JHU's best kept secret: Film major

OK, so I'm a big dork. I love going to class, I really love the school aspect of college and I truly enjoy doing my homework. No, I'm not captivated with spending hours poring over words or numbers; I'm a Film and Media Studies major and proud to be one of the happy few. If you are like most other Hopkins students, you are most likely thinking, "We have that major?" And let me be bold and tell you that if you go through four years at this institution without taking a class in the department, you will be making a huge mistake.

As a Film and Media major, the options are truly endless. Whether you are interested in making films, studying cinema history, learning about television, discussing cultural criticism or even writing your own screenplay, the professors and department directors are ecstatic to be facilitating your growth in any creative direction.

The classes offered are often interdisciplinary as well, allowing students the opportunity to mix two passions, such as French history and film, or media and technology. When I tell friends and family my class schedule for the new semester they can't help but laugh that instead of microeconomics or statistics, I plan on taking classes such as Intermedia Studio, Sports Film and one of my favorites, Sex on Television. Not only do we have to opportunity to study how film and television is made, but we are also challenged to take classes such as Film and Digital Video production where we make our own attempts at stardom.

As a very visual learner, I found myself benefitting from this very hands- on approach to learning. The lectures are mixed with film screenings and the tutorials are combined with film test shoots. While my roommate is heading off to D level to study orgo, I'm rushing over to Penn Station to film an action scene set to music. Plus, for someone who can't function any earlier than noon, most classes in the department are once a week in the afternoons, in order to provide for intense discussions and thorough periods of time to get projects accomplished.

So great, college is a time to spend doing something you love, but what about after graduation? I mean, what can you do with a degree in Film and Media Studies? The answer is, almost anything. Students go on to work for independent filmmakers, network television stations, newspapers and major movie distributors. In order to help assure that their majors will find themselves swimming in job offers, the department's heads take many important steps to helping students find internships and make crucial connections.

During Intersession for instance, a class is offered in the Writing Seminars department that takes students to New York to network with alumni who work in journalism, communications or the arts. This has provided interested students with connections to companies such as FOX News, Sotheby's, The Food Network, and GQ Magazine. This year, the Film and Media Studies program plans to hold their own Intersession class where alumni plans to give informational lectures on the media industry. This class will also travel to New York in order to visit some of these alumni at their organizations.

In addition to internship opportunities, the department has organized a list serve that they use to pass along job opportunities and contests that all majors are invited to enter. One such email recently asked for a major to be a film assistant for the TV show Elimidate which was to be filming in the Baltimore area at the end of the summer. With the department looking out for you like this, you are sure to find a career you love.

Not only are the department heads consistently working to improve the major, but the professors are some of the most passionate and animated teachers I have ever experienced. What's even better is that they bring their professional expertise to class with them as one professor has just signed a contract with Mirimax for a screenplay, while another is often solicited by PBS to make documentaries

If for some godforsaken reason you decide not to take any classes in the Film and Media Department, at least come enjoy the projects that students produce at the short film festivals held at the end of every semester. Who knows, in 10 years you may be telling your kids that you once knew the person up on that stage accepting the Academy Award.

For more information check out:

http://www.jhu.edu/english/film_media