MA Media Producing Degree Progression

The role of the creative producer in the entertainment industry is integral to bringing a project to fruition. This course covers both the creative and physical production timeline and provides students with an understanding of the producer's role through a semester-long team-based pitch project, which culminates in written and verbal pitch presentations. Students are encouraged to work on a project that best suits their area of interest. The course focuses on the key individuals associated with the dynamics of producing, including producer skill sets, tasks and responsibilities necessary to effectively and efficiently create a film or television project.

This course introduces professional production management.  The aim of this course is to take independent producers with a script and financing through the steps necessary to get a project “into the can.” Students will study the essential aspects of Production Management from the outset of a 6-week prep period which includes topics such as: securing funding in the bank; hiring the most appropriate department heads; creating an inspired budget; managing the money; creating a viable schedule; and managing the team toward successful execution. Students will gain a deep understanding of the various responsibilities within a producer’s purview during preproduction, on set production, through the completion of production. Film and television production have many more requirements than simply securing a camera and actors and this course will explore those management elements from the breakdown of the script to completion of principal photography. We will examine: the structure of the crew and the collaborative responsibilities of crew members; some of the legal issues of permits; union negotiations; insurance, rights, clearances and permissions; Screen Actor guild and similar global agencies requirements.

This course is an introduction to legal matters surrounding the production and distribution of film and television, including without limitation, copyrights and contract law. Through the review of customary employment, financial and key production agreements essential legal elements of film/TV production are explored. Employing these elements, students will come away with the standard structure and concepts of agreement needed to produce and distribute audio-visual works.

Script Analysis takes students through the fundamentals of script analysis and development. From generating ideas, to producing detailed script notes, to working with writers and developing narratives for a modern audience; this course is designed to provide students with a working understanding of the challenges of development and help develop the skills required to be a creative producer. Through close reading and analysis of screenplays, students will develop the skills to understand how a script works. Through a focus on the text students will see how a writer builds a story from beats to scenes to sequences and acts. Film and Television examples will be explored, as well as less conventional narratives, to provide students with the ability to analyse and generate successful narratives. Writing exercises, team assignments and providing script notes and feedback will encourage students to understand the script to screen process and experience of development from the point of view of the writer, strengthening the soft skills required to be a successful development producer.

This course is about raising money for creative endeavors in the film business. It will focus on both on the film world and the world of television. The course will cover both traditional and non-traditional financing and fundraising in the film world. At its core, this course is about developing a general understanding of fundraising and finance in the world of entertainment and refining the creative skills necessary to develop proposals that allow the student to one day realize a creative vision.

In the film world, rights need to be optioned, writers and actors hired, locations secured and production and post-production budgets put in place. When a film is completed, there is often a need for money to market the film at festivals in order to find that elusive distribution deal. The negotiation and structuring of these deals may be a humbling experience, fraught with compromises that affect the creative control over the film.

To be active in the worlds of high and low finance as they relate to the arts, producers need a knowledge of financing tools and structures. They also need a general knowledge of the current economics driving the entertainment business. They must also learn about how the tax and securities laws affect the business proposals they are developing. They must follow current trends in new technology. They must learn about foreign and domestic markets and try to spot new opportunities (and dangers) as they develop. This course is also about understanding technology and spotting new trends and new opportunities in the entertainment business.

How does a story get to market? In fact, what is “the market”? What is the role of producers, publicists, sales agents, and studio executives? This course will focus on post-production, marketing and distribution strategies for films and television shows. It will explore marketing components such as key art & trailers, advertising strategies, publicity, and audience data collection. It will look at the distribution landscape and give the student an understanding of how to plan for a successful distribution strategy for their projects. The student will learn terminology and gain a basic knowledge of financial aspects of marketing and distribution. Above all, the student will explore the role of the producer on how to best prepare to bring content to market on both traditional and emerging platforms. In addition, students will learn about the different facets of post-production.  This course will cover the many steps involved in the workflow of finishing a film or television show.  The roles of editing, VFX, music, sound editorial and mixing, and color timing will be examined, as well as best practices for deliverables that can ensure a successful marketing and distribution plan.

