Film

York's Department of Film is internationally recognized as one of the premier centres for film production, screenwriting and studies in film theory and history. Our professors, curriculum and facilities, housed in the largest film and theatre teaching complex in Canada, regularly attract students from around the world.

York's Department of Film gives you the opportunity to pursue practical training balanced with in-depth academic studies in the quintessential 20th-century art form. At all levels of the curriculum, courses in the creative crafts of cinematography, editing and sound, including state-of-the-art digital techniques, are offered alongside studies in the concepts and practices of screenwriting, directing and producing. Complementing these studio skills is a full roster of courses in the history, theory and criticism of the moving image, including studies in Canadian, international, documentary and alternative cinema.

In addition to courses offered in film history and theory, the department offers a wide range of project courses (documentary, experimental cinema, narrative film), and speciality courses in cinematography, editing, sound design and screenwriting.  Multidisciplinary approaches to the study of film and media are encouraged, and exposure to the Creative Arts is fostered in the Faculty of Fine Arts.

York offers degree programs in Film leading to a Bachelor of Fine Arts Honours (BFA) and Bachelor of Arts (BA).

• Concentrating in studio work (production or screenwriting) leads to a BFA in Film Production & Screenwriting.
• Concentrating in history, theory and criticism leads to a BA in Cinema and Media Studies.

Featured Facilities:

• 2,000 sq.ft soundstage/television studio
• Four screening rooms
• One 500-seat cinema and one 80-seat cinema
• Multi-track sound recording studio
• Laser disc and video projection facilities
• CFI digital media lab
• Digital audio and video editing suites (AVID and Media 100)
• Foley studio
• Video and audio dubbing areas
• Computer graphics studio
• Super 8, 16mm, Hi 8, U-matic, Betacam and digital formats
• Sound and Moving Image Library  

What makes Film unique?

Throughout the year, the James Beveridge Guest Lecture Series features presentations by guest speakers from the industry, offering Film majors an up-to-the-minute insider's look at the working world of film and television.

Each year, screenwriting and production students showcase their work in public screenings.

Films and videos by York students compete - and regularly win prizes - in national and international film festivals.

Take one of the most innovative film courses in Canada - HOLLYWOOD: OLD AND NEW. This fully online introductory course will provide web-based delivery of lectures and discussion groups complemented by the screenings and interviews of TVO's Saturday Night at the Movies. Key concepts in critical film analysis will be introduced and important themes in American Film History will be examined.

Did you know . . . . York offers a Digital Media Certificate you may also find interesting.

If you're interested in other Fine Arts programs...