

5390. Technology and the Mass Media. This course examines the way in which technology develops and is assimilated into the mass media.

5393. Television Production II. This course teaches basic principles and practices of electronic field production and video editing techniques. Students rotate through various exercises to become familiar with many facets of field production and post-production, including computer editing.

5395. History of Broadcasting. This course studies the origins and development of the electronic media with an emphasis on the key people, events, and issues which influenced that development.

5396. Broadcast Research Methods. This course studies different designs and methodologies employed in researching media usage, structure, and development.

5399. International Broadcasting. This course analyzes the interrelationship between broadcasting media in various areas of the world and the system of government under which they developed. Prerequisite: Permission of instructor.

6100, 6200, 6300, 6301. Thesis or Project in TV-Radio.

6303. Television Production I. Basic principles and practices of television studio production are taught while rotating students through the various studio positions in a series of television production exercises.

6328 Media Economics. Examination of corporations and industries involved in the mass media. Emphasis is on understanding the interplay of markets, buyers, sellers, consumers, and costs. Microeconomic and macroeconomic analysis are used in studying media organizations and industries.

6394. Advanced Audio. A course in the business and creative aspects of audio production.

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