Students will work to identify and define a project they would like to be their required thesis project. Students have a choice of writing an academic paper, making a short film, or developing a prospectus for a film or television show. While the student’s case study is eligible as a basis for a thesis project, something new and different is preferred. Students will need to commit to a thesis project no later than the end of August. 

Students will prepare one of three options for a thesis project. Option one, an academic paper (20 pages minimum) on a subject related to producing. Option two, a short film project (5 minutes minimum) to include the following key elements: the film, the production book, the budget, and the lessons learned producing this work. Option three, a prospectus for a film or television project (short- 40 minutes or less or a feature- 75 to 210 minutes) which will include the following key elements: story outline for a documentary or narrative project - the title and movie tagline plus the story outline;  production outline – e.g. location, cast, crew, locations, equipment required, wardrobe, hair/makeup, props, set dressing, set construction, special effects; set safety outline, days in production, post-production plan, and the budget. 

This course is a critical examination of the alternative methods practiced by independent, moving image-makers and producers. We will explore the work of directors/producers who have created their own cinematic language. Via the learning platform, students will stay in constant engaged online discussion with each other contributing their interpretation of the lectures and films screened in the class modules. In the context of this exploration, the course will focus on thematic threads such as:

• Visual Poetry (Alternative Producing)
• Documentary and Hybrid Forms (Alternative Producing)
• American Independent Cinema Director/Producer Teams
• International Director/Producer Teams

In each of these areas we will focus on the evolution of the independent, underground and avant-garde film practices. This new language may be politically confrontational, aesthetically difficult, lyrical, or rhythmical, but no matter what the form, it will express the particular vision of the artist/director/producer who created it. They share very little save for their adventurous desire to reawaken those dormant visual and aural sensibilities that may have been hypnotized into years of sleep by too much commercial, mainstream media.

How have film festivals changed in the post-war period as they aspire to strike a balance between the art, spectacle, politics, and business of cinema? Why do certain films and filmmakers achieve a heightened status in global cinema while others do not? This course takes a historical and contemporary look at domestic and international film festivals and their places in defining, validating, exhibiting, distributing, and producing films that reach global markets. The course examines the roles of all those involved in the film festival circuit, including but not limited to directors, curators, juries, audiences, and filmmakers. This course will analyze the mechanics of the oldest and largest international film festivals, such as Venice, Cannes, Locarno, Berlin, Rotterdam, and Toronto. The course will also look at the inner-workings of the largest independent film festivals in the United States - South by Southwest, the Sundance Film Festival and Tribeca. Students will also explore local film cultures and industries in the African, Asian, Middle Eastern, and Latin American markets.

The New Technologies course explores emerging innovations within the film and television industry. The course focuses on Immersive Cinema, Virtual Production, and AI-assisted Storytelling. Composed of pre-recorded lecture modules, class discussions, group critiques, guest expert interviews, in-platform screenings, exercises, and a short final presentation, the course is designed to introduce students to the fundamental principles of storytelling, collaboration and production management using cutting-edge software and image-capture technologies. Students will learn to apply these technologies to their own creative producing projects. Additionally, the course covers the history and theory of New Media Technologies to provide a deeper understanding of how stories utilizing these techniques can be effectively crafted to successfully reach audiences.

Internships are an important part of a well-rounded education and can provide students with a perspective on what area of the entertainment industry they may want to pursue post-graduation. Internships can also provide students with vital professional experience and connections that they may draw upon throughout their career. Ideally, employers will also benefit from hiring interns who can bring a fresh perspective and talent to their organization.

Students can utilize resources such as Tisch Office of Career Development, Wasserman, and Interstride to search for and apply for internships. Students secure their own internships and can enroll for academic credit to fulfill one of their two elective requirements for the degree. For summer internships, students should start their search early, between January and March.

Students registered for this course are enrolled in an internship for academic credit. In these professional internships, the student's employer or supervisor evaluates the work of the student and this evaluation will be considered for the final grade, which is Pass/Fail.